Impacts on Logistics
Rapid Response, Quality and Security

NEW INFORMATION

The adoption of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Electronic Product Codes (EPC) and compatible micro-sensor technologies for product and system security enhancement, item and package, quality control, logistics visibility, etc., will significantly impact the way we do business in the next two to five years. The avalanche of data that will result from implementation, the impacts on your supply chain investments, the very way you do business will change forever, just as computers changed your business requirements and standards in the 1960s to 70s. The RFID mandates from DoD and Wal-Mart will require changes in the way you do business today, whether you are a customer, product or services vendor, logistics provider, information technology or technology provider. 

Planning for these changes requires a good understanding of the basic technology and its application, but more than the technology, it requires a broad understanding of the cultural, social, environmental, infrastructure, global and regional, legal, and political impacts on other members of your supply chains.  There is no common vision for RFID implementation strategy today.  Before success of this new technology is declared, there will have to be a widely shared vision across numerous supply chains.

The University of Alaska Anchorage will focus this year’s Logistics Executive Seminar on developing a shared vision across the logistics interests and supply chains expertise represented by the attendees. We will produce a system’s perspective of this vision during the week, although it is not expected to be the final vision, since Wal-Mart and DoD are currently struggling to understand the system dynamics of such a vision.  We believe that the process of developing the plans and a vision for implementation inherent in the “war” game format will provide us all with a basis for common discussion that is broader than any available today.  The vision will be shared with all interested parties.

Our partners and quest speakers will set the stage and then participate with you in a competitive strategy “war” game to develop the vision and roadmap for RFID adoption and deployment.  Similar “war” games have been used to focus business, industry and economic development strategies across the world.  Our recent experience in the Russian Far East, Alaska and Hawaii indicate that a significant alignment of often very diverse interest groups results from such “war” games.