Connectivity and integration for bar code labeling systems

Even when it comes to bar code labeling systems, end users are looking for integrated systems that are connected to their networks to streamline operations.

By Bob Trebilcock, Editor at Large -- Modern Materials Handling, 8/28/2007

“What customers want today, and what’s growing in the market, is true connectivity and truly integrated systems.”

That’s the view from Ann Marie Phaneuf, director of marketing for Weber Marking Systems. Now, we hear a lot about connectivity and integration today. Most often, that message is coming from the big guys with big applications – the ERP and supply chain management software providers who talk about integrating a warehouse management system with a transportation management system and an order management system, for instance.

What’s interesting here is that Weber Marking Systems is a manufacturer of automated bar code label applicators as well as the labeling software that manages labeling operations. Yet, at that granular level, connectivity and integration are still issues.

What then do connectivity and integration mean when it comes to bar code labeling?

Centralized control. That translates into the ability to integrate to a warehouse control system to run printing operations just like it runs everything else. “Users don’t want three different PCs controlling their systems,” says Phanuef.

Systems are transparent. That means an operator sees the solution in whatever application is familiar. “We’re an Oracle house for our business system,” says Phaneuf. “In our shipping department, our operators choose the label formatting, how many labels they want and initiate printing in an Oracle world. Even though all of that is happening with our software, the operator never sees it.”

Monitor the system from a central location, including remotely over a Web browser. “Labor is expensive,” says Phaneuf. “You want the same person who’s monitoring the conveyor or material handling equipment from a central spot to be able to monitor the printing and application system.”

Speak the same language as all the other hardware on the system that might deal with a product. “I shouldn’t have to separately tell the scanner, the label applicator and the palletizer what the product is,” says Phaneuf. “At the simplest level, I want to send one signal that tells the scanner what it’s supposed to be looking for, tells the applicator what labels to print and apply, and tells the palletizer how to configure the load on the pallet.” 

Standards-based, modular equipment.  End-users want equipment that can be easily swapped in and swapped out and, more importantly, easily updated if software or specifications change.

“Automation and integration is definitely where the growth in our industry has been over the last few years,” Phaneuf adds. “It hasn’t been hockey stick growth, but every year, more and more end users are automating their labeling systems to make their operations more efficient.”