UPM Rafsec Starts Operations At Its High Volume RFID Tag Production Facility In The US Ahead Of Schedule

UPM Rafsec, a leading RFID tag and inlay manufacturer announces today that its new state-of-the-art RFID tag production facility in Fletcher, North Carolina (USA) has begun operations ahead of schedule and is now supplying RFID tags to the company's customers in North America. Ramp up of production was originally planned for the latter part of Q4 2005.

The tags coming out of the Fletcher facility are manufactured with UPM Rafsec's innovative technology for volume production of EPC (electronic product code) compliant UHF tags. The unparalleled yields of this new, high volume production technique provide UPM Rafsec with a competitive advantage among suppliers of low-cost RFID tags. The patent pending process is cost efficient, scalable and enables UPM Rafsec to rapidly increase its capacity according to market demand.

Christer Härkönen, Senior Vice President, UPM Rafsec comments, "We are very pleased that the Fletcher site has opened ahead of schedule - ramp up of production proceeded truly without a hitch. The strong and rapid development of our US operations, together with the launch of our Gen 2 product portfolio, has incredibly enhanced our capability to serve our US customers. This advantage in the North American market will further strengthen our leadership worldwide."