ODIN awarded another RFID patent

ODIN technologies, the leader in RFID solution design, testing and deployment was recently awarded another RFID patent, which related to a project dubbed the Secure Material Accounted in Real Time (S.M.A.R.T.) container. U.S. Patent No. 7,256,682 relates to, for example, a wide range of embodiments having active and/or passive RFID to provide efficient and accurate visibility of assets as they travel in a closed container.

One embodiment of the technology would be for dynamically updating contents of a container to a “parent” tag on the exterior of the container. This would allow a completely accurate inventory of the contents by simply interrogating the tag on the outside of the container. As items are added or removed the SMART container dynamically updates the parent tag, so that anytime the parent tag is interrogated all contents are accurately accounted for without requiring human intervention. “The SMART container patent is another example of ODIN technologies solving real-world RFID challenges through innovation.

Our extensive work in the military, aerospace and health care industries revealed a common challenge. People would put contents into a box, update the contents to an exterior tag, but never update the inventory when items were removed. This leads to inventory inaccuracy and added effort,” commented Patrick J. Sweeney II President and CEO of ODIN technologies and the inventor of the SMART container. Mr. Sweeney added, “The SMARTcontainer solution improves the efficiency and accuracy of inventory tracking. Anytime something is taken out or put inside a SMART container enabled box, the RFID capabilities dynamically update the tag which records its contents.

This can be invaluable in military theaters, hospital operating rooms, port security, and for companies tracking parcel shipments at multiple drop-off locations.”ODIN technologies will consider licensing the patent to other providers in the RFID space, and is currently working directly with clients to leverage this unique technology to drive value in their operations.

Source : Fibre2fashion

Lectra's hi-tech solutions for fashion sector at SAMAB!

Lectra, the world leader in integrated technological solutions dedicated to industries that use soft goods, will showcase its whole range of solutions and services especially designed to allow fashion players to shorten their time to market and gain in competitivity, at its 840m²-stand during SAMAB to be held from September 11–13th in Milan, Italy.

In particular, Lectra will present its PLM offering, Lectra Fashion PLM, its new Kaledo design offer, created especially for designers, its 3D virtual prototyping solution, Modaris 3D Fit, and its new range of cutters, VectorFashion. Four times a day, at the Lectra stand, visitors will be able to attend a 15-minute show illustrating a collection, from its conception to sale. Shows will take place at 10 am, 12 noon, 2:30 pm and 4:30 pm. Shows will also be offered at regular intervals on the following 4 themes: collection lifecycle management, collection design, product development, and expert software.

Lectra Fashion PLM is the leading PLM solution devoted to fashion, offering a virtual collaborative environment that supports iterative processes for design, development (specifications, sourcing and pattern-making) and collection marketing up to the point of sale. The integration of business applications as well as collection and process management software enables action to be taken in key areas leading to improved performance for fashion companies: capacity for innovation, brand identity, frequency and time to market, quality assurance, control of development costs for products and materials, management and synchronization of multiple processes, and decision-making about collection content. In this way, Lectra Fashion PLM meets the two-fold demand for innovative products and profitability. With an ever-increasing number of collections, Kaledo ensures significantly faster product development cycles.

The new Kaledo range, which covers all the requirements for designing collections, prints, knits and yarn-dyed woven fabrics, offers style and textile designers an intuitive working environment, loyal to their trade.

This innovative solution improves communication between the design teams and their network whether in-house or out, guaranteeing the quick development of products in harmony with the original concept. With Kaledo Collection, this offer’s cornerstone, designers have a unique tool enabling them to design and modify their collections fast; all the models, styles, components and materials are actually saved and each modification made to a style, color or fabric is automatically made in all the documents.

By combining fabric data (thanks to a library of 120 fabrics, each with its mechanical characteristics), 2D patterns, and 3D virtual mannequins (standard and configurable), Modaris 3D Fit enables realistic simulation and visualization of the garment models in 3D, with a variety of different fabrics, motifs and color ranges. It ensures control of garment fit, style and collection validation. This innovative solution reduces the number of physical prototypes required. It facilitates teamwork between designers, pattern-makers, product developers and marketing teams as well as exchanges between prime contractors and sub-contractors.Manufacturers face productivity and flexibility challenges.

In addition to increasingly diversified orders with shorter and shorter delivery times, there is a need to control costs and offer perfect quality. By offering a technological response adapted to clothing manufacturers’ needs for expansion, Lectra has demonstrated its added value and ensured a fast return on investment. To enhance production capacity, the new generation of VectorFashion has a powerful motor that allows for cutting of more garments and faster, thus increasing productivity by up to 15%. It guarantees an ultra-precise cut, even with edges at a tangent, to optimize marker making and save up to 5% of fabric per year. Manufacturers can fill up to 50% more orders, thanks to a reliable solution with integrated preventive maintenance.

Source : Fibre2fashion

Steve & Barry’s to employ SAP Workforce Management application

Strengthening its position as one of the leading solutions providers to retailers of all sizes around the world, SAP AG announced that Steve & Barry’s has selected SAP software to support its global growth objectives.

Known for re-writing the rules of retail by offering affordably priced, high-quality apparel for the entire family, Steve & Barry’s will implement SAP for Retail solutions to support the company’s operations and its expansion as one of the fastest-growing retailers in the United States. With more than 200 stores in more than 30 states, the move to SAP will benefit Steve and Barry’s employees at the corporate level as well as in its distribution center and stores.After a comprehensive evaluation of competing vendor solutions, Steve & Barry’s selected SAP for its ability to provide an integrated, end-to-end solution across retail, financial, real estate and human resource operations to automate manual processes, streamline operations and control costs.

In keeping with its promise to deliver high-quality merchandise to its customers at astonishingly low prices, Steve & Barry’s also selected SAP software for its multi-language and multi-currency capabilities to support the company’s current and future international operations, allowing the company to share real-time information quickly and efficiently on a global scale.To remain flexible and responsive to fashion trends, consumer demands and market needs, Steve & Barry’s will employ the SAP Workforce Management application to ensure that it effectively attends to staffing needs, employee skill levels, payroll requirements, employee availabilities and workplace rules to increase overall productivity.

Furthermore, by putting the right employees in the right place at the right time, Steve & Barry’s will not only reduce critical time-to-market for product design, development and purchasing, but also guarantee that its employees will continue to thrive in their roles and be motivated to initiate the type of cutting-edge, out-of-the-box thinking that separates Steve & Barry’s from its competition.

In an effort to gain further insight into the needs of its target consumers, Steve & Barry’s will leverage the SAP Merchandise and Assortment Planning application to anticipate consumer demand and build and analyze assortments based on local customer preferences to increase margins and maximize sales for each product line.Steve & Barry’s will also leverage the next wave of enhancements to SAP Best Practices offerings a global portfolio of proven industry and cross-industry business processes, methodologies and documentation. SAP Best Practices offerings are based on the experience of SAP and its partners, gained from decades of serving industry-leading companies of all sizes.

The enhancements range from new, preconfigured industry best practices to new and improved deployment tools for faster implementation and additional coverage for countries and industries.“Our relationship with Steve & Barry’s is further proof that SAP is committed to providing award-winning solutions with new levels of adaptability and simplicity in businessmanagement to retailers of all sizes,” said Jim Mattecheck, senior vice president/general manager, Retail, SAP America Inc.“SAP retail solutions are the best way for companies like Steve & Barry’s to achieve greater efficiencies and focus on their tremendous growth potential. We are proud to have such an exciting company like Steve & Barry’s join our ever-growing family of the best-run retailers in the world.”

Source : Fibre2fashion.com