Barcode scanning has been around for decades, but its importance can never be stressed enough. Without barcodes, manufacturers would be forced to rely solely on employees in order to track inventory. Even if an employee is vigilant and dependable, he/she is still going to make mistakes. Barcode scanning allows for companies to bypass many forms of human error.
Not only do barcodes save companies from making errors, they allow manufacturing to run much more quickly and smoothly than would otherwise be possible. This article will explore the ways in which barcodes can help take a manufacturing company to the next level with simple scans.
Barcodes Make Everything Traceable in Manufacturing Systems
As products move from organization to organization, or move throughout the industrial supply chain, it is important for companies to be able to keep track of their whereabouts. It’s always good to know where products are, where they are going, and where they have been. Scanners make it extremely easy to keep track of products or raw materials via their barcodes. With one scan of a barcode the history and information of a product can be visible on demand. Without barcodes, it would be much harder to keep track of products and much easier to misplace them.
Tracing products is also important in the event that something needs to be recalled. If there are complaints about particular products, barcodes can be used to trace where exactly they came from, and where any others might be. Recalling items is already a painful process without having to search for any more mistakes – a simple barcode scan can go a long way in improved tracing of a recalled product.
Speed is More Important Than Ever and Scanning Helps
E-commerce is growing by leaps and bounds each year. Customers are starting to look online before heading out to stores, and sometimes it is just easier to purchase online. An important factor in deciding whether or not to buy online is the speed of delivery. Consumers are becoming more accustomed to receiving deliveries in two days or less. In order for this time frame to be a reality, manufacturers must eliminate all unnecessary actions.
Barcode scanners come in handy when it comes to speed because they can read and sort much faster than people can. When using a barcode scanner, an employee no longer has to read and process information. The scanner simply tells him/her what the item is and where it needs to go. There are many factors that come into play when determining the speed of a delivery, but barcode scanners can play a big part.
Barcode Scanning Is More Cost Efficient in the Long Run
Implementing a barcode scanning system might cost some money to implement initially, and there would be a learning curve, but money would ultimately be saved in the long run. The average human being makes a mistake every 300 keystrokes, whereas barcode scanners make mistakes once in a few million tries. It doesn’t take a mathematician to understand how much time and money can be saved with barcodes.
In addition to saving money by erasing mistakes, barcodes can actually help a company by increasing production. Scanning one barcode may only save a few seconds, but those seconds begin to add up after time. An efficient warehouse will run more smoothly and save time and money. A good business will use that saved time to branch out and grow in new ways or seek to improve on other processes, including manufacturing.
Barcodes can make it easier for a company to succeed in today’s world. Speed and efficiency are more important than ever, and technology must be embraced in order for a business to keep up with the times. Barcodes don’t just help a company in one or two areas; the effects of a barcode scanning system can be felt throughout an entire manufacturing company.
