We are quite used to seeing the familiar bar codes on products which are parallel, adjacent bars and are found on many products. The ones with which we are most familiar with are on the products found in the retail environment, particularly supermarkets.
Barcodes have been used for many decades now and initially were used in transport and warehousing, as well as manufacturing. Today with the rise in technology and computing, barcoding has become an indispensable tool for business operations, used for many purposes including provide immediate and accurate data collection.
Over the years many industries have development standards to ensure product identification that meets their particular industry standard and compliance within their respective industry. The main advantages that barcoding offers over the manual input of price or other data is accuracy of the information. The data which is stored on the barcode is directly and immediately transferred to the computer or checkout.
Using barcodes on products ensures that customers get a better service; management has the benefit of capital and stock control, which keeps labour costs down. A wide variety of materials can be used on products to ensure that they can withstand the rigours of warehousing, as well as being readable after the product may have been subjected to high or low temperatures and other environmental factors.