By Robert Hoskins

Feb 6,2007_Manufacturers are showing signs of significant maturation in their approach to RFID. Penetration of RFID into the manufacturing sector is only 3% or 4% today. But growth is strong -- over 112% in 2007 -- and the average manufacturer's RFID budget will grow from $50,000 to $75,000 per year in 2006 to $100,00 to $200,000 in 2007.

According to a FREE benchmark report, "Can RFID Deliver the Goods?," from Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), early adopters of RFID in aerospace, automotive, pharmaceutical, paper, electronics, and heavy industrial manufacturing are already leveraging the technology to drive out waste, enable just-in-time delivery of finished goods, and realize continuous improvement throughout the production process. Thus, the value proposition of RFID to the manufacturer can be segmented into three general areas:

Optimizing the procurement and management of raw materials
Monitoring tools, equipment, parts and personnel in the production environment
Providing forward demand visibility into the supply chain
"To realize the potential of RFID on the shop floor, careful system integration planning is required, an important step often ignored due to its cost and complexity," says Russ Klein, Research Director for Aberdeen Group's Emerging Technology and Data Management practice. "Especially when an RFID initiative begins as a measure to comply with an external mandate, the solution is designed with cost minimization as the guiding objective. Then, as RFID becomes a key differentiator in the quest for lean operations and a flexible organization, those early cost savings become expensive mistakes. To avoid them, manufacturers focus on specific practices promoted aggressively by best-of-breed RFID vendors with manufacturing domain expertise."

The research, underwritten by Acsis, Impinj, and Reva, shows readers best practices for using RFID applications in manufacturing and ways to justify the investment. This report is valued at $399.

source:  www.bbwexchange.com