Meeting to be held February 21 in Boston, in conjunction with RFID Smart Labels USA 2008

HERNDON, Va. (February 5, 2008) — The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI), an industry-led consortium focused on identifying and closing technology gaps, has scheduled an RFID workshop looking specifically at item-level tagging technology. The workshop will be held February 21 in Boston and is co-located with the RFID Smart Labels USA 2008 conference (http://www.idtechex.com/usa).

An iNEMI team has worked for a year to draft an Item-Level Tag (ILT) Roadmap, which attempts to identify the critical technologies and business processes that must be improved in order to drive adoption of RFID at the item level. This workshop will offer the first opportunity for a broader industry review of the draft document, and will be used to solicit input to, and feedback on, the work done to date. In particular, the iNEMI RFID team will be looking for feedback on:

Primary barriers (both strategic & tactical) that are limiting adoption
Projected future improvements in key technical and business attributes
Industry efforts recommended to close gaps and accelerate deployment

“We’ve seen a lot of activity relating to RFID technology in recent years, and it is occurring across a number of industry segments, driven by a need for asset tracking, process validation and logistics,” said Jim McElroy, CEO of iNEMI. “However, adoption to date has been for high-value items that demonstrate early return on investment, and tagging is being done at the case or pallet level but typically not at the item level for high-volume cost-sensitive applications. There are certainly advantages to being able to track individual products through the supply chain, from manufacturing to the warehouse, to the store shelf. If, however, RFID is to become ubiquitous in commercial arenas, such as for low-cost consumer items, significant progress must be made to close a number of technology and infrastructure gaps. The roadmap we have developed is intended to identify the gaps that are holding back item-level RFID deployment and to recommend solutions for eliminating those gaps.”

McElroy notes that the electronics industry has two levels of interest in RFID ILT technology. The first is electronics manufacturers that want to use RFID technology to streamline their processes and improve productivity. The second is those companies that are interested in creating RFID solutions that can be offered to a number of industries.

Workshop Details

The iNEMI RFID ILT Workshop is scheduled for Thursday, February 21, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the Boston Marriott Copley (110 Huntington Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts). Registration is free and conference registration (for the RFID Smart Labels conference) is not required. Those attending the conference are encouraged to participate in the workshop to develop a stronger appreciation for gaps impacting RFID ILT deployment. Anyone interested in attending is requested to register for iNEMI planning purposes. For additional information and online registration, go to:
http://www.inemi.org/cms/calendar/RFID-ILT_RM_Workshop_Feb_08.html

About iNEMI

The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative’s mission is to identify and close technology gaps, which includes the development and integration of the electronics industry supply infrastructure. This industry-led consortium is made up of approximately 70 manufacturers, suppliers, industry associations and consortia, government agencies and universities. iNEMI roadmaps the needs of the electronics industry, identifies gaps in the technology infrastructure, establishes implementation projects to eliminate these gaps (both business and technical), and stimulates standards activities to speed the introduction of new technologies. The consortium also works with government agencies, universities and other funding agencies to set priorities for future industry needs and R&D initiatives. iNEMI is based in Herndon, Va., with regional offices in Shanghai, China and Limerick, Ireland. For additional information about iNEMI, visit http://www.inemi.org.