UA RFID Research Center First Academic Lab Accredited by EPCglobal

Conveyor test loop at the RFID Center, University of Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas RFID Research Center laboratory has passed accreditation criteria established by EPCglobal Inc., a global not-for-profit standards organization commercializing the Electronic Product Code™ (EPC) and RFID worldwide.

The RFID lab, which features a vast array of testing equipment, readers, labelers, and a world-class conveyor testing loop, is one of the first EPC/RFID research laboratories worldwide to receive the EPCglobal Performance Test Center accreditation.

The RFID Research Center, a subunit of the Information Technology Research Institute, housed in the university’s Sam M. Walton College of Business.

The recipients of the EPCglobal Performance Test Center accreditation were announced Wednesday, September 14, at the EPCglobal U.S. 2005 conference, themed The New Era of Connected Commerce, in Atlanta. Other laboratories accredited by EPCglobal are located in Asia Pacific, Europe and the United States.

EPCglobal Inc. is the not-for-profit standards organization entrusted by industry to establish and support the EPCglobal Network™ as the global standard for real-time, automatic identification of information in the supply chain of any company, anywhere in the world. EPCglobal leads the development of industry-driven standards for the Electronic Product Code to support the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) in today’s fast-moving, information-rich, trading networks.

“The certification validates the excellent work of the lab crews led by Justin Patton and David Cromhout and solidifies our standing as the foremost academic RFID lab in the world,” said Bill Hardgrave, director of the RFID Research Center and executive director of the Information Technology Research Institute. “We are very pleased to be the first academic lab to earn this certification.”

The RFID Research Center officially opened its laboratory in the Fayetteville Industrial Park in June 2005. The laboratory primarily conducts research into the most efficient use of radio frequency identification and other wireless and sensor technologies throughout the supply chain, with special interest on the retail supply chain. At present, manufacturers and retailers plan to use radio frequency identification to track pallets and cases of products from the manufacturing facility, on trucks, and in the retail distribution centers and store rooms to increase efficiencies and minimize costs in the supply chain from manufacturer to the store shelf.

Strategically positioned in the epicenter for retail RFID activity, the RFID Research Center laboratory is a multidisciplinary “supply chain in a box” devoted to examining the technology as used in retail, storeroom and warehousing environments. The 7,800-square-foot laboratory contains the latest RFID technology (tags, antennas, readers and conveyance systems) from a variety of vendors.

The RFID Research Center has attracted more than 30 sponsors, including Cisco-Eagle, Microsoft, Hytrol, and Wal-Mart.
“Our sponsors and collaborators have made the success of the RFID laboratory possible,” Hardgrave said. “Their resources, equipment and expertise have enabled us to find the most efficient use of RFID and other sensor technologies with leading-edge technology. To date, we have been able to help many and varied suppliers determine the proper RFID technology solution for their products. In addition to helping solve issues of deployment, our faculty and students are delving into issues of RFID data analytics, business case/ROI, tag manufacturing, and public policy, among others.”

Leveraging multidisciplinary expertise across the University of Arkansas, the RFID Research Center also has collaborative relationships with the College of Engineering, including the departments of computer science and computer engineering, industrial engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering; the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, including the Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies and the department of public policy; the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, including the department of food science; and the School of Law.

“We are very pleased to be one of the few academic institutions leading the way with RFID research, “said Walton College Dean Dan L. Worrell. “We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with these companies and across the University of Arkansas to find solutions to real-world supply-chain issues. In addition, the RFID laboratory provides opportunities for extensive academic research and producing undergraduate and graduate students for jobs in the industry.”

The RFID Research Center has no vested interest in the use or implementation of any one type of RFID technology over another. The companies who use the facility to test their products can remain confident that they will receive unbiased results on the most efficient application of RFID tags and readers on their products.

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