Checkpoint Systems, Inc. a supplier of shrink management, merchandise visibility and apparel labeling solutions for the retail industry, announced at NRF Loss Prevention Conference & Expo its RFID Overhead EAS Solution, whicht the company said will deliver benefits both for loss prevention and inventory visibility at the point-of-exit.


This solution includes overhead RFID hardware with specialized on-board filtering software and new RFID hard tags and labels.

The ability for a single RFID tag to deliver benefits both for inventory management as well as loss prevention is an important advantage for apparel retailers seeking to maximize the value of their RFID investment.



METRO GROUP is very optimistic about RFID-based EAS, said Dr. Gerd Wolfram, managing director at METRO SYSTEMS. Were confident that RFID builds on the usability of traditional RF EAS both for loss prevention as well as inventory visibility, enabling us to better serve our customers.

RFID Overhead EAS is a key component of an integrated solution delivering real-time inventory and related benefits, while serving as an enhanced EAS system, improving operations at the point-of-exit. It leverages open-standards RFID technology and delivers several new, important benefits for apparel retailers:


•Leverages a single RFID tag for inventory visibility and loss prevention. The Overhead Solution uses one tag for multiple purposes, increasing efficiency at point-of-sale and cost-effectiveness over the long-term.
•Provides an open entrance. Installed either suspended from the ceiling or fully concealed within it, the Overhead Solution enhances the store entrances appearance.
•Enables retailers to know what was stolen. The Overhead Solution enables retailers to actually know what was stolen, the quantity and the dollar value, helping them to maintain shelf availability and respond smarter to a theft event.
•Enables retailers to fight all sources of theft. Apparel retailers now have the potential to distinguish among the actions more typical of a casual shoplifter from a professional thief or organized retail theft group, enabling them to take action based on the size and scope of the event.
•Enhances theft deterrence. Combined with Checkpoints Merchandise Visibility Solution, apparel retailers can enhance deterrence by displaying an image or description of the items that were stolen, warning shoplifters of the presence of a more sophisticated system, and causing them to recalculate the risk.
•Increases alarm integrity. By leveraging encoded tags, retailers benefit from the Overhead Solutions ability to ignore tags from other retailers, helping associates respond confidently to alarms, and increasing customer satisfaction.


The RFID Overhead EAS Solution builds on the success of Checkpoints high-performance series of RF and dual RF/RFID systems, and encompasses hardware, software and tags.

 

A key advantage is a unique combination of patented hardware and software technology called Wirama Radar, which ensures data integrity by eliminating stray reads. This technology uniquely enables Checkpoint to deliver unprecedented accuracy and context in reporting the location and directionality of movement of tagged merchandise, providing insight much like commercial radar informs air traffic controllers, meteorologists and the military, while adhering to EPCglobal standards.

The RFID Overhead EAS Solution joins the previously announced Handheld Visibility and Open EPC Number Management Solutions as part of Checkpoints solutions portfolio to deliver increased Merchandise Visibility to apparel retailers. Beyond this point-of-exit solution, Checkpoint plans to add several additional solutions in the coming months to provide value for the growing number of apparel retailers that seek to leverage RFID to reduce out-of-stocks, reduce working capital, increase sales, as well as enhance loss prevention and the customer experience.