RFID Technology and Applications in the Retail Supply Chain: The Early Metro Group Pilot

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) recently has gained enormous attention in various industry sectors, the media, and in academic research. This paper focuses in early RFID applications in the retail supply chain. It takes a quick look at the available literature and then explains the technological issues including the need for standardization and the challenges on the data, network, and application layers. The study then outlines RFID based applications along the retail supply chain. It takes the case of Metro Group's Future Store, a brick-and-mortar supermarket belonging to the world-wide fourth largest retailer, to investigate the advantages and challenges experienced with early RFID applications. The paper differentiates between RFID tags on pallets and cases on the one hand and RFID tags on items on the other. Finally, the paper closes with a brief summary and an outlook on RFID in the retail supply chain.