EPCglobal Takes Steps to Address Key Business Needs of the Healthcare and Life Sciences Supply Chain

Organization Creates Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group; World's Leading Pharmaceutical Companies Join Effort to Drive Adoption of Global Standards

LAWRENCEVILLE, New Jersey – September 27, 2004 – EPCglobal Inc^TM today announced it has launched the Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group. As part of the EPCglobal standards development process, the action group will identify key supply chain needs that Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and Electronic Product Code^TM (EPC) technology can address. Once the needs have been identified, the group will then develop the business requirements necessary for implementing the technology.

The EPCglobal Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group joins other EPCglobal work groups, which include: Fast Moving Consumer Goods Business Action Group, Hardware Action Group and Software Action Group.

Each of these action groups is charged with developing standards that will leverage the EPCglobal Network^TM, a system of technologies that harnesses the power of RFID to link a unique number, the EPC, over existing network infrastructure. Because of the technical properties of EPC technology and the open architecture of the EPCglobal Network, trading partners will be able to more efficiently and effectively use and share information about goods as they move through the supply chain.

"We've seen significant demand from companies within the healthcare and life sciences industries to better understand how EPC technology and the EPCglobal Network can address the unique needs and challenges of their industry," said Mike Meranda, president, EPCglobal US. "This demand is being driven by the potential of the technology to deliver strong return on investment, including improved inventory management, tracking of prescription drugs and medical equipment, enhanced patient safety, and as a guard against drug counterfeiting."

Within the past six months, 16 of the world's top pharmaceutical companies and one of the country's leading patient services providers has joined EPCglobal to begin collaborating on a global, industry standard. More than 100 representatives from these and other healthcare companies have already signed-on as participants in the Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group to actively participate in shaping the standards that will leverage EPC and the EPCglobal Network within their respective supply chains.

The formation of the Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group follows a successful Healthcare Summit hosted by EPCglobal in May 2004. The Healthcare & Life Sciences Business Action Group will hold kickoff meetings in Europe on Oct. 28 and 29 and Asia in early December. The group is comprised of representatives from retailers, distributors, and manufacturers worldwide.

Business leaders in the healthcare and life sciences industry will also have the opportunity to discuss the business case for implementing the EPCglobal Network into their supply chains at the upcoming EPCglobal US Conference 2004. Attendees will have the chance to participate in industry-specific panel discussions, seminars, and presentations, led by executives from the healthcare sector as well as representatives across all industries. For more information on the EPCglobal US Conference 2004, visit www.EPCglobalUS.org

About EPCglobal
EPCglobal Inc, a joint venture between EAN International and the UCC, is a not-for-profit organization entrusted by industry to establish and support the EPCglobal Network as the global standard for real-time, automatic identification of information in the supply chain of any company, anywhere in the world.

EPCglobal US is an affiliate of EPCglobal serving subscribers in the United States to help foster the adoption of the EPC Network and related technology.

The EPCglobal Network combines radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, existing communications network infrastructure, and the Electronic Product Code (a number for uniquely identifying an item) to enable accurate, cost-efficient visibility of information in the supply chain. The end result helps organizations be more efficient, flexible, and responsive to customer needs. For more information about EPCglobal or EPCglobal US, visit: www.EPCglobalINC.org or www.EPCglobalUS.org