As industry gears up to respond to the January 2005 radio frequency identification (RFID) deployment mandated by Wal-Mart and the Department of Defense, Material Handling Industry of America (MHIA) is continuing plans for a special RFID Knowledge Center at ProMat 2005 in January at Chicago's McCormick Place South.
The following companies are confirmed sponsors for the RFID Knowledge Center: Accu-Sort Systems, DataMax, Escort Memory Systems, FKI Logistex, HK Systems, HighJump Software, The Kennedy Group, Material Handling Institute, Orbis, Provia Software, RedPrairie and Siemens Dematic.
"Backed by its international reputation, and with the partnership of RFID industry leaders, ProMat 2005 will be at the forefront of providing responsible education and well-planned and broad application of RFID" according to Dr. Richard E. Ward, MHIA executive vice president of professional development. "D-day for RFID appears to be January of 2005, but the real impact will come later as the value proposition for all supply chain partners becomes better understood and the focus on deployment spreads up and down supply chains throughout the economy. This cannot occur without a great deal of education and careful planning. That is where ProMat comes into play."
The ProMat RFID Knowledge Center will consist of approximately 25,000 square feet near the center of the ProMat 2005 show floor. The RFID Knowledge Center will include multimedia presentations and information from companies that are in the forefront of RFID adoption. They will share their insights into the major issues including privacy, business processes and data integration.
ProMat 2005 will be the most comprehensive international material handling and logistics show and conference held in the U.S. in 2005. In addition, the Department of Commerce has designated ProMat 2005 as an International Buyer Program Event. More than 700 exhibitors are expected to showcase their solutions at ProMat 2005.
ProMat exhibits will represent all segments of the material handling and logistics industry, from traditional, manual equipment to computerized, automated systems. To make it easier for attendees to find the solutions they need, the ProMat show floor will be divided into four solution-specific sections: equipment and components for manufacturing solutions; fulfillment and delivery solutions; information technology (IT) solutions, and assembly logistics and support solutions.
For more about ProMat, visit http://www.promat2005.org.
