In the modern world, barcodes have become indispensible. We are so used to there being a barcode on everything that we barely even notice they are there. They almost seem to be an organic part of most of the goods we have now. Imagine a book or packet of crisps without a barcode on it – it’s impossible. Barcodes are not just used for consumer goods, although that is the use that most people come into contact with on a daily basis. They are also used as security labels by airlines, to track bags and people through airports, and to track documents and parcels. Essentially, anything that needs to be tracked and identified can be – and usually is – barcoded.

Life before barcodes

Before the advent of barcodes, many tasks were much more time consuming, difficult and prone to error. Without a barcode label on every consumer item, shop staff had to input every price manually when serving customers, which would take quite some time if the customer was buying a lot of items. Stock-taking would involve a laborious process of checking a manual stock list against actual stock. Lost stock, parcels or airline bags would be very difficult to track.

Life with barcodes

Barcodes make it possible to track almost anything we want to. Every product has its own barcode and can be sold using it, regardless of the store in which it is being sold. Staff know at the touch of a button how much stock is left of a particular item, and so they know when to order more, making it much easier to keep items well stocked. Customers can even check the store’s stock online before making the journey to buy it thanks to barcodes. Parcel and delivery companies use barcodes to track parcels from depot to door, meaning that customers can find out easily when to expect their delivery. A similar system operates with baggage carried by airlines. Barcode labels are also used for security. Anyone can buy barcoded thermal labels and put them on high-value items that they lend to staff, such as laptops, reducing the chance of theft.

The future of barcodes

We live in a world of information where we expect to be able to find out about anything we want, whenever we want. Barcodes are helping us to do this, and that is a trend that will continue to develop. Modern smartphones have built-in barcode readers, which can be used to scan regular consumer barcodes to find out information, and new-style barcodes designed specifically for phones, which allow people to add applications to their phone and access information.

The barcode is ubiquitous and iconic. It has transformed the way we live, and it’s here to stay.