Cheap crate system sets out to rival RFID

Crate rental firm Rentacrate is talking to more than 30 UK food manufacturers about a new returnable packaging and traceability system to rival radio frequency identification (RFID).

The system, called Pinpoint, enables manufacturers to track goods from factory to customers using returnable plastic crates embedded with 2D matrix codes that contain a digitally read identification number.

Rentacrate's business development executive Ben Hobbs claimed that the codes, which use Visidot technology developed by ImageID, could be read more quickly than traditional barcodes. He said that they were also more reliable as they were not affected by radio frequency interference and provided accurate readings in damp conditions.

He said: "The technology is also significantly more cost-effective than RFID and a cheaper and greener option than cardboard cases with barcodes. The main reasons that manufacturers have tended to stick to cardboard, which is becoming more expensive to use and to dispose of or recycle, relate to concerns about extended rental charges on assets outside of their direct control, plus exposure to compensation charges for tray and pallet losses. Because we can date and track the individual movement of every single tray and/or pallet in our system, we can stop this problem immediately."

Rentacrate is the first company to sell the technology in the UK.

With traceability now a legislative requirement under the European Union General Food Law, it was important to have robust systems in place, Hobbs added.