At RFID
World in Dallas last month (and most likely at RFID
Journal Live this week), attendees were looking for
some winner in the battle of the frequencies. What
should the pharma industry adopt for the item level,
high-frequency (HF) or ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID?
During RFID World's Rapid-Fire Roundtable, for
instance, participants discussed whether there
was any resolution to this debate. "We believe
UHF will be the dominant technology in the supply
chain," said Jan-Willem Reynaerts of NXP Semiconductors.
"There have been strides in near-field UHF, namely
Gen2-compliant products."
However, Diana Hage, COO of ODIN Technologies, said
that when the RFID deployment services and software
provider tested UHF and HF at the item level, it found
"HF better suited for item-level pharmaceuticals." In
2006, "near-field UHF in commercial form was not
available for us to test," she explained.
Others felt that the debate itself could detract from
industry progress. "We don't need end-users to argue
about frequencies," said George Reynolds, vice
president, worldwide sales and marketing, for
Avery-Dennison. "We can focus on solutions to
business-case needs."
Reynaerts
of NXP seemed somewhat in agreement. "No one will win.
There is a good reason why multiple technologies
exist."
Pfizer hasn't waited for the debate to end before
taking action. Already a leader in RFID implementation
with its 100% RFID tagging of Viagra, the drug maker
explains in the May 2007 issue of PMP News that
its "data indicate [that] a one-size-fits-all approach
on frequency remains unproven, underdeveloped, and too
immature for the pharmaceutical supply chain," reports
Tim Marsh, senior manager, Pfizer global package
technology. Pfizer chose to split frequencies by using
UHF tags on cases and pallets and by using HF tags for
the item level. Item-level labels carry a redundant EPC
2D bar code, while shipping cases carry a linear bar
code.
Viagra's pilot data indicate that "an HF-frequency
approach is desirable for item-level applications
combined with a 2D redundant EPC bar code.
Unfortunately, it also calls into question the selection
of UHF and linear bar codes at the shipping-case level
with failure rates being far higher than expected,"
Marsh reports.
Pfizer will move to UHF Gen2 for case and pallet
tagging of Viagra in 2007 and expects to see
improvements in UHF encode and read performance, Marsh
writes in the article. A change to the redundant linear
EPC bar code on the case and the UHF tag placement are
also under consideration in 2007. As an end-user,
however, Pfizer will continue to evaluate all
technologies to determine best fit for purpose as we
proceed with future patient safety initiatives.
Given its comprehensive approach to RFID
implementation, Pfizer's findings will surely help shape
the industry's future course with RFID. The lesson to be
learned from Pfizer? Don't wait for industry to settle
the frequency debate. Jump in and start testing HF and
UHF on your own packages so you are familiar with the
strengths and weaknesses of each. And don't wait for
item-level standards to be finalized. By getting
involved now, you may be able to help shape those
standards, as Pfizer surely is.
Daphne
Allen
Editor
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