Raising the bar code

  • Eric Fetters / Herald Writer
  • Tuesday, February 19, 2002 9:00pm
  • Business

By Eric Fetters

Herald Writer

As researchers try to make electronic tags that can hold more information in a smaller space, Everett-based Intermec Technologies Corp. is finding new uses for its version of the smarter bar code.

Stephen Schwartz, an Intermec systems engineering manager in Dallas, Texas, said the company’s "smart labels" are already being tested or used by Wal-Mart, a video rental chain and the U.S. government.

Within the industry, smart labels are officially known as RFID — radio frequency identification — tags. As a longtime maker of bar code reading and writing equipment, the new technology was a natural for the company, spokeswoman Kathie Anderson said.

"When RFID technology first became available, many thought it would replace bar codes. What we’re finding now is that it’s a complement rather than a replacement. There’s a need for both," she said.

Development of the company’s RFID tags, marketed under the name Intellitag, took place in Everett and in Intermec’s facilities in Iowa, New York and France, Schwartz said. They are manufactured in the United States and Asia.

Each tag can hold 100 bytes of information, far more than a traditional bar code, and the information can be rewritten hundreds of thousands of times.

Tracking loads of merchandise as they are shipped from manufacturing plants to warehouses to individual stores is one of the best uses for the tags, Schwartz said. CHEP, one of the world’s largest suppliers of shipping pallets, recently chose Intermec’s tags for part of a major pilot project using RFID technology.

Procter &Gamble and Wal-Mart also are using the Intermec tags as they test new inventory tracking systems in the Midwest.

There also are potential uses in the automotive industry. For example, Intermec has a role in the development of a tire-tracking system by the Automotive Industry Action Group. In light of last year’s massive recall by Firestone, the industry is trying out flexible radio frequency tags imbedded in tires.

"You will begin to see tires coming off the assembly line with RFID tags" that can be matched with vehicle identification numbers, Schwartz said. "That way, if there is a recall, they will be able to know exactly which vehicles have the tires."

At a few stores owned by Movie Gallery, the third-largest video rental chain in the nation, a new self checkout system is using the tags as well, Schwartz said.

"You take your two or three videos or DVDs up to a kiosk and it scans them, and then you put your Visa in and the kiosk automatically bills it," Schwartz said. When a customer turns in the videos, a scanning device can record down to the second when the tapes or DVDs were returned, he added.

The U.S. government also has begun using Intermec’s labels to control access to Fort McPherson in Georgia. Trucks and other vehicles used at the base now have radio frequency tags on their windshields. A scanning device at the front gate can instantly read the tag and give information on the vehicle and who is authorized to drive it, Schwartz said.

Internationally, the Chinese government is using Intermec scanners to read RFID tags on pallets and trucks as they pass through checkpoints.

Schwartz said he thinks Intermec is well-positioned in the market as interest in radio frequency identification technology grows. But he agrees that the high-tech tags may never be practical for everything.

"You’re never going to replace bar codes," he said. "It’s always going to cost more to put an antenna on a silicon chip than ink on paper."

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Business

A closing sign hangs above the entrance of the Big Lots at Evergreen and Madison on Monday, July 22, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Big Lots announces it will shutter Everett and Lynnwood stores

The Marysville store will remain open for now. The retailer reported declining sales in the first quarter of the year.

George Montemor poses for a photo in front of his office in Lynnwood, Washington on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.  (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Despite high mortgage rates, Snohomish County home market still competitive

Snohomish County homes priced from $550K to $850K are pulling in multiple offers and selling quickly.

Henry M. Jackson High School’s robotic team, Jack in the Bot, shake hands at the 2024 Indiana Robotics Invitational.(Henry M. Jackson High School)
Mill Creek robotics team — Jack in the Bot — wins big

Henry M. Jackson High School students took first place at the Indiana Robotic Invitational for the second year in a row.

The computer science and robotics and artificial intelligence department faculty includes (left to right) faculty department head Allison Obourn; Dean Carey Schroyer; Ishaani Priyadarshini; ROBAI department head Sirine Maalej and Charlene Lugli. PHOTO: Arutyun Sargsyan / Edmonds College.
Edmonds College to offer 2 new four-year degree programs

The college is accepting applications for bachelor programs in computer science as well as robotics and artificial intelligence.

FILE — Boeing 737 MAX8 airplanes on the assembly line at the Boeing plant in Renton, Wash., on March 27, 2019. Boeing said on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, that it was shaking up the leadership in its commercial airplanes unit after a harrowing incident last month during which a piece fell off a 737 Max 9 jet in flight. (Ruth Fremson/The New York Times)
Federal judge rejects Boeing’s guilty plea related to 737 Max crashes

The plea agreement included a fine of up to $487 million and three years of probation.

Neetha Hsu practices a command with Marley, left, and Andie Holsten practices with Oshie, right, during a puppy training class at The Everett Zoom Room in Everett, Washington on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Tricks of the trade: New Everett dog training gym is a people-pleaser

Everett Zoom Room offers training for puppies, dogs and their owners: “We don’t train dogs, we train the people who love them.”

Andy Bronson/ The Herald 

Everett mayor Ray Stephenson looks over the city on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2015 in Everett, Wa. Stephanson sees  Utah’s “housing first” model – dealing with homelessness first before tackling related issues – is one Everett and Snohomish County should adopt.

Local:issuesStephanson

Shot on: 1/5/16
Economic Alliance taps former Everett mayor as CEO

Ray Stephanson will serve as the interim leader of the Snohomish County group.

Molbak's Garden + Home in Woodinville, Washington will close on Jan. 28. (Photo courtesy of Molbak's)
After tumultuous year, Molbak’s is being demolished in Woodinville

The beloved garden store closed in January. And a fundraising initiative to revitalize the space fell short.

Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin, Advanced Manufacturing Skills Center executive director Larry Cluphf, Boeing Director of manufacturing and safety Cameron Myers, Edmonds College President Amit Singh, U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, and Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers participate in a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, July 2 celebrating the opening of a new fuselage training lab at Paine Field. Credit: Arutyun Sargsyan / Edmonds College
‘Magic happens’: Paine Field aerospace center dedicates new hands-on lab

Last month, Edmonds College officials cut the ribbon on a new training lab — a section of a 12-ton Boeing 767 tanker.

Gov. Jay Inslee presents CEO Fredrik Hellstrom with the Swedish flag during a grand opening ceremony for Sweden-based Echandia on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Swedish battery maker opens first U.S. facility in Marysville

Echandia’s marine battery systems power everything from tug boats to passenger and car ferries.

Helion Energy CEO and co-founder David Kirtley talks to Governor Jay Inslee about Trenta, Helion’s 6th fusion prototype, during a tour of their facility on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
State grants Everett-based Helion a fusion energy license

The permit allows Helion to use radioactive materials to operate the company’s fusion generator.

People walk past the new J.sweets storefront in Alderwood Mall on Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Lynnwood, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Japanese-style sweets shop to open in Lynnwood

J. Sweets, offering traditional Japanese and western style treats opens, could open by early August at the Alderwood mall.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.