RFID player predicts strong demand in Asia-Pacific region, opens Singapore office
Rockville, MD — July 23, 2004 — Radio frequency identification (RFID) systems provider Matrics has opened an Asia Pacific office located in Singapore to boost services to its customer and partner base throughout the region.
Erik Wood, vice president for Asia Pacific operations, will be responsible for all go-to-market and customer engagement activities. Erik reports to John Shoemaker, senior vice president, corporate development.
Wood has a sales, business development and technology innovation background, having spent more than eight years in the RFID industry focusing on transportation, asset management and security applications.
"All indications lead us to believe that Asia Pacific will be in the forefront of RFID technology adoption," said Piyush Sodha, chairman and CEO of Matrics in the company statement. "Be it public or the private sector, aviation or the retail supply chain, we are hearing customer demand for seamless global asset visibility. On-site presence in the region enhances our ability to help our customers realize this vision."
"Matrics' customers in the Asia Pacific region such as Airport Authority Hong Kong have realized the significance and benefits of RFID technology for air transportation and cargo security, logistics and supply chain efficiencies, and are exploring and adopting RFID at a rapid pace," said Shoemaker in a company statement on the new office opening. "I am pleased to have Erik Wood lead this strategic growth initiative for Matrics."
The Airport Authority Hong Kong selected Matrics to deploy UHF RFID technology for improved customer satisfaction and increased security. Matrics said its RFID reader infrastructure will be deployed across Hong Kong airport's baggage handling facilities. At various nodes within the airport — including baggage carousels, unit load devices (ULDs) and conveyors — reader systems will be installed to read and write to RFID tags that will be applied on passenger bags. RFID-enabled handheld readers will also be used for mobile baggage operation.
Matrics said currently has more than 20 strategic partners and alliances throughout the Asia Pacific region, including Mighty Card Corp., a subsidiary company of Marubeni Corp. Mighty Card is a provider of integrated circuit (IC) tag and RFID system solutions in Japan.
