Nov/Dec 2005

If you're distributing 53 million newspapers and magazines a week, returns management is an intrinsic part of the job. That's the task WH Smith has to contend with. The volume of returned items it has to process amounts to 15 million a year. It has a separate division, The Returns Company, to handle this work.

The latest technology adopted by the organisation to smooth this process is an automated wireless data capture system. As operations development manager Andy Hobkirk explains: "We started looking for a handheld wireless solution that could scan the barcodes on the returns. It needed to be robust, with a range of over five metres, and to be able to cope with poor quality bar codes. It also had to be capable of over 8,000 scans in a shift without being recharged."

In the event, it didn't take the company long to find the solution. WH Smith was already using Dolphin mobile computers from Hand Held Products, so Andy looked at the company's other products.

The outcome: the company has opted for Hand Held's IT5620 cordless imagers, with the Hand Held's Adaptus imaging technology. Hobkirk says these give a much better read rate than a laser or CCD scanner, which has helped to boost productivity. "They are also very accurate and reliable. We have twelve people on a shift, continually scanning items, and by using the IT5620s, they can now scan at least 1,000 items per hour."