Solutions based on EPC technology are used in most supply chains across various industries. Recently, the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector has shown great interest among the direct recipients of these solutions.
On June 21, 2005, a conference titled “RFID in the Healthcare Supply Chain of Europe. EPC setting the standard” was held in Brussels. The conference was not only scientific but also practical in nature. In addition to presentations by representatives of EPCglobal and GS1, specialists from IT and hardware companies also presented their solutions based on EPC technology standards. The main goal of the conference was to encourage companies in the healthcare sector to use global solutions in the field of EPC technology. Furthermore, an equally important goal of the conference was the exchange of experience in this area between organizations managing standards, IT companies, and companies from the industry, specifically the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. Representatives of EPCglobal and GS1 pointed out the following achievements related to EPCglobal standards:
– the use of GS1 standards by an increasing number of participants in the healthcare sector (including drug manufacturers)
– the establishment of the 2nd generation UHF communication interface standard (ISO standard)
– an increase in the number of EPCglobal participants
– pilot implementations at large manufacturers (e.g., Johnson & Johnson).
It was also emphasized what the implementation of EPC standards in the healthcare sector is intended to serve, namely fulfilling 4 fundamental issues:
– identification of the right patient
– identification of the right medicine
– identification of the right dose
– identification of the right time of administration (of a specific medicine).
IT companies presented their products and services in the field of RFID/EPC technology, and also outlined how they implemented these solutions in specific companies, mainly in the pharmaceutical industry. A very interesting business case for the application of EPC technology was presented by Novartis, which is a pharmaceutical corporation. It consists of 360 companies from 140 countries. They mainly produce: prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, generic drugs, veterinary drugs, contact lenses and care products, baby and infant food, and functional food. Novartis has begun a pilot implementation of a system based on identification using EPC tags.
On June 21, 2005, a conference titled “RFID in the Healthcare Supply Chain of Europe. EPC setting the standard” was held in Brussels. The conference was not only scientific but also practical in nature. In addition to presentations by representatives of EPCglobal and GS1, specialists from IT and hardware companies also presented their solutions based on EPC technology standards. The main goal of the conference was to encourage companies in the healthcare sector to use global solutions in the field of EPC technology. Furthermore, an equally important goal of the conference was the exchange of experience in this area between organizations managing standards, IT companies, and companies from the industry, specifically the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. Representatives of EPCglobal and GS1 pointed out the following achievements related to EPCglobal standards:
– the use of GS1 standards by an increasing number of participants in the healthcare sector (including drug manufacturers)
– the establishment of the 2nd generation UHF communication interface standard (ISO standard)
– an increase in the number of EPCglobal participants
– pilot implementations at large manufacturers (e.g., Johnson & Johnson).
It was also emphasized what the implementation of EPC standards in the healthcare sector is intended to serve, namely fulfilling 4 fundamental issues:
– identification of the right patient
– identification of the right medicine
– identification of the right dose
– identification of the right time of administration (of a specific medicine).
IT companies presented their products and services in the field of RFID/EPC technology, and also outlined how they implemented these solutions in specific companies, mainly in the pharmaceutical industry. A very interesting business case for the application of EPC technology was presented by Novartis, which is a pharmaceutical corporation. It consists of 360 companies from 140 countries. They mainly produce: prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, generic drugs, veterinary drugs, contact lenses and care products, baby and infant food, and functional food. Novartis has begun a pilot implementation of a system based on identification using EPC tags.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” No. 5/2005.