GS 1 Barcodes the truth behind the bars

GS 1 Barcodes the truth behind the bars http: //www. gs 1. org management software for narrow web labelprinters

What is GS 1? • GS 1 is an organization dedicated to the design and implementation of global standards and solutions to improve the efficiency and visibility of supply chains globally and across sectors. • The GS 1 system is the most widely used supply chain standards system in the world. • GS 1 standard is formally known as EAN standard.

GS 1 -128 code (1) • The goal is to identify logistic units via a set of GS 1 -128 barcodes (formally known as EAN 128 barcodes). So don’t use simple Code 128! • These barcodes are a subset (variant) of Code 128. The GS 1 -128 is different because it has a special character (FNC 1) at the start which is automatically present. This allows the scanner to recognize the type of barcode. • GS 1 -128 barcode support the use of Application Identifiers (AI). An AI allow to identify different data blocs of information within 1 barcode, like product ID, batch ID, Best before date, etc. • Note: GS 1 also supports 2 -D codes like Datamatrix.

GS 1 -128 code (2) • The AI defines the meaning, the format and length (fixed or variable) of the data bloc that follows. • The FNC 1 symbol (in L&L: chr$ (254) must also be used inside the barcode to identify the end of a data bloc with variable length. For data blocs with a fixed length, this is not necessary. • Lists of all existing AI (approx. 100) exist. (link) The list contains the ID of all Application Identifiers and their official ‘name’ (data title) to be used.

GS 1 -128 code (3) • GS 1 -128 code sets A, B and C allow to specify the kind of characters. Code 128 includes 107 symbols: 103 data symbols, 3 start codes, and 1 stop code. To represent all 128 ASCII values, there are three code sets (A, B, C), which can be mixed within a single barcode. See L&L help • Code set A : can contain ASCII characters 00 to 95 (0 -9, A-Z and control codes), special characters, and FNC characters. • Code set B : can contain ASCII characters 32 to 127 (0 -9, A-Z, a-z), special characters, and FNC characters. • • Code set C: can only contain 00 -99 (encodes each two digits with one code) and FNC characters. A GS 1 -128 code can contain max. 48 characters. Start character, stop character and code set steering characters don’t count. However, FNC 1 -characters inside the barcode do count!

GS 1 -128 code (4) • A typical GS 1 -128 barcode has the following structure: • Code set 128 start character (START-A, START-B or START-C) • Code 128 FNC 1 character (automatically present) • Application Identifier (AI) • Encoded Data • Symbol Check character • Stop Character

GS 1 label size • Worldwide 2 standard sizes are applied: • A 5 : 148 (fix) x 210 (variable) mm • • The ‘full option’ label A 6 : 105 (fix) x 148 (variable) mm • Generally contains only 1 barcode : the SSCC. So in this case use of an electronic message is necessary. • Not forbidden to put more information on the label if readability is guaranteed.

GS 1 - A 5 label size

GS 1 - A 6 label size

GS 1 label layout • A standard GS 1 label always consist of 3 parts: • Part 1 (top) : Free information • Part 2 (middle) : Human readable information • Part 3 (bottom) : Max. 3 separated barcodes • The 3 parts should be separated by a horizontal separation line.

GS 1 label Standard layout example Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

GS 1 label layout – Free information • Part 1 (top) : Free information • This part allows to display information like company name, company address, company logo, etc. • The partner who prints the label can determine the information shown in this part.

GS 1 label layout – Human readable information • Part 2 (middle) : Human readable information • This part is meant to display the information encapsulated in the barcodes in a human readable way. • All information must consist of an AI name or data title (example: SSCC) followed by its data content (example: 3871234567449326). Data titles must always be in English! • Font use is free, but easily readable fonts like Arial or Times New Roman are recommended.

GS 1 label layout – Barcodes (1) • Part 3 (bottom) : Barcodes • All barcodes must use GS 1 -128 symbol technique • A given AI (and its content) can only appear once on the label • Max. number of separated barcodes on a label = 3 • The barcode at the bottom of the label must at least contain the SSCC, but can contain also other information if necessary (however this is not advised). • The SSCC barcode must have a minimum height of 32 mm. The advised height for the other barcodes is also 32 mm (with a minimum of 12, 7 mm)

GS 1 label layout – Barcodes (2) • The max. width of a standardized GS 1 -128 code is 165 mm. Of course you always need to check the readability on all your scanning equipment! • The display of HR text below each barcode is mandatory ! • AI’s Prefixes are always surrounded by parenthesis HR text beneath the barcode they. However, the FNC 1 symbols needed in the barcode to identify the end of a variable date bloc should not be part of the HR text! Example GTIN: (01)10614141000019. • Be aware: the parenthesis used to identify the AI in the HR text, should not be part of the barcode itself, they only appear in the HR text !

GS 1 label layout – Scaling • Scaling rules for the barcodes: • SSCC : must be between 50 and 80% • Other : must be between 25 and 80% Scaling factor X-dimension (mm) 25 0. 25 30 0. 30 40 0. 40 50 0. 50 60 0. 60 70 0. 70 80 0. 80 X-dimension is the width in mm of the smallest bar in the barcode. => See bar width value in L&L

Label layout – Barcode printing direction • Best practice for printing of barcodes on a label printer: Bars in the printing direction Bars opposite to the printing direction cause errors since the paper transport (in the forward direction) can be shaky which causes variance in bar width.

GS 1 label layout – Tips & tricks • To optimize barcode length, apply the following rules: • Use AI with a fixed length before the ones with a variable length. • Place AI containing an uneven number of characters or a lower or upper case character at the end of the barcode • Always respect the quite zones: they should be at least 10 x the width of the narrowest bar/space element. It is mandatory at the left and right side of the barcode. A quiet zone must not be less than 6. 4 mm wide.

GS 1 label position • It’s not really our concern, but there are rules for label application on the packaging of the finished goods. You can find them here.

GS 1 Company prefix • As a (paying) member of GS 1 a printing company can obtain a Company prefix ID. Depending on their choice (price), the ID is 7 to 9 digits. This influences the range of possibilities for creation of GTIN and SSCC. • This ID is linked to the company. Since the company prefix is part of the GTIN, GLN and SSCC, every single identified logistic unit can be traced to its origin / destination.

SSCC (Serial Shipping Container Code) • The SSCC is the GS 1 Identification Key for a logistic unit which needs to be managed through the supply chain. The SSCC is a mandatory element on the GS 1 Logistic Label and always contains the Application identifier + 18 data characters. • SSCC composition overview:

SSCC (Serial Shipping Container Code) • • • Appplication identifier: The AI “ 00″ indicates the SSCC-18 data structure will follow. Extension Digit: has no defined logic and is used to increase the capacity of the Serial Reference. It is assigned by the company that constructs the SSCC! GS 1 Company Prefix: GS 1 Company Prefixes are 7 -10 digits. Serial Reference Numbers are 6 -9 digits. Serial Number: is assigned by the holder of the GS 1 Company Prefix to uniquely identify a shipping container (logistic unit). A Serial Reference cannot be reused for a minimum of 12 months. The combined length of the GS 1 Company Prefix and Serial Reference is always 16 digits. Check Digit: calculated using the Modulo 10 algorithm

GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) • As the name implies, the GTIN helps automate the trading process – basically buying and selling. The key benefit is to identify a product and to make sure information (technical and sales) about the product can be retrieved from the registered GTIN. • Always contains 14 characters. So, if the provided GTIN is EAN-8 or EAN-13, you should add leading zeros !

GTIN - Assignment • Who is responsible for the assignment of the GTIN to a product? => The company who owns the commercial trade mark of the product, independent from the producer. • However, if the owner doesn’t assign a GTIN, he can ask the producer or distributor to assign a temporarily GTIN to the product. In that case its an “internal” GTIN code.

GLN (Global Location Number) • As the name implies, the GLN is a unique ID for the identification of registered physical locations and legal entities.

GEPIR- Search tool • The site http: //www. gs 1. org provides a tool called ‘GEPIR’ which allows to search for company data based on company name, an SSCC, a GTIN or a GLN.

GS 1 EDI messages (EANCOM®) • The GS 1 - EANCOM® EDI is a standard for electronic data exchange. • Example: • The Dispatch Advice is an electronic version (XML) of the shipping note. • Allows the receiver to read the detailed information of the content of a shipment and thus reduce time and errors. (similar to the paper supplier ASN we use). • More information about GS 1 in general and EDI messages can be found in: \fileserverHandlhandl_internimplementatie_en_documentatieGS 1 Only available for Cerm employees