Safer Pharmaceuticals thanks to RFID technology

24.10.05 | Siemens is using RFID technology to help ensure greater safety for pharmaceuticals. In cooperation with the Swiss packaging manufacturer Limmatdruck/Zeiler, the company has developed various solutions for the pharmaceutical industry that clearly identify drugs and prevent them from being successfully counterfeited. The industry is facing an increasing number of counterfeit medications on the market, which is why it's particularly interested in protecting its valuable products against fraud. Patients can also benefit from the solutions, as the technology can also be used to check that the correct medication is being administered.

The system from Siemens Business Services uses chip labels that are affixed to packaging or else mounted directly onto products such as ampoules. These RFID (radio frequency identification) chips, which work with both radio-frequency and uhf waves, cost from 25 cents apiece and can be easily integrated with an antenna into paper, plastic, or ceramic material. The receiving unit can be as far away as five meters from the RFID chip without causing problems for the data acquisition.

This type of identification technology offers a wide range of applications in addition to accurate original merchandise identification: For example, despite fast packaging speeds, the system reduces errors — such as incorrect deliveries — by up to 50 percent. Storage costs are also reduced to a minimum because inventories can be checked anytime via radio, and then aligned with existing demand. Moreover, quality of medication can be ensured by seamless cold-chain documentation.

The data can be registered at any location with the system — in other words, everywhere from production locations to hospitals and pharmacies. Among other things, this makes it easier for hospital staff to determine whether a patient is being administered the correct medication in the correct doses right up to the moment they take their medicine.

Siemens supplies the entire software and hardware package for RFID-based logistics chains, including everything from sorting units at production facilities to reading units at hospitals and pharmacies. (IN 2005.10.5)