Food traceability simplified with BalloonOne system

The latest version of the Accellos warehouse management system (WMS) from BalloonOne simplifies traceability for food processors and manufacturers. The system provides full visibility of raw material coming into the food warehouse, monitors the movement of finished goods, and tracks products going through the production and packaging area. This removes the difficulty and cost of managing time consuming paper documentation.

The automatic identification of barcodes on raw materials and finished products ensures a complete electronic trail that can be interrogated instantly whenever required. Saving both time and money through efficiency improvements, the WMS interfaces easily with existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and order management systems - such as SAP Business One, sharing the same database and eliminating the need for data duplication.

Accellos provides comprehensive traceability for food companies using UK sourced raw material and for business that import food stuffs from overseas. Using the system to zone the warehouse allows companies to see exactly what is happening in each area of the building, eliminating information black holes.

Although UK Food Standard Agency rules govern all food companies, no two food warehouses are alike. The WMS has been developed for maximum flexibility to meet these different, individual requirements and is, therefore, very flexible and scaleable. It provides batch and serial number traceability, so that any and all items can be identified quickly back to their source without the need to search through paper records. This makes it a good fit for SME businesses in the food industry; 68 per cent of the Food and Drink Federation membership are such companies.

With more than 1000 configuration switches, the WMS can provide a wealth of functionality without modifying the software. It uses an XML interface to communicate real-time information from the warehouse to the back office system. Features include multi-bin, advanced allocation and barcode auto ID using wireless scanners for accuracy, speed and no unnecessary paperwork.