Practical RFID Use

What do Italian scooters and baby diapers have in common?

The answer: embedded RFID tags.

IBM plans to announce a program which will attempt to commercialize practical and cost-effective bulk packaging solutions that incorporate RFID technology.

Honda Italia Industriale, which sold 12.7 million scooters last year, plans to use RFID chips and IBM software to track motorcycle parts and tools circulating within its manufacturing plant in Atessa, Italy.

Pliant, based in Schaumburg, Ill., will sell a new RFID-embedded plastic wrap to consumer-goods companies that want to detect any tampering of their products in transit from manufacturer to distributor. Pliant is using IBM's software to keep track of RFID-marked cargo — everything from cereal boxes to diapers — in the warehouse.