The Dayton Area Shines as an RFID Leader

Author: Vikram Sethi, Kevin P. Duffy

June 2008

Effective and efficient supply chain performance is an issue of great importance to today’s organization (both within the business sector as well as the government, or defense, sector).  Spoilage within the supply chain has long plagued organizations, whether it is caused by theft, breakage, or the misplacement of materials and products in organizational warehouses.  The introduction of AIDC (automatic identification data collection) technology, such as bar code scanning or RFID, to the supply chain is expected to assist businesses in maintaining tighter inventory levels, gaining greater supply chain visibility, and providing better service to their customers.  Finally, these technologies are expected to greatly reduce spoilage within the firm.  RFID (radio frequency identification), one type of AIDC technology, is a technology which is attracting a great deal of attention from numerous sectors, including business, government, and academic researchers.

It will come as no surprise to many in the Miami Valley that Dayton is one of the leaders in researching and promoting the usage of RFID technology.  In fact, the Dayton Development Coalition has identified information technology – and in particular, AIDC technology – as one of their four targeted growth areas.  This target is especially appropriate when one considers a that a number of companies in the area are highly involved with these technologies, and RFID technology, in particular.  Further evidence in support of building a strong technology foundation can be found in the City of Dayton’s decision to approve a commitment of $1.4 million to fund the Dayton RFID Incubator Corporation (DRIC) over a four year period.  The RFID Incubator provides support for the City’s goal of assuming a leadership role in exploring, developing, and promoting the technology.

The leading role which the Dayton area is taking in RFID was apparent as the Dayton region was on full display at the recently concluded RFID Live! 2008 conference in Las Vegas.  The conference was held at The Venetian, beginning with preconference seminars on Wednesday, April 16.  Preconference topics included RFID applications in Health Care, Overcoming Food Quality and Safety Concerns with RFID, and The Business Case for Using RFID in Flight.  The two-day conference followed on April 17 and 18.  It attracted more than 3,300 attendees from around the world, RFID Journal LIVE! was the largest RFID industry event ever.  The conference attracts RFID users, providers, and investors globally and is the premier event for education, information exchange, and providing news of industry advances. (For those who may be interested in learning more, additional information concerning RFID Live! can be accessed at http://www.rfidjournalevents.com/live/.)

In addition to seminar presentations, the conference attracted 170 exhibitors to the show floor to showcase their products and offerings.  The Dayton-region was well represented in the exhibitor space by the following companies:

•    Alien Technology:  One of the busiest booths in the conference was Alien Technology.  Thirty-five executives from Alien were on the floor to respond to attendee questions and describe their products and services.  Alien was the premier sponsor of the event.
•    Avery Dennison:  With two large displays and booths, Avery Dennison was a major attraction of the event.  RFID printers and printing technologies drew a large number of attendees.
•    CDO Technologies:  As one of the largest integrator of RFID technologies, CDO Technologies served the DOD attendees in describing how their integration capabilities were well ahead of the market.
•    Repacorp:  Repacorp presence was as the largest convertor of RFID tags for Alien Technology.  Their capabilities for providing custom tags was well received at the event.
•    NCR Corp.:  NCR point of sales and RFID solutions built on the Teradata platform are unique and attracted the retail industry.
•    Wright State University:  With RFID educational programs and research centers, Wright State University attracted large number of attendees exploring education opportunities and research programs.

This level of presence from a single region at any event is significant.  Dayton is well leading the RFID industry and quietly influencing how the market evolves.  In return, the prominence of AIDC technologies, and RFID as one of the leading AIDC technologies, promises to highlight further the important initiatives being undertaken in the Dayton area.