As interest in radio frequency identification (RFID) technology in the supply chain grows, a new class of RFID middleware has sprung up to help manage the data and device infrastructure needed for a successful system.
Research firm Venture Development Corp. (VDC) expects the RFID middleware market to grow by 162% in the next year, from $16.4 million in 2004 to $43.1 million in 2005. Middleware will account for roughly 3% of RFID systems revenues in 2007, or $135 million. The overall RFID software market is expected to reach $122.1 million this year, and grow to $373.5 million in 2007.
According to VDC, RFID middleware works at the edge of the network, and at its most basic level extracts and filters data from RFID readers, then routes it to enterprise software systems.
As the market matures, middleware platforms will need to include a deeper set of capabilities, says Forrester Research Inc., which recently evaluated 13 RFID middleware providers. These capabilities include reader and device management, data management, application integration, partner integration, process management and application development, packaged RFID content, and architecture scalability and administration.
"Many suppliers have found themselves in a position in which -- in the short term -- they must implement RFID to comply with high-profile mandates," says Forrester Research vice president and research director Sharyn Leaver. "In order to gain long-term benefits, these suppliers need to intelligently incorporate the data they are collecting to make improvements to their overall business processes. RFID middleware is the tool that companies will use to manage RFID data by routing it between tag readers and the multitude of systems within their businesses."
A lot of current middleware offerings are based on the Savant specifications designed by the Auto-ID Center, which developed the Electronic Product Code (EPC) standard most large retailers and the Department of Defense are now adopting. "However, too much emphasis cannot be placed on the Savant specification at this time," says Mike Liard, RFID research program director at VDC. "Savant is not the de facto standard or the only available router between EPC and the customer's network or software application."
Manhattan Associates, SAP and middleware provider OATSystems have led the pack for early adopter solutions, where end users are under mandate pressure from the likes of Wal-Mart or METRO AG.
Platform and integration vendors like IBM, Oracle, Microsoft, webMethods, TIBCO Software and Sun Microsystems might gain significantly, though, as the focus shifts from compliance to scalability and process management. Forrester thinks SAP is well-positioned, since it straddles the line between applications and infrastructure.
What do users want?
In its survey of end users, VDC found that companies ranked data monitoring/management functionality slightly higher on a scale of 1 to 7 than device monitoring/management and application development tools.
"End users are finding differentiation among middleware vendors through data management/monitoring value-add features that extend beyond data capturing, filtering, cleaning and routing," says the report.
As projects move forward, end users will want the ability to remotely diagnose, manage and repair readers across facilities, with tools similar to those now provided by wireless LAN vendors for remote management of wireless access points.
Top three desired features for data monitoring/management functions were data aggregation and integration (91.7%), data filtering (86.7%) and data routing (85%). Top three for device monitoring and management were device driver/control system diagnostics, alerts and notification (76.7%), device health monitoring (73.3%) and remote device service (63.3%).
