By an inventory management system, as listed in the title, I mean a barcode reader and software to interpret the scanned data. As a man interested in small business (I don't want to reveal all the details due to confidentiality), it is more important for the system to be affordable rather than scalable. That being said, I realize orders must be efficiently tracked and the costs of such a system would be justified by the efficiency, accuracy and ease of use. Eventually setting up such a system would be profitable to business (as opposed to not doing it). I've already had that debate with myself and colleagues.
But this gets me to the hard part! There are so many options. Just searching ebay, amazon and google, one would be overwhelmed by the total amount of options.
Because of this, I am trying to narrow down my search by pointing out MY ideal barcode system. It is all about the fit!
Criteria one
-The last thing I want is overkill. I would prefer the inventory system to be affordable rather than "big."
I don't think I'll have any more than 50 employees in the next few years. I would love to be an instant success, but I doubt my company will be making more than 10 million dollars a year off of manufacturing.
Criteria two
-Driver compatibility: Software and hardware have to work well together. Hardware should work with Windows XP and Vista OS and modern Intel and AMD hardware. The ideal interface would be usb.
It must be practical!
Criteria three
-System Should be able to output data in Excel or relational database (access, mysql, oracle, sql server). The more multiplatform, the better but excel is an absolute necessity.
The ideal system would not be proprietary or obviously biased in favor of one company (Microsoft, Oracle, etc.). Multiplatform is reasonable and anything else is not ideal.
Criteria four
-The barcode reader should have a simple interface that the average worker can easily understand. They simply select a payment method and scan away. However, under the hood it should be programmable to work with managerial and financial accounting software that a CPA would find useful.
The computers are being used for BUSINESS purposes, not to impress nerds or show off the latest bells and whistles. No gimmicks. Plain old results!
But this gets me to the hard part! There are so many options. Just searching ebay, amazon and google, one would be overwhelmed by the total amount of options.
Because of this, I am trying to narrow down my search by pointing out MY ideal barcode system. It is all about the fit!
Criteria one
-The last thing I want is overkill. I would prefer the inventory system to be affordable rather than "big."
I don't think I'll have any more than 50 employees in the next few years. I would love to be an instant success, but I doubt my company will be making more than 10 million dollars a year off of manufacturing.
Criteria two
-Driver compatibility: Software and hardware have to work well together. Hardware should work with Windows XP and Vista OS and modern Intel and AMD hardware. The ideal interface would be usb.
It must be practical!
Criteria three
-System Should be able to output data in Excel or relational database (access, mysql, oracle, sql server). The more multiplatform, the better but excel is an absolute necessity.
The ideal system would not be proprietary or obviously biased in favor of one company (Microsoft, Oracle, etc.). Multiplatform is reasonable and anything else is not ideal.
Criteria four
-The barcode reader should have a simple interface that the average worker can easily understand. They simply select a payment method and scan away. However, under the hood it should be programmable to work with managerial and financial accounting software that a CPA would find useful.
The computers are being used for BUSINESS purposes, not to impress nerds or show off the latest bells and whistles. No gimmicks. Plain old results!
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