Buyers look for value during the economic downturn

If the world before seemed difficult, the latest economic downturn hasn't helped, with buyers placing even greater demands on their suppliers, both in terms of price and lead times. Various significant retailers have recently faced criticism in the press for placing unreasonable demands on their vendors.

The response is not surprisingly 'Our customers expect us to seek best value from the supply chain on their behalf'. Certainly with the fierce competition on the high street the situation is unlikely to improve dramatically.

With sales volumes down, not only are suppliers facing price reductions, but also a fear of unfilled order books.

Buyers themselves are only too aware of the risks of placing too much pressure on the supply chain. Some suppliers will simply not survive. Others will place the buyer at significant risk by regularly breaking compliance rules. If identified by the media, such compliance violations can cause real and significant damage to a retailers reputation and trading volumes.

QUESTION: So when the pressure comes on, who are the buyers most likely to place business with??ANSWER: Suppliers who can demonstrate a high degree of flexibility and control and who, through efficiency gains, are able to be competitive on both price and lead times.In a difficult business environment, many fashion companies hold back, uncertain of investment decisions and some of this caution is justified.

Yet, it is important also to be able to identify those specific investments that enable you to leap forward and stand out against the competition. For most businesses, achieving improvements in VISIBILITY, COORDINATION AND CONTROL is essential to competing in the current climate.

Get the right tools for the job....Fast React is the ONLY fully proven planning solution for the fashion industry.

YES... Your people can use Fast React, easily!

YES... It can be interfaced to your existing systems/ERP.

YES... It is affordable, including structured payment options.

YES... Achievable benefits are proven with a return on investment in typically 6 months or less.

No... You don't have a good reason to delay... Standing still is not a recipe for survival!

Risks in the fashion supply chain due to price pressures

The fashion industry is under tremendous price pressure from both the highly competitive retail marketplace and from Global currency fluctuations. The effects of these are:

adramatic negative impact on margins

in many cases, a significant shift in Global supply base to achieve better prices e.g. Bangladesh

huge price and lead time pressure on vendors

as a result, potentially weak suppliers (financially), where those suppliers are not efficient and 'geared up' to cope

ahigher risk of failed orders as vendors try to achieve more than they are capable of

poor quality product, as higher risks are taken

social compliance issues, again as risks are taken to meet price points and delivery

an increase in air-freight, missed shipments and delivery penalties

Whilst some significant 'promiscuity' in the supply base will exist as companies search for best prices, major buying offices also have to consider stability in the supply chain. They will look to work with proactive suppliers who can consistently respond and perform, in all areas of lead time, quality and price.

The good news is thathuge opportunities exist to improve supply chain efficiency, for those companies prepared to change the excessively manual, typically spreadsheet based systems that are still used by 90% of all companies, both vendors and buying offices alike.

Existing working practices are a key factor in the creation of excess costs (excessive style change, overtime, air freight, delivery penalties etc), many of which could be avoided through better coordination and visibility of priorities.

Excessively manual systems severely hinder visibility and the ability to respond and manage priorities.

To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential.

The real risk for many companies is carrying on with the inefficient methods they have now but some how expecting a different result.

Get the right tools for the Job... TOTAL VISIBILITY, COORDINATION, CONTROL... with Fast React.

Trade in Asia Ltd improve visibility through Fast React's Vision

Established in 2001, Trade in Asia Ltd is a fast growing one-stop global sourcing provider of Mens, Ladies and Childrens clothing. From the companies Head Office in Hong Kong and their sales office in London, the business provides supply chain management solutions for leading retail chain operators.

"Fast Reacts Vision provides a clear and uncomplicated priority list of the tasks in hand to manage even tighter deadlines... Over the past 15 years I have evaluated many solutions available on the market that all tend to over complicate the process and in fact hinder rather than help. In choosing Fast Reacts Vision, I am providing both my staff and suppliers the opportunity to see clearly where they are and remain in control so that all processes up until delivery may be performed accurately and on time."Andrew Lever, Chief Executive OfficerPanache implements the Vision solution for extra support

As a global lingerie specialist with brands such as Panache Swimwear, Cleo by Panache and Masquerade Lingerie, the company provides innovative designs majoring on cup sizes D to KK.With offices in New York, Germany and Hong Kong, Panache products are constantly improved and developed to make sure that they are leaders with fit and quality as well as sourcing and production.

"To have a system which both supports the existing processes that work and brings new ideas along with a more focused way of working is a refreshing approach. The true barometer for us is the high user buy in and positive feedback we have already received.

Audrey Harris, Head of Technical - Panache LingerieMAS Active introduce Fast React planning solution

MAS Active, part of the Sri Lankan based MAS Holdings, has chosen FastReact to provide its production planning and control functions, including both capacity and critical path management, working with and interfaced to its SAP business system

"Fast React was the only tool on the market, which we found capable of meeting all our requirements and the implementation timescale is impressive. This allows us to be operational with Fast React extremely quickly, delivering immediate benefits to the business".Mr. Prasanna Jayasekera, Director of Planning & StrategyIncreasing customer loyalty in the fashion supply chain

In the current economic climate, many vendors are worried about the risk of a drop in their order book, even if they have not yet felt much direct impact from the downturn.

To strengthen your position as a vendor, consider the facts:

- Even in the very worst case, 80% of industry order volume will remain - people still need clothes.

Q: Who will Buyers place their orders with?

A: Vendors they can rely on, who are:

Responsive and flexible - in full control of their capabilities

'LEAN' enough to hit price points

Financially stable by being efficient

- Excessive risks are being taken as many vendors accept orders without all the necessary information to do so and then fail to perform.

- Many vendors are currently struggling to hit prices, but at the same time haemorrhaging expense due to excess costs.

To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential, not just 'nice to have' options.

Excessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage prioritiesequalling increased risk of non performance and errors,resulting ineven more fire-fighting and excess costs.

Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods. There has to be a better way.

Get the right tools for the Job... TOTAL VISIBILITY, COORDINATION, CONTROL... with Fast React.

Win Hanverky (Bowker Asia Ltd) selects Fast React's Evolve solution

The Win Hanverky Group has a long history as an industry leader in manufacturing sportswear for leading global brands. The Hong Kong headquartered group has manufacturing facilities in mainland China and Vietnam with sales in 2011 reaching HK$2,937 million.

In this latest initiative, Bowker has partnered with Fast React Systems to implement the Evolve solution for improved capacity management, visibility and control.

"Fast React will enable us to respond quickly to the ever-changing market demand by allocating resources effectively... After research we can see Fast React offer the best support for our industry to give total visibility of the whole process from initial sales forecast through production to finished goods delivery.Ian Lee, Chief Operating OfficerSourcing...Near vs. Far?

There are many views on how sourcing will change in 2013, ranging from the efficiency of the product development and approval process, to improved vendor performance, cost efficiency and increased speed to market.

One question that still hangs in the balance for many, is whether and to what extent to source closer to home.

Whatever your strategy to achieve a competitive edge, its vital to make sure your product is at the right price, arrives on time, in the correct quantity and with the best quality. With a distinct trend towards increased styling and order fragmentation, keeping track of all of the above is hard enough when you have to rely on spreadsheets, manual based systems and emails. This can only get worse as your lead times reduce and your product range/business grows.

Fast React provides a solution that can harness this process from new style development through to the delivery of your finished goods.

"We welcome the new Fast React system, with its user friendly set up which is uniquely tailored to meet the needs of the Panache business model. Used by other well established businesses akin to our trade, we welcome what it can do for us.

To have a system which both supports the existing processes that work and brings new ideas along with a more focused way of working is a refreshing approach. The true barometer for us is the high user buy in and positive feedback we have already received."Audrey Harris, Head of Technical - Panache Lingerie (UK)

Crystal Group adopts Fast React

The CompanyHong Kong based Crystal Group is one of Asias largest garment manufacturers producing a full range of products from sweaters, to cotton knits, woven and intimate garments.

Crystal Group employs about 30,000 people and has its own manufacturing facilities in 6 locations. The Group produces over 180 million pieces ofgarments per annum for world-renowned fashion brands and with annual sales over US $800 million in Year 2005.

The Challenges"We face both external market challenges and internal systems challenges, says Mr. Kenneth Lo Chief Executive Officer of Crystal Group. "Externally, our Customers strive for speed, quality and increased numbers of quick response orders, with reduced production lead-times and order lot sizes. Internally, a lack of integrated production planning and control tools has caused us, until now, to rely heavily on inefficient spreadsheet and paper-based methods for order projection and planning processes.

The SolutionThis combination of internal opportunities for improvement and strong market need, caused Crystal to undertake a prudent evaluation in the market and finally to select Fast React as their production planning & control solution to integrate at the front-end with their SAP ERP System and with GPro shop-floor control system at the back. "By selecting Fast React to work with our SAP business system and GPro shop-floor system, we have selected the best of breed applications to work together to provide the total solution for all our business needs. Fast React provides a highly visual, flexible and interactive means of manipulating all the essential planning elements of capacity, raw materials availability and critical path, in a single integrated solution, says Mr. Sherman Lau, President of Elegance Industrial Company Limited. "The project started in August 2006 and piloted in the Cotton Knit Division (Elegance Industrial Company Limited). By adding Fast React to our existing systems, we intend to be second to none as far as any manufacturer anywhere in the world to meet reduced lead times, whilst ensuring profitability and growth, says Mr. Sherman Lau.

The ConclusionSimon Gibson, Managing Director of Fast React Asia comments "In the modern Apparel environment, improved visibility, coordination and flexibility are essential. High quality, industry specific solutions can help apparel manufacturers to rise to the lead time challenge and to respond much more effectively. As specialist providers only to the garment industry and related sectors, our ongoing, industry specific investment in Fast React ensures that our solutions evolve continuously to meet the ever changing needs of the industry. We are delighted to work with Crystal Group and look forward to identifying real business benefits through this exciting project.

Coping with changes in buyer behaviour

In the current climate retailers are protecting capital and cash-flow. This leads to:

minimising of stockholding by customers - aimed at reducing write downs

increased options and delayed commitment by Buyers = more styles, smaller orders

increased change to existing styles/orders in response to market trends

severe pressures to respond more quickly - dramatically reduced lead time

The above conditions combine with huge pressure to hit 'price points'. This typically leads to:

huge work pressures on merchandising and sourcing teams, working with excessively manual systems (an estimated 90% of companies still use spreadsheets)

excessive fire-fighting to cope with the failings of disparate manual systems

a total lack of any coordinated, business level visibility and 'early warning' system

increased risk of failure, additional expense e.g. poor coordination = delayed production start and ultimately cancelled orders, excessive air freight costs, lack of product on shelf.

To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential, not just 'nice to have' options.

Excessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage prioritiesequalling anincreased risk of non performance and errorswhich results ineven more fire-fighting and excess costs. Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods. There has to be a better way.

Gupta Exim leading Delhi manufacturer chooses Fast React's Evolve solution

Delhi based Gupta Exim have selected Fast React Systems latest Evolve planning solution to provide vital capacity management, critical path and materials control, working with and fully interfaced to the Gupta Exim in house ERP solution.

"The Evolve solution is a powerful management tool that provides the visibility and control to support every stage of the process, including capacity management, pre-production control and order tracking."Mr Gupta, ChairmanKey Performance Indicators: The Importance

All businesses must continually improve in order to survive.

The improvement process can be described as:

Define the objective/goal. Measure the current situation (define the KPI). Analyse the way to improve. Implement improvement measures (e.g. a new process or method). Control by setting a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and measuring (using KPIs). Repeat.

Why are KPIs so important? Well put into simple terms:

You cant manage what you dont measure. Unless you measure something you dont know if it is getting better or worse. If you know accurately what you are achieving now, it will help you make a more accurate forward plan.

Whilst it is important to see and understand a single KPI, its also important to understand the whole picture. For example, is one of your suppliers constantly delivering late? Is this because your approval process took longer than expected? How easy is it for you to analyse all this information?

Late delivery is just one issue that could affect your business as there are many potential root causes. With lead times across the industry reducing, the risk of performance issues and the cost that follows in terms of manpower, time and money to fix these is high. Avoidance is key.

Monitoring all stages from design adoption rate through to on time delivery could benefit your business by a reduction in excess costs and overtime hours. There are many ways to measure these different stages but its essential you get the basic principles right. NB: KPI should be free information as a by-product of your normal business process.

Fast React can provide you with the tool and additional support required to establish good processes. Fast Reacts Vision provides the required data easily, with a firm focus on regular KPI analysis along with the understanding of where opportunities exist to improve.

Global apparel manufacturer, Esquel Group, adopts UK system to support growth plan

Esquel produces nearly 100 million cotton shirts every year and turned to Fast React in order to centralise its capacity management and production planning capabilities across its manufacturing facilities in China, Malaysia, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.

Work has already begun on rolling out the software across the groups Hong Kong head office and worldwide facilities that cover its production lines, multi-stage manufacturing processes as well as pre-production activities.

"We are very excited as we recognise Fast Reacts potential as much more than just planning; it is a powerful management tool that helps Esquel to operate more effectively at all levels...Fast React can streamline our business communication and coordination, allowing us to easily centralise information from our worldwide operations."Bridget Chan, Group Director Information TechnologyLatest Fast React version release for footwear

As specialist providers to the apparel and textiles marketplace for many years, the first version of Evolution for Footwear was launched in 2005 when the software made a successful debut in the footwear industry. Several innovative developments have since been made, specifically with footwear in mind. The most significant enhancement has been additional automatic last planning and control features.

Feedback from the footwear industry highlighted that it was often the lack of availability of the required last or mould that caused an order to be delayed. Whilst superficially this problem can be solved in the same way as material planning, it should be appreciated that because lasts/moulds are re-usable material they must be treated (and planned) differently. The latest version of the Fast React software expertly achieves this in conjunction with the coordination of effective critical path management, capacity planning and materials planning.

"The Fast React approach to planning has provided us with much better visibility and enabled us to effectively plan the production process and also because we now have forward visibility of material requirements, we have been able to significantly reduce our material stockholding, whilst still being able to meet planned deliveries. We are now able to quickly plan (and re-plan) around all production constraints, material availability and lasting restrictions to obtain a realistic and achievable plan, whilst being able to ensure that we meet customer delivery expectations."Attila Kurdash, Managing Director at Gina ShoesMadison88 select Fast React's Vision

As a leading supplier of private label accessories, the company are experiencing huge growth which is to continue over the next few years. Madison88 design and develop their own products, have direct manufacturing capabilities in China and strategic partnerships in Italy and throughout.

"We chose Fast React after numerous conversations with their competitors. We believe Fast React is the most knowledgeable in understanding our industry, business model and our problems. They offered what we feel should be the best solution for Madison88."Chris Cantasano, Chief Operating Officer, Madison88JSP 962, a local Indonesian corporation with global Vision

The business employs around 1500 people as well as a significant subcontractor network, reaching a capacity in 2011 of approximately 3,900,000 pieces of knit fabrics (40%) and woven and denim (60%).

Producer of children garments for boys and girls, 70% export and 30% for local market under JSP 962 brand and some licence brands ie. Spiderman, Superman, Hello Kitty, which is distributed throughout Indonesia in the Matahari and Yogya Department Stores plus their own outlets.

"We plan to grow our business by 80% in 2012, so simply maintaining control will be a real challenge and we can already see that using manual systems will not be practical. Fast React Systems have a track record in the fashion business and with the Evolve solution, we are confident that we can grow in a controlled way but at the same time improve our delivery performance, reduce operating costs and serve our customers better."Mr. Joseph Soegandhi, JSP OwnerTextured Jersey Goes 'Live' with Fast React planning solution

Textured Jersey Lanka, one of Sri Lankas largest Weft knit fabric manufacturers is a joint venture between Pacific Textiles in Hong Kong and Brandix Lanka. Its state of the art manufacturing facility of over 600,000 sq ft, located in the Seethawaka Industrial zone, has the capacity to knit, dye and finish approximately 2.5 Million metres of weft knit fabric per month.

With a vision to be the Number 1 preferred supplier of weft knit fabric with a turnover of US $100 Million by the year 2010, the Company continues to invest in both dramatic growth and in high quality technologies, including SAP ERP and a fully automated colour kitchen for the dyehouse, using Arel Recipe Management System and Colour Service software.

The latest addition to this Best of Breed investment strategy is Fast React planning, a specialist planning and management tool specifically designed for the Apparel and Textiles sector. Following the system go live in early November, the Textured Jersey team is excited about the potential benefits from a planning tool that is integrated with their SAP system, to provide total visibility across the entire organisation. Available features include the proactive management of customer projections and order receipts vs. available capacity, vertical knit and dye planning, including full raw materials visibility, and actual production status of all orders at a glance.

Mr. Rohan Goonetilleke, Managing Director commented: "One area that had previously been a headache for us was the coordination between marketing, planning and production - numerous meetings were needed to accurately quote delivery dates for customer inquiries. With Fastreact weve already been able to bring all these functions together in one centralised system and respond to customers with an accurate delivery date in half the time it used to take us previously. Reaction from our staff in all areas has been great. Their buy in to the process and willingness to embrace the solution has been fantastic.

"We have identified ways to reduce our lead time within a few weeks of going live and will continue to challenge existing practices. The ability to use our available capacity well and to respond quickly, yet accurately to enquiries gives us a competitive edge weve made a huge investment in the very best machinery, and with FastReact we can ensure that we utilise that investment well." Added Rohan.

Mr. Shehan Witharana, General Manager Operations added: "We researched our options for planning before concluding that Fast React was the best tool on the market by far. Most importantly, it is not just a planning and scheduling tool, but also a business wide tool for improving visibility and coordination. The linked planning boards for knitting and dyeing mean that each department knows exactly what was required of them and can work together towards the common goal of maximising On Time Delivery Performance (OTDP%)."

"The system is fully networked throughout the business and a large on-line LCD screen in the Dye-house helps staff to clearly identify their work priorities based on the latest plan. In the near future, we aim to open up Fast React visibility to our supply chain - many of our customers already use Fast React, and we are very excited by the opportunity this presents for much closer collaboration."

Andrew Brown, Managing Director of Fast React Systems said "Right from the start, we were excited to work with Textured Jersey on this project, because the team is constantly striving to better themselves and their business processes.

"This is immediately apparent when first visiting the manufacturing facility. Working practices are impressive, including fantastic control of materials inventory, with a stock accuracy level close to 99.9%. This says a lot about how focused Textured Jersey is as a business. As expected, the project was not straightforward, but thats where specialist expertise is important. As specialists in areas of planning, sourcing and critical path management, our clients can rest assured that with our experience and commitment to success they will always get a solution that works for them".

Calzedonia introduce Fast React to improve efficiency and speed to market

Calzedonia have an annual turnover of 400m. The organisation has been operating for 20 years and now has approximately 2000 retail outlets throughout Europe selling their Calzedonia and Intimissimilabels.

With the business expanding it was becoming apparent to Calzedonia that their spreadsheet and related manual systems were just not able to cope and they were struggling to see available capacity within the factory locations.

"We have chosen Fast React's planning software to enable us to maximize production efficiency at our factories, whilst at the same time providing us with the capabilities for quick response and lead time reduction."Mr. Riccardo Romani, Director of ProductionFast React's New Vision

Vision - Global Sourcing made SimpleAs Fast React announce the formal launch of its new Vision sourcing solution, it already has a range of key clients on board including top fashion brand Reiss, US based Madison88 and the fast growing footwear brand FitFlop. The launch of Vision follows a 1 Million plus investment, spanning over 3 years.

The Vision solution has been developed to offer instant visibility, a single point of reference for accurate information and effective control of all key processes specifically for sourcing garments, footwear and accessories.

Vision can save you time and money by:

Giving you effective control of new style development Offering improved visibility of different costing versions Reducing lead times through improved coordination Providing a more effective management of inventory Reducing excess costs such as air freight and late delivery charges

"We chose Fast React after numerous conversations with their competitors.We believe Fast React is the most knowledgeable in understanding our industry,business model and our problems..."Chris Cantasano, COO - Madison88 Ltd (USA)Hirdaramani to roll-out Fast React planning solution across the group

An original pioneer of the Sri Lankan garment industry, today Hirdaramani Group employs over 28,000 people across 6 countries, including numerous manufacturing locations in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Vietnam.

Fast React has installed the latest Evolve version of its planning solution in two of its Sri Lankan business units, including macro (factory) level capacity management and reporting, plus detailed (sewing line) level scheduling of each factory site.

"Closer research led us to confirm Fast React Evolve as the best tool to meet our requirements, plus it had already been integrated with Microsoft Dynamics AX, our chosen ERP solution, which was essential for us."Aroon Hirdaramani, DirectorBar Code Media - The Latest FashionVAR Dominion Solutions implements bar code tags as a durable solution for tracking material in the garment industry.Business Solutions, October 1999

Written by: Nancy Senger

Identifying bolts of dyed fabric is not an easy task in the garment industry. Each roll of fabric is assigned a lot number, which correlates with the production ticket hanging on the outside of the vat of dye. Employees use an indelible resin pen to write this lot number - which can be up to seven digits long - on the fabric. Problems often occur when fabric is dyed a dark color, which makes the handwritten number difficult to find. Once the handwritten number is found, it is often difficult to read. There is also a high margin of error when employees copy the production ticket number onto the fabric.

Roanoke, VA-based VAR Dominion Solutions has developed a turnkey system for dyeing material, while tracking the fabric. Dominion Solutions discovered the need for a solution after talking with one of its existing customers.

"We were approached by engineers at a large fleecewear/sportswear manufacturer in Virginia about three years ago," explains Skip Taliaferro, senior account executive at Dominion Solutions. "The company had seen an installation done overseas that created a durable bar-coded tag that could survive the dyeing process. However, the solution used a dot-matrix printer, which wouldn't stand up in an industrial environment, and the cost was astronomical. The material manufacturer wanted to see if there was a local company that could provide an efficient solution."

Meeting The Dyeing DemandTaliaferro knew some vendors were sewing in 7 mil Nomex fabric tags, printed with a dot-matrix printer. The tags resisted the dye, but the data was often erased from the tags in the dyeing process.

Taliaferro discovered media that could be used in thermal transfer technology, but wouldn't hold up well in the dye vat - an extremely harsh environment. "Our first try worked well in the washing cycles, but wouldn't withstand dyeing for 12 hours and high temperatures," he explains. "So, our engineering team changed the substrates (properties) of the media. During nine months of testing and retesting, we changed the types of glue and primers that hold the glue. Failures were associated with the different sulfur dyes. The pH balance can be so high that it eats away at the face coat on the tag, and the data is lost.

Dominion Solutions worked during the last three years to develop its turnkey solution. The final product is based on durable bar code tags, which use a heat-sealed glue. The tags are printed using Intermec (Everett, WA) 4400 and 4420 thermal transfer printers. Bar code label design software from Loftware (York, ME) ties the solution together. "This media is fairly thick," Taliaferro explains, "and it's held on by friction. Once the label is peeled from its backing, it must be used, or it's wasted. Print speeds reach up to 8 inches per second (ips). Our solution results in scannable bar codes - even after dyeing and napping (when the hairy or downy surface is raised). Print is not smudged, distorted, or bleached out in the process." Taliaferro also points out that every dye solution should be thoroughly tested before any solution is implemented.

The End ResultsWhen the identifiers were written with indelible resin pens, the ink often bled through two or more layers of fabric. Depending on where the number was written, 12 inches to 72 inches of fabric per roll was sometimes wasted. The new tags eliminate this waste, since the glue can't soak through the fabric. Errors are also eliminated through limiting the need for manual data entry.

"Cost justification varies by textile type and customer," says Taliaferro. "In general, the return on investment is quick - sometimes it's as little as six months. However, some companies could see an ROI in as long as two years."

Companies also save in labor costs by eliminating the time employees spend looking for the lot number. "An average textile company can throw away close to $1 million in fabric," he continues. "System prices vary, but we're seeing cost justification of about 10 times the cost of the installation."

Fabric Stores: The Right Fit For PC-Based POS & Bar Codes

House of Fabrics chain adopts technology to increase worker productivity and provide better inventory control during company downsizing.Business Solutions, February 1998

Written by: Nancy Senger

Automating the point of sale was not a casual decision for House of Fabrics. The retail chain of craft and fabric stores was hit hard when its 1980's growth-by-acquisition strategy encountered the slow economy of the 1990's. With over 700 outlets across the country ten years ago, tough times have forced it to trim back to 265 stores. Point of sale (POS) automation was a necessary part of the company's 'lean and mean' recovery. For guidance and support, it turned to long-time POS system integrator, DMF Data Management Facility Company Inc.

Re-Stocking Process Is InefficientInventory management and price control are key elements of the new House of Fabrics. With thousands of craft items and fabric spools in each store, fast response to changing seasons and fashions is crucial to financial success. Store managers were used to tabulating their monthly purchase requirements based on a "gut-feel" of what products were moving. Centralized purchase decisions were made based on managers' requests and market trends. Regional differences in consumer tastes or preferences were difficult to accommodate.

The electronic cash register simply recorded purchases at the till. All transactions were performed manually; product bar codes were not used. The tracking of its core product - custom cuts of fabric - was done on paper. Information about the fabric type and length was written at the cutting station and reinterpreted at the check-out counter. The customer was given a simple receipt which did not provide any information about the item purchased.

New POS System Tracks Bar-Coded ItemsDMF designed an automation solution using bar-code and computer technology. All items sold required bar codes. For many craft items, UPC bar codes were already in place. The cutting stations were set up with bar-code printers, bar code scanners, programmable keyboards and Pentium PCs. Fabric cutting was done as it always had been, but paper tracking was replaced by bar-code scanning and programmable keyboard data entry. Each spool of fabric was assigned a unique bar code which was scanned before cutting.

Keyboard layouts were customized to match the requirements of the cutting process, making data entry easy for House of Fabrics sales personnel. After the custom cutting of the fabric, new bar code tags were printed on-the-spot and each fabric cut was tagged for quick processing at the check-out counter.

Components In The New SystemThe POS check-out stations were outfitted with Pentium PCs, Metrologic scanners, Jarltech programmable keyboards, Star Micronics receipt printers and cash drawers from M-S Cash Drawer. Bar code scanning and simplified keyboard entry improved the speed and accuracy of each transaction. DMF put systems in place so that the sales information from each POS station within each store would automatically be polled by corporate headquarters at the end of each working day. In addition, systems were installed so that each station in each store would be updated overnight with new item pricing as required. To prevent information loss during breakdown or power failure, DMF's system offered the redundancy of a fully powered PC at each station.

Benefits Of The New SystemThe automatic polling of sales information from each store has provided corporate office with the capability to restock or redistribute craft and fabric items as required. This has provided a new ability for fast response to regional differences and changes in consumer preference.

Bar-Coding Revenue: Don't Miss A Penny

This integrator expects 30% revenue growth in 2010 from selling bar code printers, scanners, media, and mobile computers.Business Solutions, November 2009Mike Monocello

In many ways, Texas Barcode Systems is like any other VAR. Due to the economy, 2009 was a slow year for sales. Now, as the economy shows signs of improvement, David Edwards, president of Texas Barcode Systems, believes his company is poised for 30% revenue growth. How? He's identified a handful of key issues facing his target market Fortune 1000-sized manufacturers and distributors with more than 100 employees. Apart from identifying the right issues, the VAR installs the necessary bar-coding solutions to solve those needs.

Mandates Are Forcing 2-D Bar-Coding UpgradesEdwards says he's been selling more 2-D bar-coding products in the last few months than he has in the last six years. He believes the reason why stems directly from various mandates imposed on suppliers. For instance, many of his clients who perform electronics manufacturing work are required by the telecom industry to use Micro PDF417 and QR codes (data matrix). "Everyone wants more information when they scan a bar code," says Edwards. "To get more information, you need to use 2-D symbology." For that, manufacturers need printers capable of producing high-resolution (600 dpi [dots per inch]) bar codes (as well as bar code scanners capable of reading the codes). "We have one customer that makes telecom equipment used by Verizon and AT&T," he adds. "While it is a major manufacturing operation, this company buys equipment and runs it until it dies. It probably wouldn't have purchased new printers if it wasn't required to print 2-D labels." Edwards continues by explaining that his customers in the food industry also face regulations pertaining to the traceability of food in the event a recall is needed. Therefore, the VAR has seen an increase in sales of 2-D solutions to those customers.

You might be wondering how RFID (radio frequency identification) plays into all this. After all, the information-storing ability and traceability of an RFID tag far surpasses the capabilities of a 2-D label. As you might guess, Edwards says the cost of RFID still is prohibitive. "In manufacturing and distribution, unless they're being mandated, there aren't many companies jumping into RFID," he explains. "If anything, RFID inquiries are diminishing due to the expense and the economy. There are also still some issues concerning the reliability of labels, as most are more delicate than a bar code label and not suited for warehouse environments."

The VAR also sees a trend with products reaching end of life. He says two factors are contributing to this. First, companies that bought new equipment for Y2K now are finding that equipment failing and due for replacement. On top of that, the slumping economy caused many companies to put purchases on hold. Now, as the economy turns and equipment is failing, companies are compelled to make the purchase of new equipment.

When it comes to new equipment, Edwards says his company's goal is to spec out the hardware that will have the lowest cost of ownership over the life of the product for the customer (and obviously, meets their needs). "The consumables for small desktop printers are more expensive because the cost to manufacture the media is higher," he explains. "Even if a customer can save money by purchasing a cheaper printer, over time it might be spending more money." In general, Edwards says if a customer is printing fewer than 20,000 labels a month, he'll recommend a low-tier printer. At 1,000 labels or more a day, he recommends mid- to high-range printers. With mobile computers, the VAR is sure to factor in the cost of replacement batteries over time. By looking at a five-year life span, the consumables savings might pay for an upgrade to the next piece of hardware.

Use The Economy To Sell Bar Coding ServicesWhile external requirements are dictating new technology adoption, internal requirements are also creating a need Texas Barcode looks to fulfill. Indeed, while Texas Barcode's hardware sales slipped a bit in 2009 due to the economy, Edwards says revenue from his professional services has risen 15% during the same time. Specifically, Edwards says that due to the economy, many companies downsized especially in the IT department putting additional burden on the existing IT staff. Therefore, during the VAR's more recent installs, customers were willing to pay for Texas Barcode's professional services to lighten the burden on internal resources. "We have customers with multiple locations, but IT staff only at headquarters," explains Edwards. "Therefore, we act as the remote IT staff, performing site surveys, doing configuration work, and training the end users. Some customers give us a list of settings for printers; then we set them up and ship them out." In the past, many of the VAR's customers would shoulder this burden.

As another way to lighten the IT burden on customers, Texas Barcode also provides free technical support. Rather than pass customer problems on to the device manufacturer, the VAR handles problems with its own support team. Edwards says this accomplishes a couple of things. First, it ensures his customers receive prompt service. Second, it keeps his employees educated and in tune with customer issues. The VAR also says the manufacturers of the products he resells appreciate the VAR's efforts to solve problems. "When we eventually call a manufacturer, they know it's a real problem," he says. As you might know, so many support calls are for trivial problems, which is why Edwards feels he's doing the right thing by giving away tech support for free. "We can solve about 90% of printer trouble calls without sending someone on-site. It's usually a calibration issue or a media error." Regardless, the free tech support saves his customers money, which, in turn, leads to happier customers.

Finally, Edwards helps educate his customers. This goes beyond the training involved in an initial rollout. The VAR says another problem its customers face is uneducated users. "A lot of manufacturers have high turnover in the positions that use the technology we install," he says. "For our larger customers, we'll provide a quarterly training session to acclimate new users to the printers. It's sort of a course on bar-coding basics." The benefits are that this helps customers be more productive because users know what they're doing, and the printers work more reliably because users aren't mishandling them. Like technical support, this is a free service Texas Barcode provides.

As the economy continues to improve, Edwards believes the needs of his core market will remain unchanged, creating great opportunity for the VAR in 2010. He concludes, "I think we've seen the economy bottom out. All indications from our customers are that everyone is running really lean. The only direction is up."

Adding Value To Your Bar Code Printers

Recent trends in bar code printing include increased demand for higher-resolution units as well as a demand for portable printers.Business Solutions, January 1998

Written by: Nick Pronko

Offering value-added services has become increasingly important for automatic identification and data collection (AIDC) VARs, according to three bar code printer vendors. Business Systems Magazine interviewed Andrew Hsu, vice president of TSC America, Inc.; Robert Kleist, president/CEO of Printronix; and Dennis Kallaher, general manager of TEC America. The three say the growing number of "box-moving" AIDC distributors are cutting into reseller sales. (These distributors typically sell high volumes of hardware at low prices, but don't provide the integration services or support of the better VARs. Some of these "volume" distributors sell only to the VAR channel.)

"Some VARs are lowering their prices in an effort to compete with box-moving distributors," Hsu says. "But the meaning of VAR is 'value added reseller.' VARs shouldn't have to cut their prices in order to win sales."

Adds Kallaher, "End users have so many choices for buying bar-code printers and other AIDC products (label media, software, etc.). So VARs have to show why end users should buy from them, as opposed to a box mover."

What Constitutes Added Value?According to Kleist, even following up with customers after the sale can prove valuable. "VARs should be checking back with customers to make sure the products meet the customers' expectations," Kleist says. "That helps the VAR build relationships that lead to repeat sales." Hsu, Kleist and Kallaher say there are a number of other services that can help VARs beat box-moving distributors:

Application knowledge - According to Kleist, resellers should understand the label requirements of different vertical markets and applications. For example, Kleist says suppliers to automotive manufacturers have to ensure bar code labels on their shipments don't fall off or smudge while in transit.

Integrated system sales - Resellers also should be selling complementary products like handheld data collection devices (handheld computers), bar code scanners, label media and label design software, Kallaher says. He says resellers also should be able to integrate those products to provide users with "system" solutions. "Integration service is a major weakness of most catalog distributors," he adds.

Responsive service - Hsu says VARs should give their customers a call-back within 24 hours when they have printer problems.

Bar Code Printing TrendsHsu, Kleist and Kallaher say VARs should be capitalizing on several recent trends in bar-code printing to increase their sales:

Higher-resolution printing - According to Kallaher, many users only require a minimum resolution of 203 dots per inch (dpi). However, users who print company logos and graphics on bar codes may prefer 300-400 dpi printers. Several printer vendors have responded by releasing higher-resolution printers. "Logos and graphics generally don't look professional if their resolution is below 300 dots per inch," Kallaher adds. Multi-technology printing - Many users print shipping manifests and pick lists in addition to labels. Therefore, VARs shouldn't limit their focus to just "dedicated" bar-code printers. "VARs should consider offering laser printers for users that need more than a label printer," Kleist adds. A demand for portable printers - Hsu says portable printers have become increasingly popular in applications like vehicle rental. Some rental agencies allow customers to park the vehicle and report to a worker in the lot. Using a portable printer, the worker prints the customer a receipt on the spot, saving the customer time.