Data gathering developments

As the use of RFID labelling spreads, the pharmaceutical industry is likely to see considerable benefits from this technology, says Richard Scott of SATO UK

In the general consumer goods supply chain, where RFID (radio frequency identification) is being implemented at a fast pace, the return on investment is realised from the improvements given by automatic and real-time data gathering - for example, inventory tracking, replenishment, shrinkage reduction, warehouse handling cost reduction and stocktaking speed.

But the pharmaceutical industry has unique benefits to gain in addition, and it is likely that item-level tagging (as distinct from case and pallet) will be manifested here first.

Probably the most discussed capability relates to the combating of the counterfeiting of drugs. Barcodes and holograms may be easily copied but the complex chip-held data will provide a far more secure environment.

The FDA is taking a guiding role here and pilots are already underway in the UK as well as the US. The obvious candidates such as Viagra are included, but more common pain-relievers are also involved in the first implementations.

more efficient recalls

Because individual items and product batches can be identified easily by RFID technology, product recalls involving a small volume of goods can be handled far more efficiently, while out of date product can be located and removed from the supply chain rapidly.

Applying tags to drug packs or bottles will also form another step towards the reduction of errors at the point of dispensing where patient ID (which could be an RFID-enabled wristband) and the drug data will be required to match.

Work remains to be done to determine the tag types and radio frequencies that will provide the best performance, and much worldwide activity is being devoted to the development of labels specifically suited to the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors.

Ultimately, RFID technology is likely to become as commonplace as the barcode label. Pallet labelling, as expected, has led the way. Early adopters are using existing proven chips that will soon be superseded by more efficient silicon designed via international agreement led by the Electronic Product Code Global organisation. This pioneering work has provided the practical experience that will assist future implementation.

Proving that an RFID label or tag will attain the end-user's performance standard can be done only by testing it in the real environment. Some surprising anomalies are being discovered: products that were expected to be challenging have presented no difficulty, but sometimes solutions have had to be found to the tagging of commodities previously considered to be 'co-operative'. Short-circuiting the trialling stage is likely to lead to trouble!

A competent RFID label supplier will be able to demonstrate active, in-depth involvement in the testing of tag performance on a wide range of commodities. Manufacture of labels has already moved from pilot level volumes to operational level.

full speed development

Meeting the necessary regulations has involved equal inputs of mechanical, electronic and RF engineering. The use of wireless technology to write to an RFID chip within the foreign physical environment of the printer is achieved only by the most experienced and technically able providers. Development in this area is running at full speed to match the advancing industry requirements.

A high proportion of barcode labelling systems employ automatic print-and-apply equipment and these set-ups have their own demands when RFID is added to their features. The minimum ability of being able to reject a 'bad' tag is necessary and the time taken to write data followed by verification inevitably reduces throughput. However, print-and-apply solutions are already in use and the refinement of the best solutions for effective working is taking place concurrently.

rapid changes

During the introduction of any high-tech initiative there is a flurry of technical activity with firmware and software changing rapidly. Both easy-to-use graphical interfaces and hard-code software need to be RFID capable, especially for the construction of the advantageous, but sometimes complex, EPC systems.

Finally, detailed project specification has proved essential for any implementation, as is confirmation that partners and suppliers can deliver their products now or demonstrate achievable availability times.

By this time next year, it will be full steam ahead and no looking back!