Fnac takes inotec Solutions

When Fnac Logistique decided to extend its business by building a new warehouse in Wissous and refit their current warehouse in Massy, the company approached inotec France with the intention to use its technical knowledge and innovative solutions for the identification of the warehouse racking positions, order preparation areas (marshalling lanes) and plastic crates used in their distribution chain.

15,000 pallet locations were identified with unique color coded labels to ease locating the goods within the warehouse. In some areas angled crossbeam labels were applied to the bottom horizontal beams to identify each vertical position (up to 6 levels high) within a bay. Fork lift drivers can scan the barcode for each location without leaving their truck. Color coding relating to the actual height within the racking makes it easy for the drivers to locate the actual position. Above all, as there are six barcodes on each label, inotec printed the barcodes at an angle so that the drivers can aim the scanner at the correct barcode far more easily, hence avoiding misreading. A uniquely digitally printed thick label construction for the lower level labels offers a label that will survive severe warehouse abuse such as impact and abrasion from pallets and trucks. Barcodes on white background with color coded surrounds. The Diomaster image is totally protected for optimized reading and durability. To avoid misreads, due to the closeness of the bar codes, these are tilted so that the laser reading beam reads only the selected code.

The areas where orders are being prepared for shipment in marshalling lanes, these needed to be identified to guarantee maximum traceability within the supply chain. inotec’s Diomaster 250PC HUW was chosen because of its unique under-surface digital printing method which offers resistance against shunted pallets and other warehouse abuse. Yellow and orange color coding on the labels make it easy for the users to quickly recognize specific areas within the warehouse. The combination of a unique thick label construction and a special adhesive allows quick installation of the labels, therefore causing minimum disruption to the working warehouse. The price – quality ratio is extremely high and Fnac decided to identify 250 positions with this method.

The automated tracking of Fnac’s distribution crates required the application of a unique barcode label to each crate. Good readability, abrasion and weather resistance were the main requirements for the crate identification. Fnac Logistics also wanted a label that would allow easy removal of dirt or temporary paper labels that could be applied on top of the unique label.

Inotec therefore supplied their Diomaster solution which once again is an under surface printed label construction with a high resolution digital printed image. A Lomasil coating was added to the Diomaster construction which offers a non-stick layer to avoid soiling of the barcode label. The UV resistant material and specialist adhesive ensures that the label will survive the life of the crates. More than 200,000 crates were identified in the Fnac project.