Premier Foods bakes up barcode tracking solution for manufacturing

The company produces 2 million loaves of bread every day and, assuming the pilot project is successful, 500 barcode scanning devices will be integrated with Premier's SAP warehouse management solution. Zetes has already completed integration of mobile devices with Premier's SAP system using its SAP toolkit, MiNetConnect, which provides a direct, validated link in real time. The organisation has also developed an a component that enables SAP to receive data from fixed scanners. According to Phil McCallum, IT and Infrastructure director at Premier Foods, currently, scanners have been installed in three facilities to ensure that automated processes can be implemented. The goal, he says, is better business controls, product visibility and traceability across the supply chain, at the same time as maintaining responsiveness to time-critical events. "We are pleased to be working with Zetes and look forward to continuing our relationship with the roll out of what will be a transformational project," says McCallum. "The traceability solution we are piloting with Zetes will, we hope, solve long standing issues our company has faced within the Hovis bakery supply chain." Subject to the success of the pilot, McCallum says Hovis will consider a full roll-out of the traceability solution to all 23 UK sites during 2010.