Since July 2004, members of the pharmaceutical supply chain have been working with a prototype RFID-enabled supply chain to learn about item-level tagging.
Participants are members of the JumpStart Group, which was formed last year by a number of pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, retailers and associations. Technology partners include Manhattan Associates, Dell Inc. (Round Rock, TX) and Matrics.
"We've found achieving 100% read rates on tagged bottles is challenging," says Jamie Hintilian, a partner in the Health & Life Sciences practice at Accenture (Washington, D.C.), the program manager for the JumpStart Group. Liquid products and foil-based packaging, which are commonly used for pharmaceutical products, also pose a challenge to tag readability. Other hurdles include integration with existing ERP and supply chain systems and identifying which product and channel combinations should adopt the technology.
However, RFID is seen as a way to enhance the safety and security of the pharmaceutical supply chain and address emerging regulatory requirements like Florida's anti-counterfeiting law, which calls for drug products to carry a pedigree listing their history. RFID also can improve the management of returns and recalls and increase the efficiency of distribution operations.
Already completed is a study of the effect of RF exposure, which found RF waves have no effect on product strength, potency and
purity.