April, 9, 2013
Barcode Imagers Assuming a Dominant Role

Marietta, GA - Recent advances in barcode imaging technology have allowed those devices to capture a greater share of product shipments. They ...

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March 15, 2013
Color Labels On-Demand

Marietta, GA - Most of us are familiar with the benefits of using color on our products, whether it be to increase brand awareness, reduce err...

..See more.

Tough Sledding for Apple's iPod Touch

Honeywell AIDC has announced the Captuvo SL22.For retailers looking to improve the customer experience, Honeywell’s Captuvo SL22 s...

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News.
April, 9, 2013
Barcode Imagers Assuming a Dominant Role


Marietta, GA - Recent advances in barcode imaging technology have allowed those devices to capture a greater share of product shipments. They are fast becoming the dominant recipient of product development dollars.


Compared with lasers, barcode imagers have always offered greater benefits such as reliability (due to containing no moving parts), faster decode rates, lower energy consumption, the ability to read smaller barcodes, and typically lower unit costs. Unlike lasers, they can also read barcodes displayed on a screen, like your workstation, EDA, iPhone or iPad. This capability has spawned an entire new wave of applications such as Electronic Airline Boarding Passes. 2D barcodes, which typically require a 2D imager to be read, offer the the twin benefits of much higher data capacity along with robust error checking and correction. On the other hand, barcode imagers, particularly 2D imagers, have historically been limited by how close they needed to be to the barcode to read (also know as the decode range).


Recent product introductions by manufacturers like Intermec and Motorola have now eliminated those restrictions. In addition, since 2D imagers can read 1D and 2D barcodes omnidirectionally, data acquisition times is faster and less tiring. Over a full shift of use that can make a big difference.


Next time you're in the market for a barcode scanner, let us show you what an imager can do.
March 15, 2013
Color Labels On-Demand


Marietta, GA - Most of us are familiar with the benefits of using color on our products, whether it be to increase brand awareness, reduce errors in product selection or assembly or to comply with labeling requirements such as the new GHS color labeling requirements for chemicals.


What few of us are familiar with are the facts that color labels can now be produced inexpensively and conveniently on-demand. No more ordering more than you need way in advance, and then running them through a black and white printer at production time to imprint product or order specific information. Print everything you need when you need it.


For the last several years Epson has been shipping an industrial grade demand color label printer using ink jet technology. It takes roll fed or fanfolded labels, just like the thermal label printers you may be used to. The difference is the output is in color.


One of our customers is using these on their production line to produce distinctive color serial number labels that are placed inside the shells of their products. Even more impressive, the application emanates from iSeries machines running over a WAN.


Another is in the process of rolling out an app to produce color coded assembly labels for their products.


And now, Epson has introduced an 8" wide product capable of producing wide format color labels, including color drum labels to comply with the new GHS standards.


What makes these products even more unique are their low initial acquisition costs, and surprsingly low life cycle costs.


If you thought that introducing color to your manufacturing and distribution processes was too expensive, think again!
Tough Sledding for Apple's iPod Touch


Honeywell AIDC has announced the Captuvo SL22.

For retailers looking to improve the customer experience, Honeywell’s Captuvo SL22 series enterprise sled for the Apple® iPod touch® mobile digital device empowers sales associates by providing them with the tools needed to engage more closely with customers and increase sales floor conversions.



Captuvo SL22 Features and Benefits -

Protective Housing: Provides added durability to the iPod touch®, resulting in a solution that is expected to lower the failure rate of customers using competitors' sleds by as much as 80%



Fast and Easy Scanning: Increases productivity and throughput with an integrated and easy-to-use imager that provides aggressive scanning of linear and 2D bar codes



Optional Security Mechanism: Secures the Apple® iPod touch® in the sled via a unique screw, improving overall durability while reducing the likelihood of theft of the iPod touch®



Optional Encryption-Ready Magnetic Stripe Reader: With third-party key injection, encrypts cardholder data as the card is swiped, protecting this sensitive data and retailers' reputations, while reducing PCI scope



EasyDL™: Reduces transaction time by 95% by automatically parsing bar code data found on government-issued identification cards for age verification or automatic electronic form population for loyalty, membership or credit applications



A disinfectant ready version of the SL22 known as the SL22h is also available for healthcare applications.
May 17, 2011
Motorola MK590 Repurposed for Innovative Inventory Tracking System


IMCORP was recently approached by one of our long term manufacturing customers looking to improve its restocking procedures for smaller parts and miscellaneous hardware, which it managed through a Kanban system. When supplies got low, workers would scan a card that triggered a reorder. Rather than mobile or tethered scanners that would move around and potentially get lost, the client wanted a fixed-mount scanning system that would allow workers to walk up to the device and scan the Kanban system card for the appropriate item at that location.


IMCORP began working with the Motorola MK590 Micro Kiosk, which is normally used in retail settings for tasks like verifying prices, looking up inventory, and checking gift card balances. The MK590 provided a great option because it is affordable and compact enough to be mounted just about anywhere. The MK590 offers a choice of laser scanning or imaging technology to read a range of bar codes, including 1D, 2D and PDF codes. IEEE 802.11a/b/g networking and Power-over-Ethernet support give the unit the flexibility to connect to wireless or wired LANs.


Extremely useful for the modified application, the MK590 has an available Wavelink Telnet emulation program that would allow the device to communicate directly with the client’s iSeries computing system. The manufacturer’s iSeries programmers could write a new program without having to learn new skills, and then implement the MK590 solution without risk of losing data.


“They had a need, and based on what we know of their environment, we took a product that is nominally advertised as a price checker and turned it into a fixed-mount scanner for doing barcode lookups in a Kanban system,” says Bob Lehman of IMCORP. “We verified the functionality of the system in our labs and then delivered a product that allowed them to build a customized solution at a lower cost and in a shorter timeframe than would have been possible otherwise. Our initial feedback from the end user has been very positive.”


The Motorola MK590 is part of the MK500 series in Motorola Solutions’ Micro Kiosk department.
Febuary 11, 2011
LXE and Motorola Announce Enhanced Versions of Their Flagship Rugged Mobile Computers


Dubbed the "Tecton" and the MC9190-G respectively both boast a faster 806MHz processor, and can run either Windows CE6 or Windows Mobile 6.X. Both also offer backwards compatibility with existing peripherals. Price points remain basically unchanged. The Tecton will begin shipping mid-March, the MC9190-G in April.
February 7, 2011
Print Barcode Labels from a Web Browser


Seagull Scientific, publisher of an exhaustive range of Windows drivers for barcode and RFID label printers as well as BarTender for Windows a leading design, print, and print management solution for the production of barcode and RFID labels has released a significant enhancement to its Web Print Server.


The Web Print Server, a component of BarTender's Enterprise Automation Edition, allows Bartender users to create a web site containing pre-designed label formats. By so doing, BarTender customers can create a resource, accessible to authorized users worldwide allowing them to print barcode and RFID labels from a web browser.


The latest enhancement allows printing using a Java application in addition to the original Active-X control.This means that users of non-Microsoft browsers and operating systems will now be able to take advantage of this powerful facility. What's more, this new capability includes "direct to port" printing which eliminates the need for printer drivers to be installed on the remote client machines, thereby not only reducing rollout and support costs, but also making it possible to print to label printers directly or indirectly attached to Java enabled thin client devices.


IMCORP recently tested this capability using an IGEL UD3-420LX thin client running IGEL's Linux OS and a Printronix T5304R label printer attached directly to the IGEL's serial port. It worked well with the printer in it's native PGL mode, and also emulating a Zebra printer. We then successfully repeated the tests with the printer attached over the Ethernet using TCP/IP.


For more information, a demo, or to order BarTender or IGEL thin clients, contact your IMCORP sales representative.
June 1, 2010
Shift to Wireless


Be operational in as little as one business day. With Shift to Wireless©, what used to be a multi-step process spread over days or weeks can now be done in as little as one business day. Shorten the time to value for the implementation and deployment of new or updated wireless data collection applications without sacrificing quality, security or cost.


By counseling in advance with your technical and maintenance staffs, we can arrive on site with the necessary parts to allow your installers to trail our site survey professionals so that your wireless backbone can be installed in their wake. Then, before we leave, we can configure and initialize your new wireless infrastructure in accordance with your company’s network and security policies.


And, best of all, there’s no extra charge for this service beyond our normal service and hardware costs. Give us a call or send us an e-mail. See if Shift to Wireless can work for your organization.
January 3, 2011
The Value of a VAR


One of the mantra often repeated in the high tech procurement process is "you can always do better when you work directly with the manufacturer". In fact, we have even encountered some folks who deem dealing direct a sacred right as well as ratification of their special corporate stature.


Having been the National Sales Manager for a major manufacturer, and now a VAR/Integrator for over 21 years, I feel reasonably well prepared to present a counter argument. Therefore, here are some of the potential benefits of dealing with the VAR/Integrator.


A Better Overall Solution:

When a manufacturer's sales representative presents a proposal, the most you can reasonably expect is that his or her efforts represent the best possible solution to your needs using his or her equipment. When a VAR/Systems Integrator (VSI)'s sales representative presents a proposal, the most you can reasonably expect is that his or her efforts represent the best possible solution to your needs, period. A competent VSI concentrates first on understanding your objectives, works with you to translate those objectives into product requirements and then uses his or her company's resources to identify those products which best meet your needs. And, if they're doing their job well, will also balance the incremental benefits of minor product differences with the potential loss of manageability that comes with adding additional vendors to the product mix. In short, the VSI's proposal should look very much like what you would have come up with if you had the time and resources to scour the marketplace yourself.


Simplified Vendor Management:

We recently received a PO from an end user for the hardware, software and services associated with a data collection project. Although the purchase order encompassed offerings from ten manufacturers and service providers, our end user had to look to only one source. We took on the responsibility of coordinating and tracking deliveries with all the parties involved. We were also able to accommodate the end user's needs for invoices that were easily processed by their accounting system, something that would have been virtually impossible had there been ten separate billing entities to deal with.


Lower Administrative Costs

The IT buyer for a Fortune 50 company recently told me that an internal study determined that it cost his company $150 in administrative costs to generate a purchase order. That being the case, in the example just cited our end user saved at least $1,350. by issuing just one PO versus ten. That doesn't include the savings associated with processing just one invoice or the savings in personnel time that result from having a single place to call and a single purchase order to track.


Lower Installation Costs

In addition to providing an optimized solution that wouldn't be possible with a single manufacturer's equipment, an integrator knows how to make the components work together, makes sure cables and connectors match, firmware and software prerequisites are met, and helps the end user to avoid learning how to make things work "the hard way", thereby reducing the cost of installation and shortening the "Time to Value".


In summary, although the fact that a manufacturer wants to work with you directly may be flattering, it's just not necessarily the best thing for your company.
December 1, 2010
Zero Touch Desktop Deployments a Reality with IGEL


Just think how great it would be to be able to ship a thin client direct to an end user, have them plug it in and have it come up fully configured with all the location/user specific security and application settings it needs to be fully operational. Imagine all this, but without the need for on-site IT involvement.


Think of the time you’d save, the increase in productivity, and the savings in travel and shipping costs. People have been talking about it for years, and it is available now from IGEL, one of the industry’s largest and most respected manufacturers of thin desktop appliances and remote management software.


Want to know more, see a demo or get a price quote? Just contact us, and we’d be glad to help.
August 13, 2008
Installation of Southern Orthopedic Specialists Wireless Data Communications Network


Marietta, GA - IMCORP, Inc. announced installation of a Wireless Data Communications Network for Southern Orthopedic Specialists (SOS), a multi-office medical practice in Atlanta, Georgia. The Imcorp network is the final piece of a new EMR (electronic medical records) system that includes tablet PCs and a web-based Medical Practice Management SaaS solution.


The project anticipates HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) compliance, providing three levels of health data security for five practice locations in the Atlanta area. The SOS EMR system is improving the accuracy of transcriptions while reducing the administrative burden of managing paper forms.


The secure wireless network installed by IMCORP, Inc. is completely transparent to practice personnel. Doctors and staff carry wireless mobile tablet PCs that function just like their old desktops, except information is exchanged on the spot.


"Going wireless gave us more flexibility, eliminating the need for hardwired PCs in every room, not to mention having to design a patient-friendly work area to accommodate them," said SOS Network Administrator Howard Hirth.
August 21, 2007
Completion of VASCOR Ltd Wi-Fi Communication for Auto Distribution Site


IMCORP, Inc. announces the completion of a Wi-Fi data communications project for the VASCOR, Ltd.’s Montgomery, Alabama auto distribution site. The 100 acre former racetrack facility is temporarily home to some 8,000 newly manufactured automobiles on a typical day. The site is a major distribution and accessorizing point in the 3PL (third party logistics) company’s automobile supply chain that includes over 70 such operations throughout the US, Canada, and Mexico.


The data communications problem: virtually non-existent public cellular service. The IMCORP solution: a Wi-Fi network that took advantage of a just-released, innovative, and highly cost-effective, all-in-one dual radio access point/bridge housed in a weather proof enclosure that doubles as a directional antenna. The solution not only met all of VASCOR’s requirements for throughput, and security (featuring AES data encrypted bridge links and support for VASCOR’s existing wireless security policy between handheld data terminals and corporate server), but was delivered at a cost far below other alternatives that IMCORP and VASCOR explored.


The project was completed within nine days of on-site time and has not only satisfied VASCOR’s objectives for secure, real time data visibility, but also demonstrated a payback in regained worker productivity within one year.


Challenges at the outset of the project included the site’s signal-trapping bowl topography that prevented use of omni-directional antennae and terrestrial obstructions that prevented line-of-sight point-to-point links. Power sources were also scarce. In addition to its normal responsibilities, IMCORP managed the installation of the supporting physical and electrical infrastructure. The strength of the resulting physical network was tested when a storm destroyed billboards surrounding the facility and damaged parked vehicles while the wireless equipment remained functional.


The IMCORP installation included a review of satellite imagery and three pre- and post-installation site surveys. A special Wi-Fi network infrastructure design included five (5) strategically positioned antenna towers, each with an IEEE 802.11a, 54Mbps directional bridge link, and 802.11g client communications integrated into a single NEMA enclosure. The single unit bridge antenna saved valuable installation time while eliminating the complexities of combining several components as well as the signal loss that results from un-needed cabling and connection points. The Wi-Fi network is standards compliant and data collection terminal-neutral. It currently supports a population of Motorola (formerly Symbol) MC9094 multi-mode, and LXE MX6 Wi-Fi handheld computers.


Citing the benefits of working with an independent professional in the logistics industry, Lee Jones, VASCOR Ltd. VP, Information Technology notes “In developing our supply chain strategy over the years we’ve continued to ride the technology wave to the benefit of both our customers and our own profitability. By consistently recommending, installing and servicing the most cost-effective logistics solutions, IMCORP has become a truly valued partner in the growth of our supply chain from 22 distribution points in the US to where we are today.”


IMCORP, Inc. (www.imcorpinc.com) is an independent VAR/System Integrator that specializes in providing hardware-neutral input, output and connectivity solutions to corporate users of Information Technology. Their solutions typically include all of the services, hardware and customer support likely to be called for in a logistics solution, from bar code printers, handheld data terminals, network servers and scanners to Wi-Fi site network installations.