In these modern days, barcodes are being used in many new and innovative ways. They have spread throughout every sector of our lives and are now commonplace throughout the world. They give business owners complete control over their inventory and give them the tools they need to make a success of their businesses. Through the error-free efficiency that barcodes bring to your business, there is another aspect that is of great benefit – security.

Retail stores and warehouses

Every retail product has its own EAN / UPC barcode. These are retail barcodes that are used throughout the world in order to control the storage and sales process within retailers and suppliers. EAN and UPC codes are simple, one dimensional codes that are able to be scanned and recognised by any conventional barcode scanner. They make it easy for managers to be on top of their inventory through regular, accurate stock checks. In this way, a manager will always know what is in their inventory.

Any discrepancies in their inventory makes it clear that there is an error worth investigating. Missing stock is easily noticeable when every item for sale is registered and scanned into the system. RFID scanners can also be placed on more expensive products and, unless disabled at the counter, will beep when passing through scanners at the entrance and exits of retailers. Where scanning items into the inventory will only show missing items a while after it has been stolen, RFID security tags will immediately alert everyone in the vicinity.

Counterfeit products

Counterfeiting has become a serious problem throughout the world. It leads to millions of rands worth of loss for businesses, a loss no business can afford to lose. Counterfeit goods are products that are reproduced without the authority of the intellectual property owner. These cheap knockoffs of the real product are of much lower quality. However, they are sold as if they are the real deal. There are several ways to spot counterfeit goods. They tend to come with spelling mistakes or other grammatical errors in the packaging of the product. This is because they are often produced in countries where English is not the first language. Barcodes are often used to detect if goods are counterfeit. The code on the product itself must match the code on the product packaging. If this is not the case, it is likely that the product is a counterfeit. In this way, you can ensure that you are fully aware of what you are buying.

Package delivery

Barcodes are used to track packages as they leave the warehouse and make their journey to retailers or even to the end consumer. Both one dimensional codes such as the EAN code and two dimensional codes such as the QR code can be used in this process. Two dimensional codes are more complex barcodes that can be scanned by a smartphone. They are able to link the user to a specific website address. At each part of the production and logistics process, the product’s QR code can be scanned. In this way, the manager can keep track of exactly where each item is at all times. This makes it very difficult for criminals to steal packages without being caught.

These QR codes are easy to use since all it requires is a smartphone in order to scan them. This makes them very versatile. QR codes can be scanned anywhere and at any time, right from the production line, to the delivery truck, all the way to the end-user. Postal services are also using these two dimensional codes to track their parcels and ensure that they get to where they are meant to be, eliminating the chance of the package being intercepted along the way. 

Covid vaccines

The fight against Covid-19 is a challenge for all countries, but especially for lower income countries such as South Africa. Getting the vaccine out to as many people as possible is critical. We cannot afford any loss or theft of these valuable vaccines. Barcodes enable the government to monitor and control the dispensing of vaccines to the general public. The Health Department of South Africa is using an electronic vaccination data system (EVDS) in order to track the vaccines. Everyone who receives a vaccine will be registered on this electronic data system. This system will track the type of vaccine administered, patient information, other safety information such as the possible side effects as well as the place where the vaccine was administered.

This will allow the Health Department to control the vaccine roll out and avoid any abuse of the system. Each vial of vaccine will have its own unique barcode which can be scanned at every point along the path from the laboratory to the vaccination centre. This will help to ensure that the vaccine reaches the general population as fast and efficiently as humanly possible. By tracking the vaccine rollout, and scanning barcodes every step of the way, we can ensure that legitimate vaccine vials do not fall into the incorrect hands, and that illegitimate and fake vaccines do not end up at the vaccination stations and are not given to the general public.

Barcodes have revolutionised much of our lives, both in our business lives as well as in our personal ones. They have made our lives a lot smoother and far more efficient. Buy Barcodes serves local South African businesses in getting products onto retail shelves quickly and effortlessly. We provide a full range of registered barcodes. Our barcodes are sourced directly from the international barcode database and require neither additional registration nor additional fees. We will also issue a certificate of authentication certifying you as the sole owner and sole users of every barcode you purchase.