Intermec pledges 40 more years serving data collection, mobile solutions users
By Jim Fulcher, contributing editor -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 1/1/2006 7:00:00 AM
Mention auto-ID, and one of the first vendors that comes to mind is Intermec.
The company's longevity certainly contributes to that recognition. Intermec—known for its RFID, data-collection and mobile computing solutions, bar code printers, and label media—recently celebrated its 40th anniversary.
"We've been in this business a long time, and we understand our customers' requirements," says Chris Kelley, director of RFID. "One reason is we use our own products in our manufacturing operations, which gives us a greater understanding of what companies require from data-capture technology."
Kelley says using the vendor's own products also drives efforts to make a full line of solutions that work together. The end-to-end product line approach seems to hold a great deal of appeal for systems integrators as well as end users.
"Intermec is the only company that develops and builds scanners, terminals, printers—every single aspect of a data-collection system," says Scott Medford, partner with Genesta, a data-collection vendor. "That's remarkable and ambitious because all the pieces of a solution come from under one roof. The result, for the user, is everything has the same look and feel."
That approach simplifies business for Intermec's partners because it eliminates integrating products from different suppliers, but the benefits extend to the end user as well.
"Customers realize there probably won't be any performance problems because all components of the data-capture solution are engineered to work together," says Janis Nantz, a VP with Ryzex, a data-collection system reseller and systems integrator, and longtime Intermec partner. "On the other hand, customers also know if there are any problems or issues, there won't be any finger-pointing, and they won't be caught in the middle between a VAR and an OEM. We're all partners and will jointly work together to solve any problems."
For Denmark-based Carlsberg Breweries, automated data capture has been part of the company's distribution operations for years. When the DOS-based handheld data-capture terminals it used in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland reached the end of service life, the company sought to replace existing hardware and applications in all four countries with a single solution.
After a pilot, Carlsberg selected Intermec's 760 Color ruggedized handheld computer running Microsoft Windows CE, and offering a combination of radio communications modes: GSM/GPRS, 802.11b for wireless LANs, and Bluetooth for short-range communications.
According to Mary Irwin, project manager at Carlsberg, "Intermec's speed of response and proactive stance showed us it was the ideal technology partner. People at Intermec are used to working with other software and communications vendors to create fully integrated solutions. Nobody else could quite emulate the speed and efficiency that Intermec was able to carry out with this aspect of the implementation."
Intermec consistently scores high on expertise and customer support, but the company also is well known for its approach to innovation, says David Krebs, director of the mobile and wireless practice at Venture Development Corp. (VDC), a Natick, Mass.-based analyst firm. The best example may be Intermec's early commitment to RFID.
"Intermec was the most aggressive RFID pursuer in the mid- to late-1990s," Krebs says. "It made a significant investment to drive patent technology that in turn drives standards."
The focus on standards is another factor that Genesta's Medford says differentiates Intermec in the market. Rather than create proprietary products, Intermec uses standards as a foundation and builds from there, he says.
"When you've built product based purely on standards, users can substitute other equipment on the plant floor without compromising performance," Medford says. "That's a necessity manufacturers appreciate."
