Mercy gift shop to incorporate RFID technology
Posted on Saturday, December 22, 2007
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/bcdr/News/56964/
ROGERS — Thanks to the enterprising effort and philanthropic spirit of a group of local college students, Mercy Medical Center will employ some of the latest retail technology at its volunteer-operated gift shop.
Three computer-science students at the University of Arkansas have custom-built a software program enabling Mercy to utilize Radio Frequency Identification in its gift shop, according to a news release from Mercy on Friday. This technology goes beyond current bar-code scanning. It allows customers to place their basket of items within range of an RFID reader that permits a computer to sort through the items in the basket and calculate the sale.
The program was presented to Mercy representatives Friday morning as an in-kind gift from the students.
“ With the implementation of RFID technology, we’ll be bringing volunteer groups into the high-tech world, along with a higher level of automation, security and inventory control, ” said Michelle Bass, director of compliance and customer relations at Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas. “ We’re very excited about our health-care transformation taking place, and are ensuring it touches every level of Mercy, right down to the gift shop. ”
In addition to incorporating cutting-edge retail technology, the gift shop at the new campus will offer boutique-style items to customers. Available product lines will include Woodwick Candles, Camille Beckman lotions, See’s Candy, Willow Tree collectibles and a large variety of nice baby items, among other selections.
In regard to the application of RFID technology in the Mercy gift shop, Bass noted that it will provide a level of efficiency and customization that most retail operations in the country would relish.
Dr. Craig Thompson, computer science professor at the University of Arkansas, believes that his students’ project is a harbinger of future applications.
“ University of Arkansas students Wes Deneke, Eric Kirkconnell and Jarrod Bourlon in my Middleware course were excited to deploy our leadingedge software for RFID-based, item-level asset management in a live application — the Mercy Gift Shop, ” Dr. Thompson said. “ This may seem like a small step now, but we see this as a big step toward more ubiquitous computing, where everyday, real-world objects can communicate with humans and each other — a coming Internet of Things. ”
“ Our team was eager to take on this project, ” Deneke said about the task. “ We enjoyed incorporating the cuttingedge RFID technology and creating real-world software for the hospital that will make the gift-shop volunteers’ jobs easier. ”
The Bentonville International Group played a key role in setting this project in motion by not only providing Mercy with the radio-frequency design and appropriate hardware, but also connecting Mercy with the University of Arkansas RFID program to provide the software services.
“ Bentonville International Group was compelled to help bridge the gap between academic principles and business applications for students engaging in the Radio Frequency Identification field, ” Ken Trussell, president / CEO of the Bentonville International Group, commented. “ Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas is creating a premier health-care facility which requires stateof-the-art technology at all levels. The gift shop at Mercy, although not directly tied to the medical discipline, is an excellent representation of the cutting-edge technology that RFID represents. ”
Trussell continued: “ When deciding on a software partner, our choice was easy; we reached out to the University of Arkansas. The RFID program at the University of Arkansas is at the forefront of RFID research and development, not only in the United States, but across the globe. I could think of no better team to produce a product that reflected the vision and mission of our friends at Mercy. Now, we will begin the process of incorporating this program with our designs for what we feel will be an incredible final product for the new gift shop. ”
Mercy Medical Center will be the new home of Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas. The campus will also include the Mercy Physicians Plaza that will become home to 11 clinics in the Mercy network. The campus will be fully integrated among the medical center, physicians’ plaza and all 20 clinics in the Mercy network via its One Patient / One Record Information System.