Military will support multiple numbering schemes for RFID

Frontline Solutions, June, 2004

The Department of Defense will support both the Electronic Product Code and its own Unique ID (UID) numbering systems when it rolls out RFID within its supply chain. Alan Estevez, assistant undersecretary of defense for supply chain integration, said that both systems would be acceptable, depending on the supplier. For suppliers already shipping EPC-tagged materials to large retailers, the military will accept EPC numbers instead of UIDs; for those not affected by retailer mandates, suppliers will put UID numbers on RFID tags that can communicate by using the EPC air interface protocol. Some UIDs are too long to fit on a standard EPC tag. The DoD is working with EPCglobal to accommodate these longer numbers in the EPC structure.

The DoD has also been in discussions with other government agencies to possibly form an intra-agency council to coordinate RFID programs across the federal government. Estevez said the military has already had informal talks with the Food and Drug Administration, Transportation Security Administration, and other organizations that have RFID programs underway.

Estevez said that the military will outline its RFID requirements in supplier contracts signed after October 1. The RFID policy will be posted for public comment sometime in May and should be finished by September.

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