Tire barcode sequence management services are required when labeling and identifying tires, whether it will be managed by the label supplier or the user of the labels. These services are typically a mix of software systems and manual checks that are designed to ensure there are no duplicate barcodes printed by keeping track of all past orders and barcode sequences.
The tire manufacturing industry is one where unique vulcanized barcode labels are imperative.
The purpose of a vulcanized barcode label
In most industries, it is extremely important to prioritize the significance of accurate and unique barcode sequences. The tire industry is absolutely one of them, especially when it comes to vulcanized barcode labels.
The first question you might have is, “What is a unique vulcanized tire barcode label and why are they so important?”
Well, let’s start from the beginning. The tire is created in a manufacturing facility with approved materials that have proven to comply with safety regulations. Approved materials from a qualified manufacturing plant is obviously important, right? Right, especially when these tires will likely end up on your vehicles someday. A barcode label is used for tracking of the rubber from the very beginning of the manufacturing process—sometimes even before the tire is formed.
Anyhow, tire manufacturing plants can get relatively chaotic. With high throughput, heavy industrial machinery, and countless operators involved in the workflow, there are bound to be some errors that occur along the way. In addition to that, there are anywhere from 7-15 different checkpoints each tire will go through before manufacturing is complete—it is extremely important they are done right and that there is a common point of reference along the way.
Perhaps even more importantly than all steps being completed correctly right off the bat, the tires and all their respective information and data need to be trackable and traceable. At each of the checkpoints, the tire’s barcode label will be scanned. Because of this important step at each process, the barcode label will hold all the information about the manufacturing of that specific tire thus far. This ensures that not a single step is skipped or incomplete, and if it is, it is noticed from the get-go. Should there be an error noticed in the scanning of the barcode label, the tire is sent to a “tire hospital”, where the problem is looked into and addressed immediately.
After corrective action steps have been completed, the unique tire barcode label is then scanned before sent off to distribution for one final check that all steps have been completed accurately. This final scan of the barcode label can also aid in creating the tread label, which will be consumer facing identification of each tire.
Because of the barcode labels, all manufacturing information about each specific tire is in one place. This way, for example, if something goes wrong with the tire after the consumer has purchased it, the problem can be identified and traced right back to the exact source—the manufacturing facility, material, machine, etc.
So now, how do sequence management services fit into tire barcode labeling?
As mentioned above, sequence management services are simply a means of tracking the sequences that you are using/have used for your tire’s barcode labels. The main purpose is to ensure that there are no duplicate sequences printed, hence ensuring that each and every tire has its own unique identity.
Computype Barcode Sequence Management Services start in a database that allows tracking of sequential numbers printed on labels, so ranges are able to be accurately tracked. These can be managed by facility, by company, or by product, whichever best suits your company process.
Why are sequence management services so important? Let’s paint a picture of a scenario where poorly managed sequences could prove severe consequences to a business. Say a tire makes it all the way through manufacturing, through distribution, and is now on the vehicle of a consumer, but has failed in some way or another.
This problem is investigated and it is realized that not only was there a problem in the manufacturing of this tire, but the barcode identification sequence is not unique. This is a situation that could prompt a recall due solely to uncertainty and could have possible extreme high volume costing the tire manufacturing plant a huge sum of time, money, and resources. And even worse, this problem could have been prevented if the tire barcode label was unique, and the failure could have been traced exactly back to the source.
How to ensure unique barcode ID’s
Tire barcode labeling is just an example of an industry where sequence management services are utilized, however the service could be beneficial to many additional types of businesses and processes. Sequence management services offered by identification solutions companies allow for the ability to identify companies, locations, or industries through a specification number and have access to their sequence number records indefinitely. The benefits of like services are apparent in lack of duplicate labels printed, and accurate tracking numbers throughout entire businesses.
Here at Computype, we are proud to be a provider of this service offering and ensure our customers can safely and accurately track assets of value through utilization of tire barcode labels.
