Engineering · Published May 14, 2026
Barcodes and RFID: The First Step in Warehouse Digitalisation
Many warehouse projects start not with software but with turning every item into a scannable number.
Warehouse digitalisation in manufacturing and distribution often begins with a label printer and a few scanners. It sounds simple, but if the coding scheme is wrong, every downstream step gets rebuilt.
Define the coding rules first
Does the code embed category, batch and date? If it does, changing the rule invalidates historical labels.
Who guarantees uniqueness? We separate material code from batch code, let the barcode carry a serial, and let the system interpret meaning.
Barcode or QR code? QR holds more data but demands better print quality.
Hardware and process together
Scanners must cope with site lighting and grease. Industrial hardware carries purchase and maintenance costs that belong in the budget.
The process must define exceptions: wrong scan, duplicate scan, damaged label, inventory discrepancy, each with a defined action.
Keep a manual entry fallback at launch so a hardware failure does not stop operations.
Scanning projects succeed or fail on coding rules and exception handling, not on the interface. Get those right and everything else extends cleanly.
Want to apply these ideas to your project?
We are happy to go deeper into implementation details, or to discuss the specific questions you are facing.
Start a conversation →