Bar code? RFID? Or both?

Bar code has been used for such a long time that we do not even realise how ingenious this technology is. However, a challenger has appeared in the shape of RFID. As Attila Gyula Megyeri, sales and technical director of Sc-Scan explains, an approximate total of 10 trillion bar codes are used in the world annually. On the other hand, 1 trillion RFID tags are expected to be in use by 2015. However, bar code remains far more cost-effective at present. Bar code has also evolved over the years. GS1 Databar is an example of an improved version which can store substantially more information in a given space. GS1 DataBar is used primarily on small size products like pharmaceuticals. Direct Part Marking (DPM) is also an advanced form of bar code, with a two dimensional data matrix being engraved into the surface of parts which allows these to be identified and traced. Tamás Beliczay, support and development director of Vonalkód Rendszerház Kft., is not convinced that RFID will eventually replace bar code. There are certain areas where RFID can offer more than bar code, but there are other areas where RFID is not competitive. At present, there are only a few products sold in Hungary without bar code. In fact, most products are labelled with several codes, like the complex GS1 Databar. According to Dániel Szabó, an expert from M.I.T. Systems Kft., RFID has been on the threshold of coming into large-scale use for years, but there is no sign of it actually passing the threshold. Apart from the suppliers of the US Army and a few retail chains, RFID is not used on a wide scale anywhere. RFID is capable of identifying a large number of products, like those on a palette, but this requires an expensive reading system. RFID is practical for durable consumer goods of substantial value, but investment will require some time to return even in such applications. There are no general solutions. Solutions need to be worked out individually. – Partners of CSB-System use or intend to use RFID technology for livestock management and in processing slaughtered animals – says Ádám Harcz, an expert from CSB. He believes that RFID can be successful in the distribution chains of higher value products. Suppliers of hardware and software have a major role to play, as RFID requires reliable reading systems in order to make it effective. According to Romulus Steinbinder, managing director of Synergon Retail Systems Kft., there are three main reasons for the breakthrough in RFID use being delayed: the technology is not mature enough, its introduction requires substantial investment and as a result, such solutions are regarded with suspicion by many potential users.