At this year`s Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, platinum exhibitor Softworx, SSA Global regional distributor and member of EOH Group of Companies, shares with delegates why RFID brings greater intelligence and productivity to the supply chain.
Jane Thomson, managing director, Softworx, regional SSA global distributor, says that RFID offers benefits such as the ability to automate inventory handling and reduce labour; facilitation of the flow and exchange of data as it moves through the supply chain from point of production to point of consumption; the provision of real-time status and visibility, improved service levels, reduced loss and waste, and improved safety and security.
"RFID technology is enabled by a combination of RFID tags and an open, global network for identifying goods with those tags. With microchips embedded in various types of media, companies can track any type of good that has an RFID tag attached to it, regardless of where that product is in the product lifecycle or its location in the supply chain," says Thomson.
She says RFID goes beyond bar code technology by bringing greater intelligence and productivity to the supply chain. "It is an `always-on`, pervasive technology that allows supply chain partners to gain visibility regarding where their products are in the supply chain."
Unlike bar code readers, which Thomson says can only read one tag at a time, RFID can read multiple tags automatically at the same time, which in turn improves productivity by eliminating manual scan processes. Plus, RFID provides the ability to track inventory at the item level, providing intelligent real-time inventory status. She says vendors are recognising the importance of RFID technology in optimising supply chain performance and have taken the initiative by building RFID capabilities within supply chain solutions.
But, as much as we can wax lyrical about the technology, Thomson says it has to impact the bottom line and assist organisations to reduce costs, increase turnover and gain a competitive-edge.
"It is only when this happens that customers will be truly interested in what technology such as RFID has to offer. If they can see a difference, companies will be far more compelled to examine existing business processes and reinvent or realign them to take full advantage of a new technology."
Industry experts believe that much of the impetus for future waves of innovation in RFID can be credited to the mandates set forth by major retailers around the world. These mandates have created a ripple effect across the entire supply chain industry. Mandates have caused all supply chain partners including manufacturers, packagers, distributors, logistics and transportation agents, retailers, and wholesalers to examine ways in which they can improve the efficiency of their own supply chain systems.
The general feeling is that RFID technology is already gaining good traction in certain areas of the supply chain such as warehouse management and inventory control. However, most feel that we are far from a fully integrated supply chain model. Although many technology and business leaders across supply chain enterprises agree that RFID offers tremendous promise, some argue that their short-term return on investment does not justify the initial cost of adoption-process re-engineering, re-tooling, and integration. Others are hesitant to make decisions without stronger standards, and most worry about privacy and related public relations issues. Despite these concerns, analysts have predicted tremendous growth for RFID in supply chain management during the next several years.
For more information, visit Softworx, at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, Cape Town Convention Centre from 31 July - 2 August 2006 or visit www.esoftworx.co.za.
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Delivering business solutions with a difference.
Softworx is a successful South-African business applications company that prides itself in being able to deliver world-class products to its extensive customer base, which includes a number of Fortune 500 companies. In addition, Softworx supports clients in industries ranging from manufacturing, retail, distribution and financial to supporting various government entities. The company is dedicated to marketing, implementing and providing support for its range of complimentary software products to medium and large enterprises that require effective solutions to optimise their business processes.
Softworx has positioned itself as a leading provider of business applications in South Africa specialising in end-to-end business solutions. The company prides itself in being able to deliver true value to its customers through the implementation of business solutions based on a powerful combination of leading edge products and consultancy. As a wholly owned subsidiary of EOH, Softworx has increased the number of services and products that can be offered to its customers from within the group.
EOH
EOH is a business and technology solutions provider creating lifelong partnerships by developing business and IT strategies, supplying and implementing solutions and managing enterprise-wide business systems and processes for medium to large clients. EOH operates in the following three clusters of business units as a fully integrated business:
Consulting - Concentrated under the EOH Consulting brand are business units offering services ranging from strategic and business process consulting, project services, change management, supply chain optimisation and education. The EOH Consulting business unit is responsible for delivering IT solutions that make business sense. We focus on providing remarkable technology solutions using robust methodologies to perform along the following four dimensions of IT excellence:
* Business-alignment
* Quality
* Risk management
* Cost management
Technology - Through a number of subsidiary companies, EOH is able to sell, implement, and support a range of world class business applications including enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management, business intelligence, advanced planning and scheduling, e-commerce and manufacturing execution systems.
Outsourcing - EOH offers comprehensive maintenance and support of client`s IT infrastructure and applications through the rendering of full IT outsourcing, application hosting and managed services. In addition EOH offers full business process outsourcing services.
EOH has a presence in all major centres in South Africa and Botswana, and operates in the rest of Africa.
Infor
Infor is one of the largest global software providers focused on delivering world-class enterprise applications to select verticals in the manufacturing and distribution industries. Infor delivers integrated solutions that address the essential challenges its customers face in areas such as supply chain planning, enterprise asset management, relationship management, demand management, ERP, warehouse management, and business intelligence. With more than 3 100 employees in 50 global offices, Infor provides enterprise solutions to almost 24 700 customers in over 100 countries. For additional information, visit http://www.infor.com/.
SSA Global
SSA Global (NASDAQ: SSAG) is a leading provider of extended ERP solutions for manufacturing, distribution, retail, services and public organizations worldwide. In addition to core ERP applications, SSA Global offers a full range of integrated extension solutions including corporate performance management, customer relationship management, product lifecycle management, supply chain management and supplier relationship management. Headquartered in Chicago, SSA Global has over 50 locations worldwide and its product offerings are used by customers in over 90 countries. For additional information, visit the SSA Global Web site at www.ssaglobal.com.
SSA Global is the corporate brand for product lines and subsidiaries of SSA Global Technologies, Inc. SSA Global, SSA Global Technologies and SSA GT are trademarks of SSA Global Technologies, Inc. Other products mentioned in this document are registered, trademarked or service marked by their respective owners.
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