When it comes to streamlining business and making processes leaner, having pragmatic barcode scanning is an absolutely critical need. Barcodes, and barcode scanners are the foundation for improving what has traditionally been a time-intensive man-powered process.
How exactly do they do this? Why are barcode scanners excellent efficiency-boosting tools? Why are they a smart choice over manual inventory processes? To answer these questions, we need to take a look at specific ways that barcode scanners are great for the enterprise:
For starters, many barcode systems are easy to setup: Implementing barcode scanners into an inventory system is not difficult. In fact, barcode scanners are sometimes built to be up and running in as little as one business day. For example, Fulcrum Technologies. Fulcrum, a leader in Asset Lifecycle Management (which includes using barcodes for Field Data Collection) can get both barcodes, AND customized routines up and working in less than one business day.
This is especially important for some civic services, including the police, where it’s used in law enforcement asset tracking.
The right hand-held barcode scanners and/or mobile solutions with the right mobile software solution are simple to use, and training employees in how to implement them is fast and easy. Then, as soon as the devices “go-live” businesses can start enjoying the business benefits that come from automated inventory control and having an accurate “Siteline” into their critical assets.
When employees have to manually enter information for each product in your inventory, they are going to make mistakes — and those mistakes cost money. Barcode mobile solutions eliminate this inaccuracy by turning long and complicated data input into an automated, streamlined process done by machine.
Barcode scanners automate the data inputting process so that companies can record huge amounts of information in shorter periods of time. Instead of manually keying in each product’s long serial number, employees get to instantaneously scan in the information and move on. Over the course of one business day or week, a company can save huge amounts of time and energy through this simplified process.
In general, you can forget manually entering each product’s information. With barcode scanners, employees can easily scan relevant information for inventory cycle counts and provide faster, real-time control over inventory systems.
One of the biggest beauties of barcode scanners is that they operate in real time. Rather than looking at incomplete ERP databases and expecting some sort of limited data, companies can get immediate updates to know, at any given moment, what assets are available and where. And, the barcode system automatically gives you rich historical data about your inventory, which can then be used to inform ALL of your connected business decisions. This information is easily available through automatic records that are created through the barcode system, and dramatically help reduce the amount of theft, hoarding, fraud, and inefficient inventory/spares levels.
Using barcode scanners lowers the amount of paper your company needs to track products, which is good both for the environment and for your bottom line. What’s more, moving from paper records to digital ones lets you enjoy all the benefits of a digital transformation. Companies like Fulcrum Technology are helping major brands with this transformation, giving them a Siteline into asset data previously thought unattainable. www.Fulcrum.net
