Those in the service and manufacturing industry have been looking to increase their mobile solutions in order to create a more efficient workflow. In fact, 61%* of industry professionals surveyed indicated that they are currently using mobility in their service operations, up by 16% from 2008.

In part, the reason for this up-rise in mobility in the field service industry is that true mobility reflects the empowerment of field workers to quickly and efficiently carry out their work without being hassled by unnecessary tasks.

Although more and more field service companies are adopting mobile service solutions, there are still many companies that do not use any form of mobility. While the technology and time can be quite an investment, the ROI on improvements and productivity are well worth it.

If your field service company has not discovered the power of mobility, learn more here.

*Based on a study by The Aberdeen Group

With all of the data capture solutions on the market today, choosing a barcode scanner may seem overwhelming. However, after analyzing all of your needs, making the right choice should come easily.

It’s important to analyze both the requirements of your business and what your budget allows. Firs and foremost, ask yourself, “what barcode symbology will I need to be scanning?” While laser scanners are a cost-effective option, they aren’t able to scan 2D barcodes (aside from the PDF-417, a 2D-like symbology), which digital imagers can. With the use of 2D barcodes on the rise, it may be wise to invest in a digital imager so that it will better accommodate future progressions in technology. However, there are many advantages to laser scanners, including:

• Long distance decoding
• Cost effectiveness
• Scanning applications requiring motion tolerance

On the other hand, digital imagers can decode 2D barcodes, which can be encoded with a significantly greater amount of information than their 1D counterparts. In addition, imagers allow for omni-direction barcode reading, eliminating the need to accommodate the scanning device. Area imagers can even read Direct Part Marking (DPM), a method of permanently marking a product, allowing the product to be tracked throughout its life. Area imagers should be used in the following applications.

• Decoding 1D and 2D barcodes
• Reading DPM
• Scanning critical tracking information
• Capturing images for inventory management
• Combining barcode reading, image capture, and signature capture into one device

For more information on laser scanners and digital imagers, you can learn more here.

If taking inventory of your small-medium sized company seems like a pain, then can you imagine how large companies do it? Since it’s often too expensive to shut down for even a day, large companies cycle count to keep track of their inventory.

Basically, cycle counting is constantly validating the accuracy of the inventory in a system by regularly counting a portion of the inventory on a regular basis so that ever item in the inventory is counted at lease several times a year.

In contrast to traditional physical inventory counts, cycle counting does not stop a facility’s operations and provides an ongoing measure of inventory accuracy. With cycle counting, companies can enjoy:

• Confidence in an accurate inventory count
• Operational efficiency
• Less inventory write-offs

In order to perform accurate cycle counts, many organizations use software in order to implement an inventory control system, often a part of a warehouse management system. This could include mobile computers with integrated barcode scanners, allowing workers to automatically identify items, and enter inventory counts via keypad. From there, the software transmits data to the host database system, which can easily generate inventory reports.

If you’re interested in the tools needed to begin cycle counting your inventory, you can learn more here.

Recently, we discussed how the GS1 Databar is making a major impact on the world of produce. However, the GS1 Databar has even more potential than that. It’s long-planned adoption began in September 2007, when the Joint Industry Coupon Committee (JICC) called for January 1, 2007 to be the day coupons no longer contained the old UPC-A barcodes.

Since then, coupons still contain the traditional UPC-A barcode, but many are now adorned with both types of barcodes since not all retailers have upgraded their barcode scanners to handle the higher density of the GS1 DataBar.

While JICC’s original expectation was a bit overzealous, since manufacturers are already beginning to adopt the GS1 DataBar, it may not be too far-fetched that it will replace the UPC-A symbology.

The UPC barcode has been around for 35 years, but in an age where information is king and space is limited, the GS1 DataBar definitely seems to have an appeal. Do you think the GS1 DataBar will replace the UPC?

Whether your company has a large event soon approaching, needs to perform a year-end inventory count, or simply wants to test drive a barcode scanner or mobile device, it’s now easy to rent barcode scanners from Barcoding Inc. With Barcoding Inc.’s Barcode Rental program, companies can easily rent the following popular devices:

• Motorola MC70
• Motorola MC9090
• Motorola MC55
• Intermec CN3
• Zebra Mobile Printers

In addition to renting the necessary hardware, Barcoding Inc. offers superior customer services, and CaptureSoft eXpress, a pre-loaded software application that allows users to design and deploy custom programs for simple data collection processes.

Average rentals last about two weeks, with extended options available.

If you’re interested in renting a barcode scanner from Barcoding Inc., learn more here.