Arne Rehm, product manager RFID/NFC Solutions at Schreiner MediPharm, explains how smart labels with integrated RFID/NFC chips support digitalisation trends in the pharmaceutical industry.
Smart labels
The current trend towards self-medication puts a stronger focus on the patient. On the one hand, easy and comfortable dispensing of a medicine is becoming more and more important. On the other hand, increasing digitalisation changes usage behaviour and strengthens the well-informed patient. Innovative labels with integrated NFC/RFID technology enable new, interactive applications and thus make an important contribution to assisting the patient. In addition, wireless communication is able to optimise processes, for instance to secure the supply chain or for intralogistics workflows.
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) allows for quick, contactless reading and storage of digitised data for a wide range of applications. Due to their thin and flexible construction, RFID/NFC inlays are easy to integrate into labels for medicine containers or medical devices and inconspicuously blend in with the existing design. The smart labels can simply be applied to the primary containers during the production process and offer attractive fields of application, such as counterfeiting protection, interaction with the patient and process optimisation.