The guide
Guide to batch and serial number tracking
Whether required by law, by your customers or simply by prudence, traceability protects your SME on the day a product causes trouble. Here is how to choose between batches and serial numbers, manage expiry dates and prepare a recall before you need one.
Batch and serial number tracking: what is the difference?
A batch groups units produced or received together, under the same conditions: a batch of adhesive, a pallet of flour, a run of paint. It is tracked in quantity, and all units of a batch share the same origin and the same expiry date. A serial number identifies one single unit: a machine, a device, a power tool.
The choice depends on risk and value. Consumables and perishables are tracked by batch; durable, warrantied or repaired goods are tracked by serial number. The same SME often needs both. In Numezis, the tracking mode is chosen per item: none, by batch, by batch with expiry, or by serial number. Receipts, picking, transfers and stocktakes adapt automatically to the chosen mode, with no separate screen for tracked items.
Is traceability mandatory for a Swiss SME?
For some sectors, yes. Swiss food legislation requires businesses to be able to say who supplied their products and to whom they delivered them, one step upstream and one downstream. Medical devices, chemicals and cosmetics have their own traceability and recall requirements. Industrial customers, finally, often write traceability into their purchasing terms.
Even without an obligation, traceability reduces the cost of an incident: without it, a defect reported by a supplier forces you to recall a whole period's production; with it, only the customers who received the batch concerned are contacted. It also supports after-sales service, warranty management by serial number and the fight against abusive returns. Check the precise requirements for your sector with your trade association.
How does the FEFO method work in a warehouse?
FEFO stands for first expired, first out. Unlike FIFO, which ships what came in first, FEFO ships what expires first, even if that batch arrived later. It is the basic rule for food, cosmetics, chemicals, adhesives or anything with a shelf life.
To work, FEFO needs three things: an expiry date recorded for each batch at receipt, a pick list that proposes the right batch and its location, and a check at the moment of scanning. Numezis brings all three together. Batches nearing their date are flagged at 30, 60 or 90 days depending on your setup, with the quantity likely to remain unsold at the current sales pace. You can then launch a sales promotion or a return to the supplier while there is still time.
How do you organise a product recall quickly?
An effective recall is prepared before the incident. You must be able to answer four questions in minutes: which batches are concerned, how many units remain in stock and where, which customers were delivered, with what quantities and on what dates, and how to reach them.
With Numezis, the search starts from the batch. Remaining stock is blocked in one step across all warehouses, which prevents any further delivery. The list of customers delivered comes out with delivery notes, invoices and contacts. The agent can draft a personalised recall message for each customer, in French, German or Italian, which you review before sending. Returns that come in afterwards are linked to the original batch and go through quality control. The whole episode stays documented, which eases discussions with the supplier, the insurer and cantonal authorities.
How do you track serial numbers for after-sales service?
For a device or a machine, the serial number is the key to all after-sales service: sale date, customer, warranty period, past repairs, replaced parts. Without tracking from receipt onwards, this information has to be rebuilt from invoices and memories, and the warranty gets argued about instead of checked.
In Numezis, the serial number is entered or scanned on receipt, then on delivery: it is therefore linked to the customer, the invoice and the sale date. When the device comes back, the customer return finds its record, shows whether the warranty is still running and attaches the repair to the same number. A number can exist only once in stock, which rules out duplicates and typing errors. Your technicians find the complete history of a unit simply by asking the agent.