In this Interview Frank gives us an insight about the normal process of a DoD mandate, which can explains why not all the DoD suppliers have complied yet. He also unveils why his organization and DoD suppliers in general agree to invest only to the minimum requirements. Finally, the RFID Subject Matter Expert talks about the general issues he encountered testing and implementing RFID tags in GDATP production line.

GDATP, an operating unit of the General Dynamics Corporation, is a proven systems integrator of defense products for all branches of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and the Ministries of Defense of over 30 allied nations. It was ranked number 3 in 2005. More about GDATP...

Q: How did the DoD communicate the RFID mandate to you?

A: In 2003 Michael Wynne, acting Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, issued a Policy Letter about RFID (see article about the mandate). It was the first step of the typical process of issuing a new mandate in the Defense industry:

1. The first step is the Policy Letter; it is considered an intent of what the DoD expects. This way DoD suppliers can start to work on the technology and get ready for the mandate enforcement.
2. The second step is the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement (DFARS) Clause. This clause makes the RFID mandate contractual: the DFARS Clause is introduced in the contract ruling the business relationship between the DoD and its suppliers. The RFID DFARS Clause was expected to be out this month (August), but the DoD seems to have changed its mind about it.
3. The last step will be the MIL-STD-129P (an example of it can be accessed online), which is a regulation governing packaging: Department of Defense Standard Practice / Military Marking for Shipment and Storage.

The DoD has updates available about the RFID mandate process on its website dedicated to RFID.

Q: How does DoD help you to handle the new technology?

A: It is really up to the suppliers to comply with the mandate and to adapt the technology to match the requirements. At GDATP we are working with one of our main vendors: RSVI. They have a laboratory for RFID where we send samples. They also have a laboratory for marking to comply with the other DoD mandate, Unique IDentification (UID is a unique "part identifier" containing data elements used to track DoD parts through their life cycle. (See article on UID: Added value to RFID: UID).

From the DoD we get average support. It is a bureaucratic organization: at the top of the organization they are pushing for change, but at lower ranks there can be resistance to change. However, the DoD shares its experience with RFID. DoD has been using active tags to track containers since 1994!

Q: What are the issues you are experiencing implementing RFID in your organization?

RFID Tag

A: Tags are very delicate and it has consequences on the very first step of the process: applying the tags to the packaging. I realized at a conference I attended earlier this year that it was a common issue. Studies show that there is a 50% failure rate of tagging! The tag is so delicate, especially the connection between the chip and the antenna that extra care has to be taken to apply the tag: it’s actually like applying a sticker on a surface but reverse. The surface has to be bent to fit the tag. Another consequence is that the tag can be damaged during transportation or repackaging at the distribution center.

RFID Tags

Once the item, the case, the box, and the pallet are tagged, another issue raises: the problem of different layers of tags. For instance, the reader is supposed to read only the items but get unexpected additional readings from the box or the forklift. The issue gets more complicated once the product reaches the distribution center: they apply their own tag and read our tags, their tags, and other suppliers’ tags...

Ultimately the main issue is the reading rate.

Q: How does your firm think RFID will improve the Supply Chain Management and Inventory Management for you and the DoD?

A: The DoD will get clear benefits from the implementation of RFID, among them a decrease of manpower for inventory and a real time visibility of the inventory.

We don’t see any real benefit today for GDATP because we do not have a large production line. Our products are often handmade with batch of small quantities. We believe RFID is still not mature, there is a long way to go. As Return On Investment (ROI) is not proved we invest a bare minimum to comply to the minimum requirements of the mandate. The cost will be passed on to the DoD because it required the technology and will benefit from it.

Another reason why we decided not to invest much in RFID is because we are also working on UID, another DoD mandate. DoD has already issued a DFARS Clause for the latter, so it is our priority at the moment. At the moment RFID remains a tracking solution because the tags stay on the packaging, it’s gone once the packaging is open. On the other hand, the Unique Identification remains on the parts, as a consequence it will really help us to assess performance, understand the patterns for maintenance and lifecycle in the battlefield.