RFID hampered by skill shortage

A new survey shows that a shortage of skilled RFID workers has hindered the deployment of RFID systems in North America and inflated RFID labour costs, reports Business Computer Review.

According to the report, 75% of 80 technology companies surveyed said there were too few people with RFID technology skills, with 80% saying this skill shortage would affect their adoption of RFID.

This is a sharp increase from a year ago, when only 53% of companies said the lack of skilled people would negatively affect their RFID adoption.

SkyeTek is seeing continued market adoption of its RFID authentication solution to help companies in healthcare and other industries prevent counterfeiting of branded consumables, reports TMC Net.

There is a growing need for consumable revenue assurance, safety, brand integrity, and quality in the market, so producers can assure customers that goods meet the manufacturer`s standards for quality and safety, SkyeTek says.

Manufacturers tag consumable goods with a passive RFID tag that is read and authenticated by a reader that will identify counterfeit products and second hand tags.

From April 2006, McCarran Airport in Las Vegas is to use RFID to track bags checked in at hotels on the strip at a cost of $20.

RFID Journal says the Venetian and the Luxor will be the first two hotels where the off-site check-in service will be made available.

Luggage will be collected from the hotels, scanned, and the scans associated with the unique serial number encoded in the bag`s RFID tag. Airlines will then pick up the luggage and put it on a plane. If necessary, the RFID tag in the luggage will be checked again as it moves through the baggage system to confirm the bag has been scanned for explosives and is safe.

Active RFID Systems and mobile chipmaker Broadcom have announced they will jointly develop and sell low cost WiFi-enabled RFID tags that will be interoperable with all WiFi systems.

Computer Business Review says the Broadcom-powered WiFi tag will be able to track assets within an enterprise`s WiFi network and will have several years of battery life.