Pharmaceutical and Medical Packaging News
Magazine
PMPN Article Index
Originally Published PMPN July 2005
Track & Trace
RFID: Is it the Magic Bullet?
RFID is one weapon in an arsenal of track-and-trace solutions.
Narendra Srivatsa PhD
Business Development Manager, Brand Authentication
New Jersey Packaging
Significant investments from a number of companies has allowed RFID to take on a life of its own as the “magic bullet” to address counterfeiting and diversion. However, RFID by itself cannot resolve all of the brand protection issues for pharmaceutical manufacturers.
There are many different tools available today with significantly lower costs and fewer issues than RFID. Used by themselves, in combination with each other, and in combination with RFID, these tools can provide important efficiencies that will help guard against pharmaceutical product fraud and maintain consumer confidence and safety.
THE PROLIFERATION OF RFID
RFID is entering a market phase where its volumes are increasing dramatically. Texas Instruments alone claims it may sell more than 500 million RFID tags this year. The primary markets for RFID are fast-moving consumer goods and goods provided to the U.S. Department of Defense. It is anticipated that the pharmaceuticals sector will be among the top-three users.
In the pharmaceuticals market, the use of RFID is currently being driven by supply-chain mandates from such sources as Wal-Mart, Target, and other large companies. These mandates require drug manufacturers to use RFID at the case and pallet level for consumer healthcare products and on the item level for regulated Class 2 drugs. FDA is also driving use after its 2004 report, “Combating Counterfeit Drugs.”
The key business driver for these mandates is the supply-chain efficiencies accomplished through RFID. The success of recent RFID implementations is mixed, as reported by Wal-Mart at the recent RFID World conference. Wal-Mart’s top 100 suppliers (from all market sectors) had successful RFID read rates from 70 to 100%, depending on tags used and materials transported in the case (e.g., liquids metal, etc.). Most of the supplier read rates in the Wal-Mart study were reportedly in the 90% range.
At the same conference, Purdue Pharma reported moving to a near-100% read rate for its RFID implementation for Oxycontin. With some additional changes, Purdue expects to be able to achieve a 100% readability goal.
A TIME-SENSITIVE ISSUE
Given the current threats of counterfeiting and diversion, can companies afford to wait for full implementation? Even though RFID adoption will probably be hastened thanks to emerging Gen2 interoperability standards from EPCglobal, pharmaceutical manufacturers would benefit from taking a layered security approach using RFID and other tools. Pharmaceutical companies can let consumers know that they are attempting to ensure that consumers get the right product. These efforts cost only a fraction of what drug companies spend on developing the brand image.
A CUSTOMIZED APPROACH
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| Figure 1. Click to enlarge. |
By examining a supply chain within the pharmaceutical industry, we can see various steps that could require different elements of security. Different drugs see variations of the supply chain drawn in Figure 1. Some drugs, for instance, go directly from plant to hospital to consumer. Regardless of the process, by the time the consumer gets the drug, it has moved through more than one intermediary.
At every stage, there are different aspects to consider, such as using automation for detection and overt and covert features for identification. A customized approach, depending on the supply chain, is necessary for individual products. According to Figures 2 and 3, each security feature must be evaluated for its effectiveness.
READILY AVAILABLE TOOLS
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| Figure 2. Click to enlarge. |
A number of different tools are available that provide authentication benefits across the different stages of the supply chain (see Figure 4). When layered with RFID, these tools provide significant brand protection:
Holography. Featuring specialized coating technologies, holographic images can include embedded messages, bar codes, photographs, and other elements.
Taggants. Generic taggants work with ultraviolet or infrared light and can be specially supplied for use in high-security applications. Assigned-group-code or individual-code taggants work with spectroscopic signatures and other techniques.
Serialization. Random serialization, which can use Reduced Space Symbology as the data carrier, can provide such pertinent information as lot code and expiration date with data management and additional functions.
Color Shift. Unique colors can be assigned to individual companies.
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| Figure 3. Click to enlarge. |
Security Printing. Microtext printed with reactive inks can be coded to work only with select pens. Up to 20-layer watermarks are also available.
Tamper Evidence. Frangible materials leave behind a signature code. Patterned adhesives are available.
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| Figure 4. Click to enlarge. |
Specialty Substrates. Magnetic threads that are readable with a unique device, reactive inks that are coded to work only with specific pens, and embedded taggants allow authentication without altering labeling.
RFID can provide supply-chain efficiencies. But it is just one weapon in the arsenal of products that can be used to protect products, company reputations, and consumers.
Narendra Srivatsa holds a PhD in chemical engineering from SUNY at Buffalo and a Bachelor of Technology in chemical engineering from I.I.T. Madras, India. A subsidiary of Menasha Corp., New Jersey Packaging provides packaging and labeling services.
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