Global Demand for RFID Growing

June 1, 2008
CAMBRIDGE, U.K.Global demand for RFID will reach $5.3 billion this year and climb to $27 billion in 2018, according to IDTechEx, a consulting company

CAMBRIDGE, U.K.—Global demand for RFID will reach $5.3 billion this year and climb to $27 billion in 2018, according to IDTechEx, a consulting company that provides research and analysis on RFID technology.

The U.S. and China are spending the most on RFID, the firm says, and the apparel industry is rapidly implementing RFID for tracking bolts of cloth as well as pallets, cases and individual items of clothing.

“Apparel RFID goes even further because there are now hundreds of commercial laundries in the world that are washing uniforms and other clothing, such as hospital garments, with the aid of RFID,” IDTechEx reports. “The benefits of RFID vary from efficiency in the factory and reducing stockouts in retailing to error prevention, faster service, reduced cost and eliminating tedious procedures in the laundry and rented-garment sectors.”

The majority of spending on RFID relates to passive-tag systems and high-frequency (HF) and ultra-high frequency (UHF) technologies, according to the research. “Real-Time Locating Systems (RTLS) are currently the hottest form of active RFID,” according to IDTechEx.

The company is presenting the RFID Europe conference in Cambridge, U.K., Sept. 30-Oct. 1. For more information, visit www.idtechex.com.