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Month: June 2020

Product Traceability – A Way to Enhance Supply Chain Efficiency and Reduce Costs

Posted on by Nitesh Agrawal

In these turbulent times, the technological revolution has taken over the various industries worldwide and the supply chain is no exception. Various industries are estimating the challenges presented by the situation and making strategies to overcome these by realigning the processes. It is also considered necessary for businesses to evolve with changing marketplace trends, consumer buying patterns, delivery expectations, and restructuring market synergies.

Latest developments and trends in the supply chain have put more emphasis on technology-driven processes to reduce operating costs and increase efficiencies. Digitization in the supply chain means a faster process and better visibility using technological solutions. One such digitization is aimed at achieving better visibility to the movement of goods in the supply chain. It is known as product traceability.

Although most people equate traceability with product recalls, however, the traceability program is much more than just that. If your company is searching for opportunities to automate the manufacturing line and development schedules, a product traceability program is worth considering as it will not only help you achieve only that but also brings in varied other business benefits.

Traceability refers to the organization’s ability to identify, track, and trace elements of a product/consignment as it moves along the supply chain from raw goods to finished products. To ensure a smooth and error-free supply chain operation, GS1 India has come up with a seamless traceability service that enables manufacturers to easily track and trace their products, right through the journey from origin to the point of its sale and consumption. Effective traceability solution not only helps companies to respond to the problems (such as product counterfeit and need for recall) immediately but also anticipate and prevent them.

To maintain an effective traceability system across trading partners, it is important to uniquely identify either batches or individual units of products. The extent of traceability is decided by the objective that the manufacturer trying to achieve by using a traceability system.

Most of the product manufacturers track up till the batch level to ensure targeted and efficient recalls; however if the business is aiming at effective counterfeit detection for high value item, it is worth considering a unit-level tracking of products.

GS1 India’s Traceability Solution provide manufacturers/brand owners with all the necessary framework to enable both – unit and batch-level traceability of their products across the complete supply chain.

It is also easier and more effective to achieve traceability using the global GS1 standards because these standards are technology and vendor-independent, and enable all trading

partners (big or small) to use a common system and compile/record information in a common manner.

Benefits of GS1 traceability solution

  • Counterfeit detection, detecting frauds, etc., to preserve the reputation and identity of the company
  • Having accurate and precise product information and control over the movement of the products as when they move in the supply chain to ensure no pilferage/wastage.
  • Targeted product recall, whenever required
  • Reduction of operational costs over a period of time
  • Elimination of manual errors, leading to operation efficiency

Therefore, the need of an hour is to take advantage of the benefits of GS1 India Traceability Solution and remain competitive in the marketplace.

Don’t just wait, avail for GS1 India’s Traceability Solution.

To know more, visit: https://support.gs1india.org/traceability-service-consultation

What is a 13-Digit GTIN Number and Why Is It Important for a Retail Product?

Posted on by Nitesh Agrawal

Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) can be used by a company to uniquely identify all of its trade items. GS1 defines trade items as products or services that are priced, ordered or invoiced at any point in the supply chain.

If you’re planning to sell your products in a retail market and want to ensure its effective movement in the supply chain, you need to have a 13-digit GTIN number encoded in the barcode of your product.

Let’s understand what GTIN is and why it is important for your products.

What is GTIN and Why is it important for your products?

Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) is an internationally recognized code to identify trade items that uniquely identify products globally and fetch accurate and efficient product information when scanned at the billing counters in a store or at a warehouse when receiving goods.

GTINs are also used in pharmaceutical drugs, where they are scanned while administering medication in a hospital to enhance patient safety or scanned while effecting receiving or dispatches at hospital store to maintain inventory, ensure faster processing.

Most commonly used GTINs are 13 digits code, known also as EAN code. Also, there are several different types of GTINs used on products. This includes:

  • GTIN 12: The GTIN-12 is encoded in UPC barcodes, which are predominantly used only in America and Canada. However, North American and Canadian companies have steadily been updating retail Point-of-Sale systems to be able to scan GTIN-13 and GTIN-8. If your trading partner still cannot scan these numbers, only then you will need to use a GTIN-12.

  • GTIN 13: European Article Number (EAN); 13 digit code used in the rest of the world including India. GTIN 13 (barcode number) in India starts with 890.

  • GTIN 8: Allows a smaller barcode to be used on smaller retail trade items.

  • GTIN 14: Used on general distribution trade items, not intended to be sold at the Point-of-Sale.

All GTINs, irrespective of their different digits or codes, have a similar structure under which each GTIN digit is made up of 4 components. The first component is Country Code which varies from country to country; the second part is Company Prefix, the length of which is functioned according to the company’s coding needs; the third component is Product Code, which is assigned by the brand owner to uniquely identify the product and the fourth component of GTIN is Check Digit, which is based on the previous digits and ensures that the GTIN is constructed properly.

Where are GTINs used? 

GTINs are used in various aspects, especially where a product needs identification. That also includes IT systems, physical entities, etc. GS1 Standards define how to format and structure the GTIN in various applications so that the same GTIN can be used to identify the product for any of those needs.

  • Physical products: GTINs can be encoded into both barcodes and RFID tags along with the serial number and affixed to products to facilitate accurate identification as products move along with the supply chain.

  • Business transactions: GTIN can be used in e-commerce business transactions in order to reduce errors and boost machine-to-machine processing.

  • Internet applications: They can be represented as a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) using GS1 Digital Link to support internet-based applications. 

  • Databases & IT systems: GTIN can provide each product an identifier that can be used in systems like inventory management, logistics, etc, that helps to maintain the connection between the systems to enhance the quality and amount of data.

Benefits of labelling your product

By identifying your products with a GTIN number, you can:

- Gain increased visibility of your product pages in Google searches

GTIN numbers when also used in product pages help you achieve better SEO results by improving the visibility of your product pages in Google search results.

According to Google, database sheets with GTIN codes are classified at a 40 percent higher click rate and earn 20 percent more sales.

- Free barcode management through DataKart service

With a GTIN number on the product, you can easily assign and manage your GTIN numbers through free access to GS1 India’s DataKart service. It will allow brand owners to upload product information from a one centralized location and its advanced features enable sharing the product data with multiple suppliers in one go in their respective native file formats/structures.

- Facilitate exports of your product worldwide

As GTIN numbers are internationally recognized, you can easily export your products across the globe with GTIN numbers, eliminating the need to identify your products differently for export purposes.

GTIN Structure

GTIN Structure includes a string of digits, it can be 8,12,13, or 14 digits in length to accommodate different product limitations. Depending on the length these structures are known as GTIN-8, GTIN-12, GTIN-13, and GTIN-14. The GTIN usually has the following elements:

  • Indicator Digit: Indicator Digit is a number that ranges from 1-8, that is used to identify packaging levels/hierarchy of a product.

  • GS1 Company Prefix: A globally unique number assigned to a company by a GS1 Member organisation in order to generate GS1 Identification keys like GTINs.

  • Item Reference: An Item Reference number, that has no logical explanation, it is just a number assigned by the user itself to identify a trade item. It’s length is based on GS1 company Prefix Length.

  • Check digit: The Check Digit is the last or final digit calculated from the preceding digits of the GTIN number. This digit is extremely important as this is used to check that the data is correctly collected.

GS1 and GTIN

If you want your product to be recognized in the marketplace, you need to have a GTIN code on the back of it, encoded in a barcode/RFID. GS1 – the global supply chain standards organisation, provides unique and universal identification to products through GTIN.

GTINs can also be used to uniquely identify products at different packaging levels; for instance- at the customer unit level, at the inner pack of the product, and at the carton/pallet.

After realizing the importance of GTINs in the supply chain, mostly all the brand owners are now labelling GTINs on their products to boost their visibility in the marketplace so that they can sell their products on various platforms.

Connect with GS1 India and reap all the benefits of GTIN number.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do I get a GTIN code?

If you want to sell your products on any e-commerce platform site, then you would have to register your business at GS1 India's official website for the allocation of GTINs. These are generated through their single repository for data of all the products in India - Datakart. This platform enables the online generation of GTINs and the management of all the product information at one place.

2. Is the GTIN code the same as the UPC?

A GTIN code and UPC are not the same in their structure. A GTIN code can have 8,12,13, or 14 digits, while a UPC can only have 12 digits. Another difference between these two is the fact that GTIN codes can be used globally, while UPCs can only be used in North America.

3. What is a 14-digit GTIN barcode?

GTIN-14 is a 14 digit number used to allocate trade items at different packaging levels. The encoding of barcodes of the GTIN-14 basically happens within an ITF-14 barcode, but various industries and applications use GS1-128 to encode GTIN-14s.

4. How do I find my GTIN number for my product?

GTIN also known as Global Trade Item Numbers (GTIN) are used to identify every product sold on any e-commerce site. GTIN is a universal identifier that is found on the product's cover or packaging, either above or below the bar code.

5. Is GTIN different from barcode?

GTIN is a unique identifier number that is used in a barcode. It is the numerical form data, and the UPCs or EANs are the barcode images that contain the GTIN.

6. What is the difference between SKU, EAN and GTIN?

The SKUs are in the form of a series of numbers and letters that can change depending on the inventory of the product in a specific business. EAN is an international identifier in the form of a barcode image that has been involved in the GTIN system.

Demand for Local Products Expected to Rise With PM’s Appeal ‘Vocal for Local’

Posted on by Nitesh Agrawal

Two weeks back, Prime Minister Narendra Modi encouraged the citizens of India to buy local products and be a part of India’s growth story. He also appealed SMEs’, start-ups and entrepreneurs’ to make the nation independent and self-reliant by making as many local goods as possible to remove dependence on imported goods. This would also support the country’s economy, which is hit by a prolonged phase of lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He highlighted that the coronavirus outbreak has made us realize the importance of local manufacturing, local market, and the need to make our supply chains efficient & sustained.

“In times of crisis, this local has fulfilled our demand, this local has saved us. Local is not just the need, it is our responsibility also,” he said in his speech to the nation.

However, local does not only mean products made by Indian companies, but also those manufactured in India by multinational companies or MNCs.

The ongoing health crisis has given an impetus to the sales of local products, as they inspire consumer confidence.

The moment the pandemic hit the nation, not even a single PPE kit was manufactured in India, only a few N95 masks were available. However, with our exceptional local manufacturing capabilities, we are able to produce close to two lakh PPE kits and two lakh N95 masks on a daily basis.

Also, as per news reports, India is the world’s number 2 in its masks making capacity and is planning to export as well.

This offers an opportune time for SMEs / start-ups to make their local products and get them recognized in the marketplace with the use of India barcodes, starting with 890.

890 barcode numbers identify your products on a globally unambiguous way, ensuring that no other product across the world will have this number in an authorised manner. This is because these numbers are developed and maintained by a global supply chain standards organisation – GS1. In India, GS1 India is the only authorised body to allocate GS1 barcode numbers, starting with 890, to companies based in India.

Not only these barcode numbers ensure that the company manufacturing these products is based in India but also help manufacturers in selling them through retail chains and online marketplaces.

In these difficult times, it is critical for manufacturers of local products to speak the global language of business and be visible on several sales (retail) platforms that are being used by consumers to fulfil their daily needs.

Additionally, the use of 890 barcode numbers facilitate counterfeit detection in the supply chain at its point of entry and enable manufacturers to investigate and deal with the counterfeit sources.

Summary of benefits accrued by labeling your products with ‘890’ barcodes:

Unique identification of your products

● Ability to sell products through leading retailers and online shopping channels ● Free access to online tool (DataKart) for easy generation, management and allocation of barcode numbers.

● Counterfeit detection in the supply chain

● Retailers and online marketplaces can easily validate the barcode numbers used by you

● Increased visibility of product pages in Google searches

In order to be vocal about local products, use 890 barcodes on your products and popularise the fact that these barcode numbers mean that the products are manufactured in India.

To know more about 890 barcode numbers, visit: https://support.gs1india.org/barcode_registration_1

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