Newsletter - special edition - Label Management

Today on logistiek.nl
How to organize Label Management
Paper written by Jack de Hamer, Partner at Type 2 Solutions

A label is, in simple terms, a self-adhesive sheet with readable content, applied to a product or a container. Anybody who understands the "language" of the label can work out the attributes of the product it describes. The diversity of "languages" that find their way onto the label has considerably increased in recent years due to the growing adoption of automation, globalization and standardization by businesses. So have complexity and maintenance associated with labeling.

Significance of Labeling in the Supply Chain
Using standards, making labels machine-readable, and implementing EDI all contribute to a more optimal supply chain. In a supply chain optimized in that fashion, the label, as the carrier of the identifying information, plays a central role.

The complexity of the labeling problem increases under the influence of legal provisions, customer requirements and internal factors. The more products, facilities and customers an organization has to deal with, the more flexible and manageable its labeling solution will need to be.

Label Management in an ERP System?
Because labeling rules apply to data elements that are typically stored in an ERP system, it would seem logical to manage labeling in the ERP system as well. However, this hardly ever happens. Probably this is due to the fact that the investment that would be necessary to embed this functionality in the ERP system is disproportionate to the benefits that can be achieved. Furthermore, suitable linked labeling solutions are readily available on the market.

Data-Driven vs. Layout-Driven
The most common labeling solutions are layout-driven. That means that the emphasis is placed on the layout of the label, and that rules can be applied to data elements that exist within these layouts.

The most distinctive feature of a CLMS as opposed to a layout-driven labeling solution is the fact that it is data-driven. A CLMS implements rules that are applied to data elements from the ERP system in order to obtain a label, while a layout-driven labeling solution implements rules that are applied to data elements within the individual layouts. This difference is illustrated in the figure below.

"Data-driven solutions are in many ways superior to layout-driven solutions when it comes to flexibility, maintainability, and user interaction", says Jack de Hamer, Partner at Type 2 Solutions and one of the architects of One2Label, Type 2 Solutions' Centralized Label Management System.

- Tell us what you think about this paper
- Download the full paper as a PDF
- Read the full paper on logistiek.nl [NL] or t2s.nl [EN]

Nederlandse versie...