GS1-128 to guarantee management and traceability of goods

In logistics, an international standard has existed since 1989 to define the type of barcode generated for storage, production and shipment of a product, a commodity or a pallet: GS1-128 (formerly named UCC / EAN-128).
 

GS1-128 contains various information and data which characterize the product via numeric and alphanumeric characters. Information can be of the following type: 

• The date of production, 
• Quantity, lot number, 
• Expiration date,
• Weight, etc. 

These readable and coded data facilitate the processing and automatic management of goods by barcode readers or by team members in charge of logistics.

A GS1-128 label can contain the following information:

•  A package number, 
• A quantity of goods, 
• A lot number, 
• A weight and dimension, 
• An expiration date, etc. 

Its function is to unify and group all the information and data of a product on a single label allowing a successful execution of various actions such as preparation of orders or quality control.

We can mention two stations which use and benefit from GS1-128 labels: the PIE (Entry Inspection Station) which controls the entry and exit of products and goods in a storage station or the order preparation station which uses the barcode in their operation.

This GS1-128 management allows different benefits: 

1.     Reliability of information because the product is marked with a unique code,

2.     Traceability and tracking of goods that is guaranteed on the entire chain thanks to a set of application identifiers (AI),

3.     Automation and simplification of data entry to track incoming and outgoing flows of goods.