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BARCODING, LABELLING & PACKAGING
“From a strategy perspective, it may appear like the thrifty option. Yet, just one EPW is all it takes to completely eradicate brand value,” exclaims Sion. Frequently positioned as the alternative to manual inspections are vision systems. As advanced as these cameras are at capturing label information, taking a picture is only half of the quality control narrative. As a minimum a system should have a good OCR to read text and printed characters, as well as 1D, 2D and data embedded codes. Many do not, instead relying on an off the shelf vision toolbox with inherent compromises! Without connecting industrial vision systems
to a reliable and validated data source, these label inspection systems can generally lack material substance.
“Checking the image quality and presence of a
printed label is essentially only half the story and could be futile and non-compliant. Particularly if the production and retailer source data that food labels are being checked against isn’t correct or the most up-to-date version,” explains Sion. The most common label integrity assumption,
recounts Sion, is when processors invest in a high-end vision system, but still rely entirely on production operatives to manually input data from a spreadsheet into a lineside terminal. Compared to a fully-compliant offline or online JentonDimaco label verification system, inputting data manually will not deliver anything close to the same data integrity benefits. Sion cites the example of an operative diligently setting a printer up to print a use-by date of ‘Feb 30’. With the camera set up to verify ‘Feb 30’, all appears good. This so-called verification system is doing its job. Merrily passing all the packs, sending them out the warehouse door to retailers unaware of any issue!
TRANSPARENCY SEWN UP A true automated label verification system will not compromise on any aspect of performance. That is why JentonDimaco adopts a ‘belts & braces’ approach, to prevent a food processor being caught out. Aside from the contractual fines which can
easily run into tens of thousands of pounds, the brand damage and reputational risks caused by an EPW can rapidly multiple. In the worst case reaching into the millions, cautions Sion. He suggests that just one prevention of a label EPW can pay for a decade of robust Dimaco label verification protection. “A ‘belts & braces’ automated approach to
label verification can accelerate the verification process, catch mis-labelled products before they leave the high care environment, enabling product to be reworked and re-labelled. This in turn reduces food waste, which as well as protecting profits, also plays a significant role in safeguarding the environment.” Describing it as better than an insurance policy, Sion likens a Dimaco offline and online automated label verification system to a fire alarm or sprinkler system. Alerting factory managers to a potential issue long before any
irreversible damage takes hold in the public domain. Catching mislabelled products at this phase can be the difference between the cost of reworking several dozen products to a retailer fine, recall, brand damage, and potentially tonnes of good fresh produce being thrown away at a considerable cost to the environment. Sion clarifies: “Label mistakes
may still happen. However, what both and offline and online JentonDimaco label verification systems will do is find and take corrective action before a product range leaves the factory. Preventing a humiliating public disgrace and integrity challenge by those that wield the greatest power – the retailers.”
DATA DETOX Shaping up and cleansing the data is the most critical and time-consuming aspect of the entire label verification process. It comprises all of the primary data, the processing data and, to close the loop, all of the MRP label verification data. Every one of the ‘rules’ has to
LABEL CHECKS
First Product Last Product
To
Every X Minutes After Line Stop Top / Side / Base 1D Barcode 2D Barcode
code
Data Embedded Barcode Encrypted / Hidden Barcode RFID / NFC TagRFID / NFC Tag
Ta
100% of Packs Checked
To
Tolerance
MANUAL P MANUAL PA PAPER BASED SYSTEM
SMART CAMERA BASED SYSTEM
DIMACO OFFLINE DIMACO ONLINE
DAT
ATA
TA SOURCE
Manual Operator Check Spreadsheets
Manual Data Entry MRP / ERP System
Complete Data Traceability Complete Data Traceability Tr
MANUAL P
MANUAL PA
PAPER BASED SYSTEM
SMART CAMERA BASED SYSTEM
DIMACO OFFLINE
DIMACO ONLINE
RESULTS / REPOR LT
TS / REPORTING
Saved Images of Every Good Pack Saved Images of Every Bad Pack Auto Save Imaging Label Check Sheets
Easy Retrieval for Audit
Supermarket COP Approved
MANUAL P
MANUAL PA
PAPER BASED SYSTEM
SMART CAMERA BASED SYSTEM
DIMACO OFFLINE
DIMACO ONLINE
Yes
Yes (operator dependant) Ye es (operato
Yes (depending on disk space) Ye es (depending on
Possible but unlikely
No
+44 (0) 1234 851515
be configured on a product by product basis. It is a massive undertaking. But one that JentonDimaco experts manage entirely for customers. Once this total data overhaul is complete, food factories have a fully automated, cleansed and integrated variable and non-variable data blueprint that can grow and adapt as their business evolves. Sion expands: “JentonDimaco label
verification systems are the most efficient way to authenticate all aspects of data and artwork on food retail labels including price, barcodes, use- by dates, promotional labels and artwork revisions. All of this data is verified against a master specification held on the JentonDimaco Veri-CENTRAL server, which sources data from each food manufacturer’s MRP server or production spreadsheets.” When live, every single label passing along the
production line is automatically checked against the Veri-CENTRAL blueprint. There are no printed spreadsheets, realms of Production Product Check Sheets, or human intervention required. Products with good labels continue down the line, badly printed products and those with missing labels are rejected for investigation, whilst incorrect data will stop the line. Every time a supermarket makes a label
adjustment during the production run, for example to a price, the JentonDimaco Veri- CENTRAL server will pick this up instantly. This information is then automatically relayed to every Veri-PACK labelling system within seconds
sales@dimaco.co.uk www.dimaco.co.uk Jenton Dimaco is part of the Jenton Group, experts in the Design and Manufacture of UV Curing and UV Air Disinfection, Packaging and Converting e of UV Curing and UV Air Disinfection, Packaging and Converting
This simple matrix presents the strengths, features and limitations of the four main label verification options available
and the action taken documented on Veri-VIEW. Cleansing and rolling out this seamless data
flow along with automated label reading tech is less convoluted than most anticipate. Rather than adding another layer of complexity to already overloaded factory managers, the JentonDimaco team creates a ‘belts & braces’ rollout roadmap factoring in all the macro-risks to eliminate disruption and production downtime. Typically, this involves getting all the IT
systems running in parallel, installing the equipment at night or over the weekend, running paper based systems for several weeks simultaneously while the workforce undergoes training, before switching over. “True label verification competence which verifies 100 percent of the data against every single product pack is the secret to food label compliance success. It requires an upfront investment, yet the ROI is undoubtedly swift,” states Sion. Richard Canvin, CEO of Dovecote Park, agrees with the need for automated label verification, offering the following comment: “With the increasing pressure on all resources, the JentonDimaco label verification system removes one critical area of concern for us, ensuring that 100 per cent of the products we produce are correctly labelled.”
JentonDimaco
www.dimaco.co.uk
FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS | SEPTEMBER 2023 15
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