PSP Asset Protection — Continuity & Standards Assurance
Confidence in the long-term security of your library technology investment is important. This is how we ensure product and service continuity for our customer base, giving you total peace of mind in our ability to deliver now and in the future.
Why This Matters
Long-term continuity is a fair question for any specialist technology supplier. Here’s why PSP and eRLS give you more security, not less, than the alternative.
Established Since 1978 — Built for the Next 50 Years
PSP has supplied and supported library systems in the UK for over 45 years — the longest-established supplier in this market. We have navigated multiple technology transitions, including the industry’s original move to RFID, without ever leaving a customer unsupported. We plan our business the same way today: for the long term, not the short term.
UHF: Built on the World’s Largest RFID Ecosystem
eRLS operates on EPC Gen2 (ISO/IEC 18000-63), which is the same global UHF standard underpinning RFID across retail, logistics, healthcare, aviation and manufacturing worldwide. This is the most widely deployed and continuously invested-in RFID technology on the planet, backed by every major chip manufacturer and reader vendor globally, not a library-specific niche.
Traditional HF library RFID uses a different, older radio standard that is concentrated in a narrower set of applications, principally library systems, transport ticketing, and contactless payments. UHF, by contrast, is the technology of choice for the fastest-growing parts of the global RFID market, including retail, logistics and supply chain, which means ongoing chip and reader development investment worldwide is increasingly weighted towards UHF. In practical terms, this gives UHF-based library systems access to a broader and faster-evolving base of hardware innovation than HF.
A Standard Built for Flexibility, Not Legacy Constraints
The ISO 28560 library RFID standard was originally developed for HF technology when that was the only option in library use and its rules (Parts 1–3) were fixed around HF’s data structure and memory layout from the outset. When UHF later emerged as a library technology, a separate part of the standard (Part 4) was written specifically to accommodate it, rather than forcing UHF into HF’s original fixed format. In practice, this means the UHF library standard was designed with more flexibility and fewer legacy constraints than the original HF-era rules it followed, meaning UHF wasn’t retrofitted into an old structure; it got its own newer framework built around how the technology actually works.
No Restriction on Your Freedom to Choose
Nothing in the eRLS software or hardware architecture restricts your ability to work with, or move to, an alternative qualified supplier. eRLS is built on open, globally adopted RFID standards rather than a closed or proprietary scheme, which is the opposite of the vendor lock-in problem that affected early library RFID adoption before industry standards matured.
Specialist Focus, Not a Side Product
Unlike larger vendors for whom library RFID is one product line among many, library security and RFID is the entirety of PSP’s business. Our focus is undivided, and our track record, over 130 UHF installations across UK schools, colleges, FE, and NHS libraries since 2017, reflects sustained investment and specialist depth.
In Summary
| Concern | Our Response |
| “What if the supplier fails?” | 45+ years trading and planning for the next 45; built on the world’s largest RFID standard, not a niche closed system |
| “Is this proprietary/locked-in?” | Runs on globally adopted EPC Gen2 / ISO/IEC 18000-63 — the opposite of a closed vendor format |
| “Is UHF too niche?” | UHF leads the fastest-growing global RFID sectors — retail, logistics, supply chain — driving broader ongoing investment |
| “Is the standard immature?” | UHF library standards were designed with more flexibility than the older, fixed HF-era model |
| “Is this a side project for the supplier?” | Library RFID and LMS is 100% of PSP’s business, not one product among many |
Contact
Questions, comments and requests regarding our service continuity and standards policy are welcomed, and should be addressed to info@psp-assetprotection.co.uk or call 01473 745375.