Intelligent labels embedded with a radio frequency identification (RFID) inlay are not only of benefit to apparel retailers, they have also expanded to other sectors, creating opportunities for label converters. Inlay provider Avery Dennison tells us more.
Over the past decade, RFID has expanded its foothold beyond apparel to other sectors, including cosmetics and beauty, food production and distribution, aviation, automobile manufacturing and logistics and fulfilment.
The adoption of RFID in these industries is creating additional opportunities for label converters. The start, and the key, to developing a successful intelligent labels business is choosing the right inlay provider.
An inlay is the RFID transponder embedded or inserted in the label structure, thus making it an intelligent label. There are several key factors brand owners should consider when choosing a provider.
It is important to choose an inlay provider that has a broad product portfolio so that tags with inlays will work on a wide variety of products. Avery Dennison’s Smartrac provides passive HF, NFC and passive UHF RFID inlays, and an array of inlay sizes and shapes for its label converter partners to meet their customer’s needs.
Just as important is a high quality product. A fraction of RFID inlays in a production run can have a short read range or be completely dead due to a defective chip or other issue. Avery Dennison has extensive quality control checks at each stage of the inlay production process to ensure that every piece works properly and that the defective inlays do not enter the market; and has received ARC accreditation for quality from the Auburn University RFID Lab.
Getting sample tags quickly is also important so that converters can provide them to their customers, as they begin exploring whether RFID will work in their applications. Avery Dennison will provide samples of most of its inlays within 24 hours; and when available, all new inlays developed for its label converting partners.
Choosing the right inlay for a customer’s specific needs is crucial. It’s important to work with an inlay provider that can advise on the best solution and the right way to use the finished label on the product. In some cases, Avery Dennison will take product samples to its systems labs and reproduce the scenario in which the customer plans to use the intelligent labels and generate a professional analysis of the recommended inlay and its placement on the product.
Avery Dennison’s design facilities can develop custom inlays where required, and if there is enough demand for them, the design can be created at no charge to the converter.
Avery Dennison also has deep expertise in label converting, can provide inlays in the proper or preferred formats, advise on direct converting without inserting the inlays and ensure converters are producing the highest quality finished labels.
Selecting an inlay provider that has the manufacturing capacity to deliver the inlays required in a timely manner will be critical. Avery Dennison has invested in expanding its capacity over the past five years, and has set up distribution facilities around the world, to deliver the inlays when and where they are needed.
Beyond the factors above, converters should also work with inlay providers that help to develop new markets. Avery Dennison has engaged with relevant organisations and associations to better understand the needs of different industries and promote the use of intelligent labels, which also ultimately benefit label converters, as well as the inlay provider.
Avery Dennison’s Smartrac offers a suite of digital ID technologies that authenticate product history, provide tracking and inventory solutions, and conjure up richer consumer encounters. Digital ID technologies help create certainty, and can show how a connected world can be a better world, full of greater possibilities.
This article was first published in the January-February 2022 print issue of PKN Packaging News, p49.
