North Henderson High School’s tour of SMARTRAC on October 1, 2015 was like any other Made in Henderson County tour; students saw different aspects of the operation, and learned about diverse career opportunities.  The students also learned how Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is being used in retail applications, and how it might be leveraged in the future.  Each of the students was given a Near Field Communication (NFC) tag, and provided a simple one-page instructional overview titled, “How to Read and Program NFC tags with Android Based Phones.”

Just a week after the tours, North Henderson High School Business Technologies Teacher, Lynn Price, shared the following:

“I must brag on my students a little. Two young men used the NFC tags that were given to them at SMARTRAC in great ways!

Dakota collected the NFC tags from others that didn’t want them and has used them at home to program items so that when he places his phone near them it will take him to specific websites!

Michael built a Bluetooth speaker for himself and used the NFC tag to connect it to his phone.  He now can listen to his music through the speaker he built!

I’ll say it again, this was the best field trip I’ve ever taken students on! Thanks for allowing us to participate!”

The outcome of this tour, and many others, reinforces the impact of Made in Henderson County.  Since 2012, over 3,000 students have made the connection between the classroom and industry.  More than 75% of students attending an industry tour said that the visit changed their view on manufacturing careers.  For more information, please visit www.madeinhendersoncounty.com.