2009 First International Workshop on Education Technology and Computer Science
The Application of Barcode Technology in Logistics and Warehouse Management1
Sun Hong-ying
Logistics department
Liaoning Provincial college of communications
Shenyang, China
sunhongying2004@163.com
Abstract—Applying barcode technology to logistics and
warehouse management becomes an inevitable trend for
logistics modernization. In this paper, we introduce the bar
code technology using in logistics and warehouse, then we pay
more attention to how to apply barcode technology in the
course of goods entering warehouse, storage and outing
warehouse. At last we put forward that applying barcode
technology to logistics and warehouse will bring logistics
enterprises huge profit.
Keywords- The Barcode technology; information management;
logistics and warehous; wireless data collection terminal
I. INTRODUCTION
A. The Universal Problem in Warehouse and Logistics
Management
In recent years, the logistics industry known as "the third
source of profits" has been concerned widely and has been
booming. Warehouse business, an important link in the
logistics business, its operational efficiency determines
directly the level of the overall operation efficiency of the
logistics business. In general, Warehouse business is
composed of three parts: the goods entering management, the
goods storage management and the goods distributing
management [1]. In the situation of no using bar code
technology, product information about entering and outing
warehouse and stocktaking is often filled in paper-based
documents by hand or input manually to the computer.
However, whether writing or inputting by hand, such would
bring lots of error data, and also reduce the reliability of the
system. Some companies have to arrange additional
inspection personnel in order to avoid the errors, As a result,
Labor costs increased, the directive processing speed will
slow, eventually enterprises benefit will drop.
B. The Significance of Using Bar Code Technology in
Warehouse Management
Bar code is a common international language by which
goods may circulate in international markets. it is also the
international unified code of the commodity status. The most
common theme of technique is bar code technique in the
warehouse. bar code technology can help materialize the
integration of purchase, sale and storage management, it is a
strong arms of carrying out automate management in all
kinds of industries. bar code program can make a written
report about each goods and its location in warehouse, carry
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DOI 10.1109/ETCS.2009.698
out periodic stock inventory, minimize manual entry
workload, thus lower error rate. Bar code reader is the
equipment of bar code data application systems who can
collect the data sources quickly and accurately and transfer
to the computer. It settles effectively the contradiction
between the speed of computer entry data "slow" and the
speed of computer process data "fast". Thus applying
computer system in warehouse management becomes
possible. Seen from the current situation of warehousing
industry in China, it is still relatively at the stage of
backward state for a late starting, the degree of information
is very low, part of warehouse enterprise or most of the
warehousing branch of production enterprises have not yet
established information acquisition systems based on
barcode data collection, therefore, in this paper we discussed
the benefits and the applying method of barcode technology
in warehousing industry in detail.
II. THE BARCODE TECHNOLOGY IN WAREHOUSE
MANAGEMENT
The barcode is a sort of remark composed by a series of
bar and space arranged regularly and corresponding
character who can be recognized by person’s eye. It indicates
certain information. In the barcode, if the number
combination is different, the width of bar and space will
change, thus indicate certain information [2]. We link
artificially a bar code with a sort of goods, the one-to-one
relationship come into being between the bar code and the
goods, so we can obtain goods information through quick
scanning bar code, thus the efficiency of managing goods
can be improved. There are many sorts of barcodes, we
should choice different barcodes in different situation, for
example, according to international standards, retail goods
should choice such barcode as the EAN-13, EAN-8 or UPC-
A, UPC-E (Using in USA and Canada), and non-retail goods
in the warehouse should select such barcode as EAN-13,
UPC-A, ITF-14 or EAN-128.Which type of bar code we
should select under certain circumstances is determined by a
number of factors. The method of selecting the type of bar
code is shown in Fig. 1 as follows. Specific characteristics of
every bar code will not be elaborated here. The barcodes
using most frequent in warehouses are ITF-14 and EAN-128
who are shown in Fig. 2, in Fig.3 respectively.
Bar code ITF-14 usually printed in the corrugating paper
box whose printing accuracy can be not high. When these
corrugating paper boxes enter the warehouse, boxes bring
goods information which can be identified and managed by
managers. When additional information should be expressed,
(such as the weight of goods, production date, shelf-life,
etc.), we can only use EAN-128 who has the function to
express the additional information, but ITF—14 can not.
III. THE APPLICATION OF BAR CODE IN THE PROCESS OF
WAREHOUSE
A. The process of Goods Storage
Warehousing operation refers to a series of activities
which takes the storage and the safekeeping of goods as the
center. It is the whole process starting from the warehouse
receiving goods to distributing the goods to customer on-
demand. It is composed by three major activities: the goods
entering, the goods storage and goods distributing. In the
course of warehousing operations, we have to spend a lot of
manpower, material and financial resources on collecting
and managing information. How to spare them? There is
internal information contact between the activities, so, the
bar code will do work, it can collect data accurately and
efficiently with low cost. The process of using Bar code in
this three links is shown in Fig. 4.
B. The Specific Using Method of Bar Codes in the
Activities
1) The Specific Using Method of Bar Codes in Entering
Warehouse for Acceptance.We should input corresponding
goods data to the handheld scanning terminals of bar code
according to the ordering contract (or purchase orders)
before goods entering warehouse. After the goods arrived,
unloading goods, if the goods have no barcode, we should
paste the prepared internal barcode label to the original
packages. The staff of receipting goods department use
wireless data collection terminal to scan the bar code of
products, the display of data collection terminal will appear
automatically the name of goods, quantity, item code and
other information, enter the actual quantity of goods,
wireless handsets terminal can immediately show whether
the goods meet the requirements of orders or not, if they are
correct, we can confirmed directly. After the goods entering
the warehouse, we put them on the certain shelf in
accordance with the classification and attributes of goods.
Next we will scan the bar code of goods and then scan the
barcode pasted in the shelves with Handsets data collection
terminal, the data will be kept. After all data has been
completed, we will put the barcode handsets terminal to the
communications seat who are connected to the computer
systems, so the data of arriving goods and the location of
goods will be able to transmitted to the computer. Under the
help of the barcode technology, the data collection of
entering warehouse is complete.
2) The Specific Using Method of Bar Codes in
Stocktaking. Stocktaking is an important means to collect
data of warehouse. it is also an essential job. Before the
barcode technology, goods must be counted manually, the
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cycle is long, the efficiency is low and the normal entering
and distributing goods will be hindered. The WMS
(Warehouse Management System) based on bar code
management becomes a very convenient tool for inventory
management and operating staff, the warehouse
administrators get direction of host computer through the
wireless data collection terminals of barcode, such as which
shelves to go, which kind of goods to count and etc,
warehouse managers simply take wireless data terminals to
scan the barcode of aimed goods, then confirm and count.
Then the information will be transmitted to the host
computer through wireless data collection terminals, the
host computer will analysis the data after which all kinds of
profit and loss reporting will be gotten. The application of
barcode technology makes administrators of warehouse
avoiding Stocktaking repeating and Stocktaking losing by
using wireless data collection terminals of barcode.
3) The Specific Using Method of Bar Codes in Outing
Warehouse.When using the WMS (Warehouse Management
System) in the course of outing warehouse, we should
inspect and pickup goods according to the invoice of
withdrawals or the distribution bills, when we select the
products to pickup, we need to check the number and the
item code of the goods. In order to facilitate to prepare
goods for outing warehouse, we can have a constituted
enquiries according to the characteristics of a product, and
print the results or generate the data files who will be used
to mobile terminals next, when picking up the goods, we
scan the bar codes on the goods to confirm the information,
at the same time, update the data of background inventory.
At last we will print out a packing list and the shipping label
when the goods outing warehouse.
IV. THE MANAGEMENT BENEFITS ENGENDERING BY BAR
CODE TECHNOLOGY
The advantages of using bar code information system are
obvious for warehousing operations, especially in a busy
warehouse storage system, the benefits become more
pronounced. First of all, the logistics staff are liberated from
a large number of low knowledge and duplication work, bar
code technology can improve the efficiency of logistics
operations, reduce management costs; secondly, it can
reduce the error rate of data collection and improve the
quality of work; it can control the reserving shelf assignment
and the goods picking more accurately, addition to this, it
can help to Stocktaking goods more effective, so we can
have a comprehensive understanding on inventory ,so we can
control inventory more accurate; we can collection data at
current time, show data at current time, then analysis and
control inventory at current time by the computer processing
rapidly.
V. CONCLUSION
The bar code as a kind of information carrier has been
generally used in the production and people’s life. Bar code
technology applying to the warehouse management and
logistics will also be an inevitable trend. Coupled with
advanced computer technology and automatic identification
technology, it will enhance the management level and
economic benefits for logistics enterprises. So in the long
run, it is a wise choice to introduce the advanced bar code
data collection system to replace the large number of human
labor for the old warehouse enterprises who are still in the
exploration stage.
[1] LiYongsheng. Warehouse and Distribution management,china
machine press,2004:131~133
[2] The Article Number Center of China, Bar code Technology and
Application, Tsinghua university press, 2004:79

no for retail
Whether yes Whether the goods yes Whether the yes
are quantitative goods are small EAN-8、UPC-E

no no

no
Bar in store EAN-13、UPC—A

no yes
Whether the goods Are there additional EAN—128
are quantitative information?
yes no

EAN—13、UPC—A、ITF—14 ITF—14

Figure 1. The method of selecting the type of bar code

Figure 2. Figure 2. bar code ITF—14

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 Figure 3. bar code EAN—128

the goods entring Collecting data by barcode

the goods storage Stocktaking by barcode

Data identification and renew by

Outing warehouse barcode

Figure 4. The process of using Bar code in warehouse

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The joint task of Liao Ning province social sciences sector: The research on the establish and lmanagement of supply chain partnership of Liao Ning
province. The number of task: 2008lslktjjx-29

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