ORLANDO – April 8, 2014 – Checkpoint Systems, Inc. (NYSE:CKP), a leading global supplier of merchandise availability solutions for the retail industry, today announced here at RFID Journal Live its new Zephyr 2 RFID label, which is certified by the University of Arkansas’ ARC Center for item-level tagging of all apparel categories in the U.S. and Europe.
The Zephyr 2 RFID Label is a pressure sensitive label that can be applied to apparel trim and packaging for EPC compliance, anti-theft and Merchandise Visibility applications. It has an integrated UCODE 7 chip from NXP Semiconductors, and comes with optimal read/write sensitivity for accurate counting and quicker encoding. With a wide range of apparel applications, it is ideal for retailers deploying large-scale implementations. In an early indicator of the expected demand for Zephyr 2, pre-launch orders have already been placed for hundreds of thousands of these RFID labels to be used in pilot programs with a large European retailer this year.
The Zephyr 2, offered with a label size of 54x34mm, has been optimized for performance with all of Checkpoint’s RFID solutions, including its RFID EAS Overhead Solution, the EVOLVE Exclusive E10 pedestal, and other Merchandise Visibility solutions. It has received certification from the University of Arkansas’ ARC Center for Categories A (denim), B (polybagged apparel), C (boxed items) and D (hanging apparel) for use in North America, and Categories I (apparel) and K (apparel) for European apparel items. This will allow our customers to use the same tag globally across many categories, streamlining their source tagging operations.
“As international item-level RFID adoption continues to grow, it is crucial for retailers and brand owners to have access to ‘global’ RFID tags that can perform equally well in retailers across the world in various frequency ranges. Checkpoint’s U7 Zephyr 2 is one of the first generation of these new global tagging solutions approved in multiple apparel and hardline categories for the US and Europe,” said Justin Patton, RFID Research Center -- Managing Director University of Arkansas.
According to Umesh Cooduvalli, Checkpoint’s senior director, RFID Consumables, “Major apparel retailers have expressed a strong interest in the capabilities that the Zephyr 2 offers, particularly those with broad apparel product lines with large-scale deployment needs. We’re excited that this product is already being used in RFID pilots and we look forward to scaling up supply for future deployments.”
About Checkpoint Systems, Inc. (www.checkpointsystems.com)
Checkpoint Systems is a global leader in merchandise availability solutions for the retail industry, encompassing loss prevention and merchandise visibility. Checkpoint provides end-to-end solutions enabling retailers to achieve accurate real-time inventory, accelerate the replenishment cycle, prevent out-of-stocks and reduce theft, thus improving merchandise availability and the shopper’s experience. Checkpoint's solutions are built upon 45 years of radio frequency technology expertise, innovative high-theft and loss-prevention solutions, market-leading RFID hardware, software, and comprehensive labeling capabilities to brand, secure and track merchandise from source to shelf. Checkpoint's customers benefit from increased sales and profits by implementing merchandise availability solutions to ensure the right merchandise is available at the right place and time when consumers are ready to buy. Listed on the NYSE (NYSE: CKP), Checkpoint operates in every major geographic market and employs more than 4700 people worldwide.
