Checkpoint Systems Inc. is readying to provide customers Electronic Product Code-compliant radio-frequency identification services for their supply chains. The company has agreed to purchase 100 million EPC-compliant devices from UHF RFID system manufacturer Matrics Inc. for integration into client supply-chain applications. Terms of the multiyear contract weren't disclosed.

The EPC/RFID Enterprise Solution will give customers a migration path from case- and pallet-level applications to item-level applications in the store. This will let customers use existing technology investments while gaining security and visibility across their supply chains, the company says.

Matrics, which designs and manufacture EPC-compliant RFID systems, also says it has developed a new reader that incorporates RFID multiprotocol reader technology with network features. The AR 400 RFID readers have begun shipping. Production is based on customer demand.

The AR platform is Matrics' second-generation RFID reader. It transforms the RFID reader from a static into a network device to collect, write, process, and communicate information from all EPC-class RFID tags: Class 0 (read only, and read/write) and Class 1.

The AR 400 integrates into a customer's existing network infrastructure and is upgradeable as standards evolve. Customers can manage and service the RFID readers through their internal network or remotely, including via the Web. This is designed to reduce the time and maintenance costs associated with managing RFID systems.

Security concerns are addressed with the ability to set controls and traceability of operator actions. The AR 400 is ready-to-connect network device and can be connected to company networks via Ethernet or serial connections, wirelessly with 802.11. According to the company, a configuration Setup Wizard makes commissioning tags easy.