With thousands of products to maintain, door hinge manufacturer Hager Hinge is always working towards improved production and inventory management. The Montgomery, AL, plant of the St. Louis, MO-based company specializes in "contract grade" hinges for high-volume commercial applications. As its customer base became more computerized, it recognized the need to update its labeling system for improved product identification. "We were using a roller-ink machine," says Gene Sides, supervisor of packing at Hager's Montgomery plant. Labels were preprinted with item numbers and product information with a contact roll coder. After hinges were packed into boxes, labels were applied to the boxes. "It was very unreliable as far as the clarity of the print is concerned, "says Sides. "It was a big mess. The ink had to be adjusted, the label had to be adjusted. We might waste 20 to 25 boxes per changeover, with 10 to 15 changeovers per day. At eight to 10 cents a box, you can see how that would add up." "And we couldn't achieve a consistent bar code," he continues. "If you're going to compete in the marketplace you need to provide a legible bar code. Because if we can't, somebody else will."
Opening doors to bar coding
Door hinge manufacturer Hager Companies swings from a contact roll coder to a high resolution tamp-on label printer/applicator. Results are increased legibility, decreased downtime and the addition of bar codes.
Aug 31, 1995
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