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GS1 presents "Getting it right".
Bar codes have become an essential tool in improving industry sector efficiency throughout
the supply chain.
Bar codes are the key to automated processes throughout the retail sector � in dispatch,
transportation, warehousing, re-ordering, invoicing and payment � not just in the
retail store itself.
The GS1 bar code is the longest-established and most widely used bar code. It is an indispensable
product-marking method that is found on virtually every consumer product in the world.
That little �beep� that people associate with the checkout of a supermarket is a laser
scanning device reading the information encoded in an GS1 barcode symbol.
You would probably congratulate yourself if you had a 99% success rate in a key aspect
of your business.
But when it comes to bar codes, even a 1% error rate can be costly.
A 99% scanning success rate might sound great, but that's also a 1% error rate.
If a company scans 6 billion items every year, then a 1% error rate means 60 million scanning
failures.
It has been estimated that the cost of handling non-scannable outer cases alone, within an
automated distribution center, is somewhere between 40 to 60 % of the cost of the case
itself.
With just the major grocery retailers handling several hundred million cases every month,
it is easy to see how even a 1% failure rate adds significant cost to the supply chain.
And, if you consider the high probability of non-scannable products being returned to
the supplier for re-labeling or re-supply, then it is easy to see that bar code quality
is a problem worth taking seriously.
If it scans wrong at the check-out, then most likely the information is wrong at every
spot in the supply chain. That means automatic re-ordering systems won�t replenish supplies
the way they should and then the manufacturer, the distributor and the customer all miss
out.
If we are going to let the computer do the work, then the bar codes have to be right�.
Good bar codes also benefit suppliers by improving the accuracy of invoicing and payment systems.
When all the information is recorded accurately, there are fewer disputes and delays over payment.
�Getting better bar codes is not the main focus of a retailers business, which is
to have the right products for their customers.
But if it hasn't got a good bar code on it, then they cant sell it.
�The goal for the whole industry should be bar codes that scan right �first time,
every time.
As companies invest more in automatic goods handling systems, their suppliers may find
that the sanctions against poor bar code quality become more severe, with fines and delisting
appearing in the options.
Make sure you have all the information you need and build in processes that will allow
you to actively benefit from bar code scanning.
Using a Quality Control Checklist will have an immediate and dramatic effect on your barcode
product label quality and significantly reduce the number of scanning failures.
The QC Checklist should form part of your normal ongoing product development and quality
control procedures.
Each and every product in your range should be checked against this checklist, in order
to ensure that all the bar codes marked on goods are correct in every way: data content,symbology,
position and print quality.
It ensures that printed bar codes comply with the specified standards and provides the reassurance
to all that the barcode symbol will scan correctly throughout the supply chain, leading to untroubled
supplier-customer relationships.
Before you even get to print a bar code on your products, the first thing you need to
do is to identify each product or consumer unit with a number.
This number is called a Global Trade Item Number or GTIN.
It is unique all over the world and is a key to access information about your products
in a database.
To correctly identify all your products, you first need to list all of them including their
variants.
Make sure you go into the finer details like color, size and volume�
Once your list is done, you then need to allocate a unique GTIN to each different product.
Use the list of GTINs supplied to you from your local GS1 Member organization.
Allocate sequentially.
�I remember when we were trying to identify all our products with a GTIN.
We decided to put meaning into the numbers we were giving to our products.
I remember the first digit would correspond to the color of the wine, the second would
correspond to the size of the bottle� Pretty quickly we realized that it was definitely
not the right thing to do because we quickly ran out of numbers and had to apply for another
prefix from GS1.� GS1 recommends to assign numbers without any link to product classification.
Once the number is correctly allocated, you can move to the next item on the checklist;
the barcode symbol.
For all products sold through a retail point-of-sale, the correct barcode symbol to use is EAN or
UPC.
These can be scanned successfully in the point of sale environment.
Just as there are standards for the identification of products and the correct type of symbol
to be used, so there are standard recommendations for the best place to locate the bar code on
your product.
For point of sale scanning, the general rule is based on the need for speed and efficiency
through the till point.
The bar code symbol must therefore be placed where it can be easily seen and found by the
operator.
In other words, in a standard and predictable place.
The general recommendation for bar code symbol placement is on the lower right quadrant on
the back of the product.
Respect the proper Quiet Zones around the symbol and ensure that the bar code is not
closer than 8 mm or farther than 100 mm from the nearest edge of the package.
While this is the general recommendation, in practice there are large numbers of trade
items, all with different dimensions, shapes and configurations.
Each may have their own unique challenges so its necessary to be aware of what to
avoid.
Do not print a bar code that appears wrapped around the corner of a product.
Do not over wrap or cover the bar code with any type of wrapper, even transparent plastic.
Do not locate the bar code on the base of a product.
Do not print a bar code on any seams or wrinkles.
Scanning is most successful when a bar code is printed on a flat surface.
Good placement of a bar code symbol starts at the product and label design stage.
A good designer considers the final products shape and size and then takes into account
the practical operation of scanning.
Always check:- Is the symbol located logically and practically?
Compare your product packaging with a similar one and see how easily it can be scanned by
the cashier at the point of sale.
Correct orientation of the bar code symbol is important for good scanning performance.
The term �orientation� refers to the direction of the bar code symbol bars in relation to
the surface on which the package stands in its normal position.
It is normally determined primarily by the print process and any curvature of the product
itself.
There are two types of orientation:
�Picket Fence�
And �Ladder�.
Picket fence is the first choice for bar code symbol orientation.
It means that bars are vertical to the surface on which the package stands in its normal
position.
The human readable number beneath the symbol reads from left to right.
This type of orientation is used on products such as boxes of cereal, bags of chips or
detergent packaging.
When a bar code symbol is printed onto a curved surface it is possible that the symbol seems
to disappear round the curve and is distorted to the view from the scanner.
In this situation, the symbol must be printed in ladder orientation.
It means that the bars are parallel to the surface on which the package stands in its
normal position.
Ladder orientation is recommended for cylindrical products such as bottle and other similar
objects.
The human readable number beneath the symbol can be read either from the top down, or from
the bottom up, whichever is consistent with other text and graphics on the package.
Once again, it is the job of the product and label designer to ensure that the correct
orientation is chosen and used for the specific shape and type of product.
The quiet zone is the solid light area to the left and the right of the bar code.
These areas are very important as they enable the scanner to recognize where the bar code
begins and ends.
The width of the quiet zones depends on the size of the bar code.
...the larger the bar code, the wider the quiet zones!
Insufficient quiet zone areas can cause scanning difficulties.
You need to ensure that the quiet zone areas are kept clear of any text, graphics, watermarks
or logos.
The usual size for an EAN-13 bar code symbol used in retail is 22.85mm x 37.29mm
When looking at this bar code, it should appear �over-square�.
If the symbol looks like a rectangle, the bar code has been truncated.
Never truncate the bar code, as this vertical height reduction can greatly affect the barcode�s
ease of scanning.
When you see a till-point operator try multiple times to scan a product, chances are the symbol
has been truncated!
So, if you cant shorten a symbol, can you make it bigger or smaller than the optimum
size of 100%?
The answer is yes!
The target size or magnification is 100% but the standards allow for a maximum of 200%.
However, keep bar codes in the 80% to 120% magnification range if print quality allows.
Its useful to note that when printing bar codes smaller than 100%, the printing tolerances
are muchtighter, and you must use high quality printing processes.
Bar codes must be printed so that the darker bars appear against a paler background.
It is not possible to read a bar code if it is reversed out, that is, printed with white
bars againsta coloured background.
Scanners measure the difference in contrast between the bars and spaces using red light,
and it is important to use colours that will maximise this contrast.
Black bars against a white background isthe bestchoice.
But we understand that colour has an important role to play in the overall look of your product,
so we have some tips for you that will allow you to incorporate the right colours into
your barcodes.
Warm colours such as yellow, red, orange, and white are not seen by the scanner and
are good for background colours.
Cold colours such as green, blue, violet, and black make a good choice for bars, as
they appear dark under red scanning light.
Metallic surfaces and inks reflect light away from the scanner, so scanning is extremely
difficult.
If using a transparent or semi-transparent substrate, do not rely on the colour of the
contents of the packaging to provide a background colour:
print a background in white, yellow, orange or red to provide a solid contrast with the
bars of the symbol.
It is not always necessary to introduce black as an extra colour if the existing colours
used in the packaging design can provide a scannable combination.
It is important that the bars be printed using a solid colour, no matter what type of printing
process is used..
With the increase in use of technology and computadorised graphics, more and more designers
are using integrated software packages to create images of bar codes as part of the
packaging design, and these, used correctly can produce good symbols.
However, its of utmost importance that the designer consult the printer who will
be printing the labels.
Different print technologies have different impacts on the final production of the barcode
symbol.
For example, the bars of a printed symbol will usually be wider that the bars on the
original design.
This increase in width is known as Print Gain and allowances need to be made for this on
the design.
It is not possible to check visually whether print gain, or print loss, has occured during
the printing process.
The only way to adequately address this point is to verify your barcodes.
Verification measures the printed quality of the bar code to international (ISO) standards
and is done using a piece of equipment called a verifier.
�A verifier is a scientific device, taking precise measurements of each individual bar
and space and the amount of light reflected from each.
�It is all very well knowing that your bar code is incorrect but a verifier must be able
to identify the problem to allow you to take the necessary corrective action.�
It is therefore important to use an ISO grade bar code verifier.
Scanning is no substitute for verification as no two bar code readers are identical.
They vary from wands to lasers to cameras, from manually operated to automatic.
Ambient light will vary as will the distance of scanning.
�At its most basic level, verification is an insurance policy helping to assure you
that your bar code will scan first time at all levels in the supply chain, thus enhancing
your supplier/customer relationship.
But it�s more than that.
As part of an effective Quality Assurance system, it can help you win business.
Where do you get help with verification?
Check with your local GS1 organisation if they provide a verification service, or if
they have accredited alliance partners who can assist you.
Your local GS1 organisation can also help by providing a provisional �artwork verification
report� before the packaging design is finalised.
Having information about a product�s bar codes prior to the final printing is a valuable
opportunity to reduce any errors in the final print run and benefits everyone involved,
including printers.
However, please remember that the provisional report does not check the �scannability�
of the finished package and label, so a final verification report is also required.
By incorporating verification into your quality assurance systems you can ensure that your
bar codes read first time, every time.
�It is good practice to assign the role of symbol quality manager to a specific individual
in the organisation.
Their primary objective will be to ensure good quality bar codes.�
�Let�s Get it Right and ensure our products scans first time, every time with no problem!�