RFID is a well-known technology that benefits several industries such as healthcare, retail, manufacturing, distribution, food and beverage, and many more. The benefits of adopting RFID include tracking assets and managing inventory, saving time and money through automation, improving data accuracy and availability, enhancing health and safety and more. In a nutshell, RFID is helpful to companies looking for an improved way of keeping track of important things. However, there are certain myths or misconceptions about RFID, which we want to discuss in this blog.
Rfid Is Expensive To Pilot / Try Out
The benefits of adopting RFID are numerous; however, the main challenge is deciding what’s the most affordable way to try out RFID technology for your business. Whatever you decide, just keep in mind these few things including:
- Hardware selection (RFID Tags, Readers & Antennas)
- Software selection (RFID Business Applications, RFID Middleware & Integration)
- Business Process Management
If you consider the above pointers, you might be able to jumpstart the pilot process of any RFID initiative cost-effectively. You can opt for a kick-start bundle i.e. 30-day trial access, which comes with all RFID tags, readers and more. You can also add other varieties to RFID tags and readers.
RFID Is Newer Than Barcode
You might be surprised that RFID is relatively older than a barcode. The first patent for barcode was filed in 1949, while RFID was first used in World War 2.
RFID Data Is Difficult To Manage And Integrate
RFID technology excels in capturing data quickly and efficiently, which may be otherwise expensive to do. Once the data is collected, it’s essential to integrate RFID data swiftly back to core business systems such as an ERP, WMS or MES. You can use softwares that helps to quickly integrate RFID data and filter, aggregate, and massage data to the desired format.
RFID Is Just About “IDS”
RFID has a lot in store than just the “identification” of items or assets. With the emergence of IoT, RFID technology has evolved, progressed and now is being used for numerous cases. A few use cases include:
- Capturing sensor data (Temperature, Humidity, GPS, Movement) with advanced tags and using RFID as a data medium.
- Hazardous Area Assets – Capture data from assets without human intervention.
- User Engagement – Increase User Interaction such as NFC-based marketing campaigns.
- Brand protection – Use RFID for brand protection against fake goods.
RFID Tags Can’t Scan Liquids or Metals
For a long time, it was believed that RFID tags could not be applied to liquid items. It might be true in the early 2000s, but today things have changed. Advancements in tag technology have made it possible to use RFID on liquids. These tags are slightly thicker than standard RFID tags, but they provide accurate readability.