RFID IN THE FIGHT AGAINST A PANDEMIC

RFID in the fight against a pandemic. The worldwide spread of the COVID-19 virus is frightening and is forcing us to think about the future. As an RFID integrator, we see a huge potential in RFID technology to help control the spread of viruses, not only medically but also within the supply chain.

The tracking of goods and people, in real time or not, provides insight into certain processes. Thanks to this valuable information, safety measures can be implemented more efficiently.

In the healthcare sector, nurses and doctors are under enormous pressure during crisis situations such as the Coronavirus outbreak. RFID technology can help in the following ways.

• Limit physical contact with medical equipment
• Visibility of materials
• Ensure regular cleaning and, if necessary, disposal of medical equipment
• Stock management

Also apart from the healthcare sector, RFID can be valuable in the fight against pandemics. Information about the way in which food or other goods were handled or transported can be important to push back the spread of a virus.

By scanning items more frequently, in more places and in an automated manner, we can isolate what happened, who had access to certain goods and, in case of emergency, prevent a problem much faster. Scanning also provides additional information about the items concerned. Where did those items come from? Has the item been touched by an employee? If so, how often, where and who was it?

By means of RFID, scanning can take place automatically to prevent that infected people touch goods. Preventing contaminations in the warehouse can keep many others in and around the supply chain from receiving contaminated articles.

In short, we are convinced that RFID technology can also build in safety in the supply chain. Why should we not use the technology to our advantage?