DHL to Place RFID Tags on All Packages

Filed in archive Software Applications on June 16, 2005

DHL plans to place tags on every package it ships. Except it won't happen for a while -- not until 2015.

Still, even for a ten-year plan, DHL's goal is ambitious.

One of the most notable things about the DHL plan is its emphasis on developing new and efficient ways to move data, according to a recent article in InformationWeek. The InformationWeek article notes:

"The company's IT group spends a lot of time supporting DHL's Object Name Service database, which stores information on shipped packages. Instead, DHL hopes to set up an infrastructure where RFID tags serve as links to information located elsewhere. For example, [RFID global program director] Peirce believes DHL can reduce its data-collection and reporting requirements related to U.S. Custom declarations by using RFID tags that direct the Customs department to information within databases maintained by manufacturers that ship products.

DHL plans to build an automated exception reporting layer to its infrastructure, so that RFID tags will send alerts if something unexpected occurs. For example, an RFID tag will send an alert via mobile phone or E-mail to a transportation manager if a package strays from its appointed route."