With Input predicting federal spending on RFID to grow 120 percent over the next five years, VARs need to understand different agency needs if they want to get in on the action, according to a panel of government IT representatives gathered on Thursday by the Bethesda chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA). Government agencies are using RFID tags for a range of purposes -- from supply-chain management and inventory to security and military strategies. But specific requirements of the technology differ dramatically depending on circumstances of use and ultimate objectives, making it more essential than ever for contractors to do their homework.
"There's a lot of tagging that will happen in the next few years," said John Waddick, program manager for the Army's Joint Automatic Identification Technology Office, and a panel participant. "We're going to see tags on everything coming in this country, real-time tracking systems in arsenals and manufacturing facilities, and continued expansion of RFID at the Department of Defense," he said.
While such a range showcases the technology's capabilities, it also presents distinctions in how it's implemented. For the Army, for example, tags on supply containers incorporate sensors for detecting shock and variances in temperature. They also provide extended range of up to a mile to enhance supply-management capabilities; the greater the distance an RFID tag can be tracked, the more containers that can be identified at a time. That's in contrast to RFID tags used by the Navy for weapons management, which have a range set for less than six inches to protect sensitive data, said Burt Brooks, director of the Navy's Automatic Identification Technology Section.
The distinctions don't end there. VARs playing in the RFID market also need to consider the data associated with the tag. Just as some agencies may require a wider range than others for retrieving data, some may want more or less information provided at the back-end.
"The tag is a record pointer to a richer set of information -- the flag above the ground for a complete information system," said Ping Li, assistant director for IT services at the Transportation Security Administration.
For prisoner-tagging with wristbands at POW camps, for example, RFID data may include location and identification information; for the aforementioned military containers, data may describe content and condition; for weaponry, data may reveal everything from materials to capabilities and mission details.
"You need to define data elements up front," Brooks said. "You may not want a lot of data out there for security sake, but you also don't want to go back and say, 'Gee; I wish I had this.' Those are the worst words."
VARs can help agencies walk that fine line, starting first by adhering to standards. As of Jan. 1, the U.S. Department of Defense began requiring vendors to place RFID tags on pallets and cases shipped to its facilities. GTSI, for one, partnered with ODIN Technologies and Sun Microsystems to implement the RFID capability.
"Without a standard in place, any project is a flash in the pan," Brooks said. "Others need to be able to read data so they can incorporate it into their own projects. But start slow and build on successes. There's nothing worse than trying to eat the elephant in one bite."
Autor: Jill R. Aitoro
Quelle: Var Business, 25.02.2005
