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RFID in the bookstore

February 5, 2007 | Redakcja

In April 2006, the Selexyz bookstore, owned by the Dutch group Boekhandels Groep Nederland, launched the world’s first fully automated bookstore based on item-level RFID solutions.
Boekhandels Groep Nederland (BGN) is the largest bookseller in the Netherlands. It operates a chain of 40 retail outlets, employing 730 staff members who serve over 11 million customers annually. Each of the giant Selexyz bookstores holds between 25,000 and 275,000 books in stock, with combined sales sometimes reaching 40,000 books per day.

To manage all the processes occurring in Selexyz bookstores, BGN implemented a fully automated sales support system. In two so-called “SmartStores” – specially built Selexyz bookstores – the system comprehensively handles the supply chain from the wholesaler to the end customer. The system integrates existing applications with SOA architecture and implemented item-level RFID. Thanks to this solution, the availability of books in the warehouse is automatically verified, shipping status and receipt status at individual retail points are determined, the exact location of a book in the bookstore is tracked, and data is entered during delivery acceptance and linked with information provided by the distributor in the form of an electronic list. In the bookstores, individual books are marked with RFID tags, which provides a real-time picture of inventory levels, all operations carried out at individual stages of the supply chain, and the exact location of each book in the bookstore. The system was created and implemented by Progress Software.


On the RFID waves – order fulfillment step by step
The Selexyz bookstore sends an electronic order to the Centraal Boekhuis database (a logistics center, the main book warehouse in the Netherlands). In the warehouse, each book receives a generated RFID tag, identifying it at the item level (photo 1). The books are packed and await shipment, while an electronic list is created, through which the data on the RFID tag is linked to ISBN numbers. The list is sent to the Selexyz headquarters, where it is automatically updated with customer and order information, and then forwarded to the specific retail point. At the same time, the shipment of goods arrives at the bookstore. The sealed package travels through a specially constructed RFID tunnel, where readers scan the tags on the books (photo 2). Reading all the data takes about five seconds. Previously, before the introduction of RFID, this took 35 minutes. Each individual scan generates a message that is sent via the Sonic service (an integration service based on SOA architecture, responsible for the communication sphere) to the Apama platform. The platform instantly correlates the RFID data with the previously received information from the electronic list.
The article comes from the magazine “e-Fakty” 6/2006.

e-F2006-6s21.pdf