Barcode maintenance – when partnering with an expert in the field – is the best way for distributors and warehouse owners to keep their workflows optimised as much as possible.
But how does barcode maintenance do that? If your operation posts a lot of parcels on a regular basis – no matter your size – then it’s more than likely your team on the ground will be using mobile solutions such as handheld barcode printers.
First, it’s worth exploring why handheld barcode printers are so popular within distribution centres and similar businesses. Their strength, portability and connectivity with other handheld equipment is extremely useful for workers, provides real productivity boosts and makes workflows more efficient.
There are so many amazing portable barcode printers out there, too, that do a fantastic job of quickly printing black-and-white barcodes at the press of a button.
It can be difficult for brands to choose which handheld barcode printer is right for them – they all have pros and cons. What they all have in common, though, is that they’re extremely complex pieces of machinery containing very small parts.
Despite their durability – and even if your team works hard to keep them in tip-top condition – they will always need barcode maintenance at some stage of their natural lives.
It depends on the way your business operates, but those that invest in barcode maintenance could stand a better chance of keeping productivity higher than those that choose not to.
How? Mobile barcode printers can be quite pricey depending on the brand, and it’s not unusual for some distributors to limit their staff to a small number of printers to share between groups instead of providing an individual unit to each worker.
Which is fair if there’s a large number of staff on the books – similarly, for smaller businesses at a certain stage of growth, having a small number of mobile printers to share could be their only option from a budgetary standpoint.
That means that, even while the absolute best care may be taken to keep them in good condition, accidents always happen or there simply could be a malfunction due to the unit being overused.
Again, ordering new mobile printers can be costly and adds up over time. Ordering from new also isn’t the most environmentally-friendly route a business can take due to the amount of small parts that make up mobile printers. The time it takes for them to be delivered, too, can disrupt workflows.
A bespoke barcode maintenance solution can be far more affordable and could help to cut a brand’s carbon footprint in situations such as these. Their team of experts will have the necessary knowledge to fix units and make them like-new again.
This isn’t just the case for handheld barcode printers, but mobile equipment of all shapes, sizes and brands. Regular maintenance, too, will also keep them operating at optimum productivity, meaning disruption is minimised and efficiency in the workplace is kept as optimal as possible.
