If you deal with the sales of products to consumers, chances are that you maintain an inventory to track and manage your goods and operate a warehouse for their storage. One way to manage your inventory efficiently is to ensure that your warehouse management system is barcode-enabled. A barcode-enabled warehouse management system can help you manage your warehouse efficiently. Your operations can run smoothly while storing, dispatching, and receiving items for your warehouse.
Barcodes have been around for a few decades and are gaining prominence in distribution, manufacturing, logistics, and wholesale businesses. Barcodes can come in handy, especially for managing large warehouses as managing a large inventory can sometimes become a little tricky. Still not sure why you need a barcode-enabled warehouse management system? Here’s a look at a few ways in which barcodes can help you with your warehouse management needs:
Helps in Reducing the errors
Workers usually make errors when dealing with large amounts of data. Each small mistake can snowball into a large issue causing a loss of time and decreasing productivity. Some common mistakes made by warehouse employees include inaccurate tagging of items, improper placement, and mismanagement of inventory items.
These mistakes can result in delays in delivery, delivery of the wrong product to the customer altogether, or can cause delays in locating the product to be delivered in the first place. These delays can prove hazardous for retailers operating on big retail websites such as Amazon or Flipkart. Delays and errors can harm the reputation of your business and can even result in monetary penalties. You might even be red-flagged and won’t be able to work for these platforms anymore.
Barcoding ensures that inaccuracies are kept to a minimum. Employees can easily track an item throughout its life cycle in the warehouse. It can significantly reduce human errors as the data is stored digitally and can be accessed in real-time by the concerned employees. Thus you can save time, energy, money, and retain and gain customers through efficient warehouse management methods. And, barcoding can help you stay one step ahead as most of the inefficiencies at the warehouse level that are caused due to human errors are eliminated by a barcode system.
Warehouse Management helps in Product tracking
Barcodes can help track products throughout their lifecycle right from the manufacturing stage to delivery of the final product. Every stage of the supply chain can be monitored easily via barcodes. The inventory data is stored on a central server and can be embedded with ERP systems. The clarity about products and real-time information is made readily available to managers thanks to barcode tracking systems. Additionally, the training time for new employees is also reduced as the information scanned by barcodes is seamlessly transferred to ERP systems. Barcodes can also be used to track the following indicators that can help in the smooth functioning of the warehouse:
- Dead stocks
- Inventory turnover
- Backorder rate
- Employee performance
Improved security
Thefts at warehouses not only cause substantial financial losses but can also result in a tedious, time-consuming process to trace the loss. Barcodes can significantly help keep a check on item thefts at your warehouse. The timestamp feature of barcodes provides complete visibility to warehouse managers. The products can be traced at every stage in the warehouse, including the handlers at every stage.
Thus, in the case of thefts, the culprit can be tracked down easily by analyzing the last-known information about your inventory products. This increases the efficiency of your warehouse and significantly minimizes, if not completely, eliminate instances of thefts. Barcode solutions can be combined with other warehouse management tools to make your warehouse secure than ever before.
With the implementation of barcode technology for warehouse management, you can see positive results in your business. Knowing the why and how to implement a barcode solution along with other management solutions can be a bit tricky if you don’t have the proper guidance. Our warehouse management solution can take care of all your warehouse needs and thus boost the growth of your business.
