The Government has been a staunch supporter of the development of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology in Hong Kong, the Commissioner for Innovation and Technology, Mr Eddy Chan, said February 26.
Speaking at the forum "Harnessing the power of RFID/Electronic Product Code (EPC) Technology in Modern Logistics", Mr Chan said it was one of the top research areas for the Hong Kong R&D Centre for Logistics and Supply Chain Management Enabling Technologies.
"Since its establishment, the centre has kick-started and managed more than 20 research projects, amounting to more than $100 million, to facilitate core RFID technology developments in various aspects.
"Our Innovation and Technology Fund has supported 22 RFID projects from 2004 to 2008, with a total amount of $150 million. For the Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Co-operation Funding Scheme, RFID has always been the theme of projects that both governments solicited," Mr Chan said.
He said that as a forerunner in the development and applications of RFID technology, Hong Kong International Airport was the world's first airport to fully utilise RFID technology to ensure the efficient flow of passengers and cargo, while the Octopus card was one of the world's earliest RFID-enabled payment solutions.
However, Mr Chan cautioned that Hong Kong could not afford to be complacent with its achievements.
"Elsewhere in the world, considerable efforts are being made by both the public and private sectors to conduct research in this new technology area and also to promote the wider application of this technology in various sectors.
Governments all around the world are increasingly reliant on innovation and technology as a means to overcome the growing economic crisis," Mr Chan said.
The forum, co-organised by the Innovation and Technology Commission and GS1 Hong Kong, aims to share with the industry the know-how and value of deploying RFID/EPC technology for transport and logistics businesses.
Source: GovHK (www.gov.hk)
