Publix to participate in RFID project to test use of data
Publix to participate in RFID project to test use of data
A six-month RFID project has been launched by the University of Florida's Center for Food Distribution & Retailing in Gainesville, FL, that is designed to actually use the data that are being collected and see how they help supply chain visibility between the supplier and retailer.
Publix Super Markets, based in Lakeland, FL, has volunteered to be the retailer for this project. All tracked shipments will be received at the Publix distribution center in Lakeland.
Tanimura & Antles Tom Casas, who is deeply involved in radio frequency identification research, said that this really is a "unique opportunity. Its not just more of the same. We are going to be working with other suppliers and a retailer, and really testing the EPCglobal Network."
T&A has been a leader in RFID research, as has been Mr. Casas, the firms vice president of information and technology, who is also serving as chairman of the Produce Marketing Associations RFID task force. The Salinas grower-shipper has been working with Wal-Mart and other retailers for the past year on issues related to product flow and the ability of the equipment to work within the produce environment.
That is very important information and we are continuing that work, but this project with the University of Florida is centered around the data that are collected and the data flow.
The six-month project will measure how efficiently the readers are operating, but more central to the work will be what is done with that data once they are collected, how well the EPCglobal Network works and how the various entities can use the data once they are disseminated.
Mr. Casas said that getting the reads is of course very important, and that is the foundation that will make everything else work. But it is no secret that the use of the data is where I am going to get my [return on investment]. The winners are going to be the companies that make the best choices [with regard to how they use the data].
As a case in point, the T&A executive relayed his involvement in a PMA RFID Task Force meeting within the last couple of weeks. During the meeting, the group went to a Wal-Mart store to actually see an RFID system in operation. Its one thing to talk about it; its another to actually see it in operation. Its not just theory anymore.
While observing RFID in action, Mr. Casas realized that hed like to see a reader placed at the door of a cooler so he can know when his product went into cold storage and when it came out. That is information that is collectible and usable. I also like the idea of once you are measuring something, everyone knows that and they tend to perform better.
As proposed by the university, the Florida pilot program is called Visibility Validated, or V2, and will measure the impact of improved supply chain visibility between suppliers and retailers. The V2 project is focused on the publishing of observation events to a virtual test bed simulation of the EPCglobal Network.
Besides T&A, the other produce suppliers involved are Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc. in Coral Gables, FL, and A. Duda & Sons in Oviedo, FL.
The suppliers will tag cases and pallets of fresh produce for shipment to Publix, with each pallet containing 70 to 100 cases. In Florida, Del Monte will tag shipments of pineapple, while Duda will tag celery. In California, Tanimura & Antle will tag shipments of cauliflower.
Mr. Casas told The Produce News Aug. 31 that the project was already under way.
Each step of the distribution chain is duplicated in the [Center for Food Distribution & Retailing] laboratory at the university and serves to set the benchmark of the 'ideal conditions, said Dr. Jean-Pierre Emond, co-director of the University of Florida center involved in the effort and the lead investigator of V2. These results will be analyzed and compared to those obtained from real shipments between suppliers and the Publix distribution center. Also, the CFDR staff will be carefully studying any discrepancies between what was shipped and what was read at reception.
The same press release that quoted Dr. Emond also included a statement from Publix Business IT Manager Terri Crawford. Publix has been watching the RFID arena for some time now and joined EPCglobal in June 2004. Publix supports the adoption of RFID and the EPCglobal Network within the supply chain and wants to help its suppliers to be successful in its adoption, but we are not mandating RFID compliance at this time. Our interest in this study is to assess the impact and benefit to the business processes for both Publix and our suppliers.
Dr. Emond told a Florida newspaper that he was splitting the project into two parts and will publish the first results by the end of the year. He also indicated that the second half of the project would rely on the results of the first half to further refine the pilot program. Mr. Casas welcomed the initiative by the University of Florida, as he said that academic involvement tends to keep the research honest.
He explained that when buyers and suppliers work together, they often see things through the filters of their ongoing relationship and what they would like to have happen. University personnel are much more objective and offer a different perspective, he said.
Another academic institution the University of Wisconsin-Madison just announced an RFID project of its own, which will be open to firms around the country. The university opened a lab in August to study how to make RFID work better.
RFID technology and applications are revolutionizing supply-chain management, and are enabling companies to obtain an enormous amount of data in a short period of time, Paul Peercy, dean of UWs College of Engineering, was quoted as saying in a local newspaper.
More than 40 companies have contributed a total of $500,000 to start the lab, and the university kicked in another $62,000. The lab has been designed to allow other companies to pay for individual research projects, giving them access to top-notch scientists without having to fund their own lab.
Publix Super Markets, based in Lakeland, FL, has volunteered to be the retailer for this project. All tracked shipments will be received at the Publix distribution center in Lakeland.
Tanimura & Antles Tom Casas, who is deeply involved in radio frequency identification research, said that this really is a "unique opportunity. Its not just more of the same. We are going to be working with other suppliers and a retailer, and really testing the EPCglobal Network."
T&A has been a leader in RFID research, as has been Mr. Casas, the firms vice president of information and technology, who is also serving as chairman of the Produce Marketing Associations RFID task force. The Salinas grower-shipper has been working with Wal-Mart and other retailers for the past year on issues related to product flow and the ability of the equipment to work within the produce environment.
That is very important information and we are continuing that work, but this project with the University of Florida is centered around the data that are collected and the data flow.
The six-month project will measure how efficiently the readers are operating, but more central to the work will be what is done with that data once they are collected, how well the EPCglobal Network works and how the various entities can use the data once they are disseminated.
Mr. Casas said that getting the reads is of course very important, and that is the foundation that will make everything else work. But it is no secret that the use of the data is where I am going to get my [return on investment]. The winners are going to be the companies that make the best choices [with regard to how they use the data].
As a case in point, the T&A executive relayed his involvement in a PMA RFID Task Force meeting within the last couple of weeks. During the meeting, the group went to a Wal-Mart store to actually see an RFID system in operation. Its one thing to talk about it; its another to actually see it in operation. Its not just theory anymore.
While observing RFID in action, Mr. Casas realized that hed like to see a reader placed at the door of a cooler so he can know when his product went into cold storage and when it came out. That is information that is collectible and usable. I also like the idea of once you are measuring something, everyone knows that and they tend to perform better.
As proposed by the university, the Florida pilot program is called Visibility Validated, or V2, and will measure the impact of improved supply chain visibility between suppliers and retailers. The V2 project is focused on the publishing of observation events to a virtual test bed simulation of the EPCglobal Network.
Besides T&A, the other produce suppliers involved are Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A. Inc. in Coral Gables, FL, and A. Duda & Sons in Oviedo, FL.
The suppliers will tag cases and pallets of fresh produce for shipment to Publix, with each pallet containing 70 to 100 cases. In Florida, Del Monte will tag shipments of pineapple, while Duda will tag celery. In California, Tanimura & Antle will tag shipments of cauliflower.
Mr. Casas told The Produce News Aug. 31 that the project was already under way.
Each step of the distribution chain is duplicated in the [Center for Food Distribution & Retailing] laboratory at the university and serves to set the benchmark of the 'ideal conditions, said Dr. Jean-Pierre Emond, co-director of the University of Florida center involved in the effort and the lead investigator of V2. These results will be analyzed and compared to those obtained from real shipments between suppliers and the Publix distribution center. Also, the CFDR staff will be carefully studying any discrepancies between what was shipped and what was read at reception.
The same press release that quoted Dr. Emond also included a statement from Publix Business IT Manager Terri Crawford. Publix has been watching the RFID arena for some time now and joined EPCglobal in June 2004. Publix supports the adoption of RFID and the EPCglobal Network within the supply chain and wants to help its suppliers to be successful in its adoption, but we are not mandating RFID compliance at this time. Our interest in this study is to assess the impact and benefit to the business processes for both Publix and our suppliers.
Dr. Emond told a Florida newspaper that he was splitting the project into two parts and will publish the first results by the end of the year. He also indicated that the second half of the project would rely on the results of the first half to further refine the pilot program. Mr. Casas welcomed the initiative by the University of Florida, as he said that academic involvement tends to keep the research honest.
He explained that when buyers and suppliers work together, they often see things through the filters of their ongoing relationship and what they would like to have happen. University personnel are much more objective and offer a different perspective, he said.
Another academic institution the University of Wisconsin-Madison just announced an RFID project of its own, which will be open to firms around the country. The university opened a lab in August to study how to make RFID work better.
RFID technology and applications are revolutionizing supply-chain management, and are enabling companies to obtain an enormous amount of data in a short period of time, Paul Peercy, dean of UWs College of Engineering, was quoted as saying in a local newspaper.
More than 40 companies have contributed a total of $500,000 to start the lab, and the university kicked in another $62,000. The lab has been designed to allow other companies to pay for individual research projects, giving them access to top-notch scientists without having to fund their own lab.
