UPS rolls out RFID network
UPS says it has rolled out RFID tracking across its U.S. network using tags cheap enough to deploy at scale. The company framed the rollout as a broad visibility upgrade that will affect item‑level tracking, exception handling and how carriers and 3PLs route and process freight. (ajc.com)
UPS has started using radio-frequency identification, or RFID, across its U.S. small-package network, replacing many handheld barcode scans with automatic reads as parcels move. (investors.ups.com) RFID works like a tiny wireless license plate: a low-cost tag on a package pings fixed readers in hubs, trucks and stores without a worker stopping to scan it. UPS said the rollout now covers its U.S. small-package network, including package cars, facilities and UPS Store locations. (about.ups.com) UPS said on April 14 it has invested more than $100 million in the system. The company said the new phase could eliminate nearly 20 million manual scans a day and add RFID tracking to about 20 million more deliveries. (supplychaindive.com) The shift changes what customers and warehouse operators see between pickup and delivery. UPS said item-level sensing should produce faster status updates, tighter exception handling when a parcel goes off plan, and fewer gaps between checkpoints. (ajc.com) UPS has been building toward this for more than a year. RFID Journal reported in 2024 that UPS had added readers at more than 1,000 distribution sites and was equipping its brown delivery trucks to read tagged packages. (rfidjournal.com) The timing lines up with a broader cost and network overhaul at UPS. The company has been pushing automation and “Network of the Future” projects as it works to improve margins after a weaker freight market and changing package mix. (investors.ups.com) (supplychaindive.com) UPS is also framing the technology as something other carriers and third-party logistics providers can plug into. Supply Chain Dive reported that UPS plans to expand the system internationally starting later this year and into next year, with a goal of equipping almost every package in its network with RFID. (supplychaindive.com) For shippers, the practical change is simple: fewer “last scanned” dead zones and more automatic location checks as a box passes through the network. For UPS, the bet is that a tag cheap enough to go on millions of parcels can turn package tracking into a sensing system instead of a stop-and-scan process. (ajc.com) (about.ups.com)
