The Rush to RFID: Wal-Mart Suppliers Face 90-Day RFID Deadline; Xterprise Inc. Works Quietly to Prepare Many For "Simple RFID``
DALLAS--Oct. 18, 2004--With Wal-Mart Stores Inc.`s (NYSE:WMT) RFID compliance deadline just 90 days away, many of the retail giant`s suppliers face certain non-compliance amid an endless barrage of hype and scare tactics, all of which are unnecessary, says Dean Frew, founder and president of Dallas-based Xterprise Inc., an RFID supply chain solution provider.
The company, which publicly launches today after more than 18 months of quietly serving customers, considers itself the voice of reason in the often cloudy RFID solution deployment race.
Xterprise Inc. began in late 2002 to cultivate a new approach to RFID supply-chain implementations. With RFID technologies and a rational view of how to quickly deliver a clear-cut compliance path - minus the multi-million dollar process so often prescribed by system vendors and consultants, said Frew.
"This most active segment in the marketplace - retail suppliers - need a sane, reasonable and rationale voice to help articulate what RFID compliance is really all about," he said. "Compliance is more than throwing millions of dollars into technology and recommended re-engineering efforts. It can be a simple process that can deliver sustainable ROI as shipment volumes increase. We know, because we`ve been working with many of the Wal-Mart suppliers to help design and deploy their RFID solutions."
Today, Xterprise Inc. launches XARM(TM), a combination of hardware, software and services that can be designed and deployed in as little as 90 days from "go." XARM includes RFID engineering services, solution design and project planning, RFID-enhanced process flows, RFID hardware and software installation, legacy system integration, material handling installation, training, field testing and support.
"This drop-in solution is scalable," said Frew. "Whether a supplier has 50,000 cases to ship in the pilot program, or needs higher levels of automation to support 5 million cases per year, XARM can take it on. We give suppliers an inexpensive stopgap solution that doesn`t require complete re-engineering of their distribution facility." He added that if retail suppliers start now, they can have solutions in place to meet their retailers` compliance deadlines.
"This is about putting tags on boxes - period - and then tracking them through the supply chain," Frew said. "That`s why we take a practical approach to RFID. Xterprise has determined exactly what steps must be taken to get an effective system in place, fast. And we`ve crystallized those steps into our XARM solution."
Xterprise Inc. operates from its Dallas headquarters, located just north of the Dallas North Tollway and Arapaho Road. It also operates a Dallas-area distribution center where XARM is labeling hundreds of packaged goods with RFID labels. Xterprise is working with some of the nation`s largest firms to develop solutions for RFID labeling of packaged liquids, refrigerated products, consumer packaged goods, hard goods and more.
With RFID, small tags are attached to products, pallets or assets. These tags receive and then re-transmit radio waves, which can be picked up by an RFID reader. Using these tags, computer systems can track detailed product information, as well as when the product is shipped, received at the store, and more. Wal-Mart, Target Corp. and Albertson`s have asked suppliers to affix RFID tags to the cases and pallets of goods they ship to distribution centers around Dallas-Fort Worth-area distribution centers by as early as Jan. 1, 2005.
Xterprise Inc. offers a complete set of Electronic Product Code(TM) and RFID solutions for retail suppliers, pharmaceutical companies, third-party logistics providers and others. Xterprise specializes in "rational RFID," which includes RFID engineering studies, RFID and warehousing management systems implementations and complete RFID compliance deployments. These include XARM(TM), which helps retail suppliers efficiently meet the demands of their retail customers for RFID capability. A sponsor of EPCglobal Inc., Xterprise was one of the first solution integrators selected by Alien Technology as a preferred partner. Xterprise was formed in 2002.
For more information, visit www.xterprise.com or call 972-690-9460, ext. 300, or inquire at info@xterprise.com.
Contact:
The TransSynergy Group
Roy Miller, 972-716-4070 x235
rmiller@transsynergy.com
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