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Thursday, October 24, 2013

Basic Information About Numbers On Products

By Keren Kipfer


Virtually all trade items made and sold in the market today have a set of numbering on them that are used for recording and tracking purposes. These codes usually are found on a products' packaging. They can sometimes be found on the item itself especially in the case of electronic appliances and gadgets. While consumers don't generally pay much attention to these numbers, for a manufacturer, it is vital that you have a solid understanding of what these numbers mean and how they are crucial for your business. Keep in mind that this system was established for a reason. The following details are general information about some of these numbers on placed on products.

Whenever the term numbers on products are mentioned, it often refers to the strip of black bars found on product labels. This strip of black bars is what we call a bar code which is a scannable piece of data that can be interpreted using a specialized device and computer program. They are usually used at retail shops and grocery stores as a way to identify the price of a specific item. It is important to note that there are different types of product coding systems today. The most widely implemented product numbering systems used by major brands in the world are the Universal Product Code and the Electronic Product Code.

UPC or the Universal Product Code is a specific type of barcode commonly used in countries such as Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand for tracking products delivered on stores and other retail outlets. The UPC is a 12 digit number that is unique for each product. Every UPC barcode is composed of strips of black vertical bars and white spaces that can be scanned. Each bar and space corresponds to a specific number. A theoretical maximum number of one trillion unique barcodes can be made using the UPC system.

The Electronic Product Code system on the other hand or EPC was developed to become a universal identifier which provides a unique ID number of every physical object from all countries. They are commonly used on RFID data carriers but not exclusive. They also can be constructed to work with traditional optical data carriers such as those using linear bar codes. EPC is compatible with existing product coding systems and can define new schemes when necessary. It was designed to cater to the needs of manufacturers from various industries.

There are also special codes that manufacturers place on their products in addition to UPCs and EPCs such as serial numbers and dates of expiration. This specifically applies on medicines, beverages and food items. For this reason, a special piece of equipment known as an ID coder is needed for printing these important numbers onto your products. There are several brands that offer this equipment. Some of the best known names are VideoJet coders, Altima coders or brands such as Domino, Maxima and Imaje.

New coders can be quite expensive, so it might be best to consider purchasing a used and refurbished coder. Some product id companies rebuild coders and restore them to near-new condition and this can be an excellent money-saving alternative to a new Domino coder, a VideoJet coder or some other type of CIJ coder. Branded inks are not necessarily needed and you can still get the same excellent result using generic types of ink and these product id companies also often create very high quality versions of Imaje ink, Domino ink and many other popular brands.




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