Everything You Need to Know About Printing Product Barcodes

29 Apr.,2024

 

Everything You Need to Know About Printing Product Barcodes

Barcodes make your business processes more efficient. Whether you’re looking to track information about goods, store it, or both, barcodes can serve an important role in your daily operations. Barcodes have several advantages over manually entering or looking up information:

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  • Barcodes help prevent errors. “To err is human,” but errors with inventory can affect your bottom line. Barcodes help prevent human error and increase your accuracy.
  • Barcodes allow you to track inventory, which leads to lower overhead and more inventory control.
  • Barcodes are inexpensive to produce and design, providing a valuable return on investment compared to the cost of human error. They provide fast, reliable data for a wide range of applications.
  • Barcodes are extremely versatile and can be used for any data collection, not just price or inventory.

How Do You Create a Barcode for a Product?

Thankfully, printing and using UPC barcodes for your products is simple, but it does require following a few essential steps. We’ll layout for you exactly how to print product barcodes so you can begin using them to positively impact your business.

Step 1: Apply for a GS1 Company Prefix

At this point, you may be asking yourself, “what is a GS1 product number?” GS1 stands for Global Standards One. Before your company can begin using barcodes, you must have assigned numbers that go inside the barcode, which are called GS1 identification keys. To obtain these, you apply for your company prefix from a GS1 member organization. A prefix allows you to create unique identification keys for the items, units, locations, coupons, parties, assets, and more. Currently, over 1.3 million companies worldwide use GS1 company prefixes as the basis for creating unique numbers to identify items within their supply chains.

GS1 barcodes are the standard for the industry and are mandatory for most online retailers. If, for example, you’re wondering, “what kind of barcode do I need to sell on Amazon?” the answer is a GS1 barcode. Going to GS1 and filling out their application for a company prefix is one of the most important steps to barcode your products.

Step 2: Assign Each Product a Unique Number

After you receive your GS1 company prefix, you can begin to assign unique identification numbers to each of your trade items, locations, units, assets, or anything After you receive your GS1 company prefix, you can begin to assign unique identification numbers to each of your trade items, locations, units, assets, or anything else that you need to track. One of the most important things to remember is that each variation of a product that you sell will require its unique product number. If, for example, your company makes a pair of pants, but those pants come in 12 different sizes and three different colors, you have 36 different product variations for that product. You can estimate how many barcodes you will need using GS1’s barcode estimator. Once you receive your company prefix, a member organization from GS1 can help you decide how many numbers you can assign based on the length of your prefix.

At this point, you may be thinking, “where do I get a UPC code for my product?” If you are using UPCs to identify products, then each one will have a unique Global Trade Item Number (GTIN). You create a GTIN by combining your prefix number with a product number that you assign, with a “check digit” on the end to ensure that the GTIN is created correctly. You can use your GTIN and UPC barcode anywhere in the world.

Step 3: Determine Features of Barcode

The next step in creating your universal product code and label is creating its features, such as placement, size, color, and adhesive. Some of the most common questions that people have regarding this step of the process include:

  • “How do I create a barcode for a product?” Once you have the GSI prefix and product number, you have everything you need to create your barcode! You will just need to determine where you want it placed on your shipment, its relative size, and color. A reputable digital label printing company can turn your barcodes into a reality.
  • “How do I know where to print digital labels?” The best label printing companies will have barcode generating software that ensures that your UPC barcodes and ISBN barcodes conform to applicable global standards.
  • “How large should my barcode be?” This is a matter of personal preference, but your barcode should be readily visible and available to your workers.
  • “How do I format the barcode text?” The text within your barcode should be easy to see in case a worker needs to enter the number manually, but there is no standard font or formatting. A barcode label printer can make sure that your barcode labels are legible and easy to use.

Step 4: Order the UPC/Barcode from a Reliable Label Printing Company

The final step in using a barcode is ordering them and getting them printed. Among the most common questions and concerns are:

  • “How much does a barcode cost?” This depends on the type of code you order, how many you need, and other factors. The most effective way to determine this is to research the best label printing company in Boston, MA, and request a quote.
  • “Where to order UPC barcodes?” Trust the team at Royal Label.
  • “Where do I buy product codes online?” There are several digital label printing companies in your area, but not all can create barcodes that comply with GS1 standards. Always do your research before choosing a barcode label printer for your UPC barcodes for products. Ideally, you will get the prefix and estimate the number of barcodes you need, and a printer will do the rest.

RRoyal Label will work with you to implement your GS1 barcode. We have certified GS1 barcode generating software along with scanning, grading, and reporting devices to ensure your GS1 barcodes comply with global standards. For more information about scheduling an audit of our facility or how we can help you meet your medical labeling needs, please call Marychristine Clifford at 1-617-825-6050 Ext. 105 or send an email to [email protected].

5 Factors to Consider Before You Start to Print Barcode Labels

5 Factors to Consider Before You Start to Print Barcode Labels

In a previous post, we looked at how to choose the best software for label printing for your business. After it went live, we realized that selecting a software package is only part of the story. You also need to consider the barcode labels themselves to ensure they have the right features for the application where they will be used. 

If you have never used barcode labels before and are implementing a new system, you can choose a bar code label printing software package that will assist with inventory tracking. In a situation where you are updating your existing system used to print barcode labels, it is the perfect time to look at whether you can introduce some changes to increase your company’s overall efficiency.

Are you ready to implement printing barcode labels into your business now? To move forward, contact us online or call (330) 645-9959 to book an appointment with a Scanco Solutions Expert.

What to Consider Before you Print Barcode Labels

Barcode labels are one of the most popular options for managing traceable assets. They can easily be attached to items coming into the warehouse which will be held in inventory. Barcode labels are also used when shipping orders to customers. Before you start printing off labels, you will want to consider these factors:

  1. Types of Assets to Be Tracked

If an inventory management plan is already in place, it will contain answers to questions you may have about which types of assets should be tracked using barcodes. If you don’t already have one, you will be dealing with inventory management as part of the overall plan. Think about all the assets you and your team manage, then decide which ones could be tracked using barcodes. You will also need to determine which areas in the warehouse (shelves, racks, or workspaces) would need labels or tags.

  1. Environmental Conditions Where Labels Will Be Used

Since barcodes are frequently used in industrial applications, it is important that they are durable. These labels are also relied on by employees in manufacturing facilities to mark products as raw materials, packaged goods, and work-in-progress.

What is a Durable Barcode Label?

A durable barcode label is one that will stand up well to the conditions where it is placed. In a warehouse facility where it will be shielded from extreme temperatures, you may be thinking that the label will not be exposed to any harsh conditions. This is not necessarily the case. Even though the item carrying the label or its storage area is indoors, the label may still be exposed to the following:

  • Abrasion
  • Dirt and grime
  • Moisture due to rain, snow, or ice
  • Oil
  • Salt
  • Solvents and other chemicals

Barcodes used in facilities where these substances may be present must be durable so they can still be read for inventory purposes.

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  1. Regulatory Requirements for Tracking Materials and Equipment

If your industry sets out specific requirements for labeling and tracking materials and equipment, using durable barcode labels is a good strategy to ensure your business remains in compliance. Before making your final choice about buying labels, do research the relevant international, federal, and local regulations. You’ll want to ensure you are including all the required information before you print barcode labels.

  1. Estimated “Shelf Life” of Barcode Labels

Durability is an important feature when choosing labels from the point of view of convenience as well as cost. When the labels have a longer expected shelf life, they will need to be replaced less often, leading to a better overall value for the company.

  1. Your Facility’s Layout

If this is the first time your team will be printing barcode labels, you will need to analyze the flow of items or raw materials as they come into your facility and make their way through the production or the order fulfillment process. This analysis will reveal valuable information about when barcode labels need to be used, how often they need to be printed, and where the printers need to be placed.

Advantages of Using Barcode Printers in your Business

When discussing the factors to consider before you start to print barcode labels, we would be remiss if we neglected to mention the advantages that a barcode printer can bring to your business.

  1. Ease of Use

Barcode printers are quite user-friendly. They are easy to install and don’t require a lot of maintenance.

  1. On-demand Printing

A barcode printer is fully capable of printing labels for your company’s requirements. It can handle a single barcode label or 100 in a batch with ease.

  1. Cost-effective Option

Creating your own barcodes in-house is more economical than relying on a third party to produce them. For a product-based company, you will want to buy your own barcode printer and create labels as you need them.

  1. Compact and Portable

Due to their compact size, barcode printers can be moved from one location to another within your facility with ease. Space is usually at a premium in warehouses and the printer’s small dimensions mean it can be set up at a workstation or in any other convenient location.

Sage Barcode Label Printing Solutions From Scanco

Scanco has the types of flexible solutions you need to automate your business and keep it running efficiently. Scanco Dashprint gives you everything you require to view and print labels in one convenient dashboard. The dashboard and label software connects seamlessly to your Sage ERP, which means your team will have all the necessary tools for unloading items and placing them in your facility in an organized manner.

When they are needed to fill orders (either on the manufacturing or distribution side), they can be located quickly. Items needed to fill customer orders can be picked, packed, and shipped to their destinations without delay. Consumers are interested in receiving their orders in a timely manner, and are definitely keeping track of how long their items take to get to them. This is a case where getting orders completed and out the door counts—but they have to be accurate.

Scanco Dashprint gives your team everything they need to print labels using one of the templates formatted for use with any printer brand or model available on the market. You can also choose to design your own barcode labels using one of the 33 Zebra file templates included.

The entire process is designed to match the speed of modern business. It is quick, easy, and convenient. You can’t afford to have any part of the process bogged down in technical difficulties or time-consuming training. Dashprint is easy to use and your team will be printing custom barcode labels in no time!

Ready to Print Barcode Labels With Scanco?

Scanco is your source for quality solutions tailored to your company’s specific needs. We work with small, medium, and large-sized enterprises regularly and we never make the mistake of assuming that if we have seen one type of business that the same issues and concerns would automatically apply to all businesses in that industry. To take the next step, contact us online or call 330-645-9959 to arrange an appointment with a Scanco Solutions Expert.

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