Leading Marks can help you with traceability from the shop floor where machine to machine communication and data-collection is crucial to mobilizing reporting from the warehouse or in the field.

Traceability is common for collection, look-up and sharing of data. Whether it is Asset Tracking, EH&S Inspections, QA/QC Controls, Work-in-process, Assembly builds, or Field Service reporting industry is driving the need for traceability from cradle to grave. Why is traceability important for your organization?

What’s the value-add with the potential of data collected through mobile apps or plant-floor software packages?

• Auto-trigger of reports and work orders based on data collected
• Quicker reporting
• Query and filter of data
• Minimize down-time on the production line or field operation
• Trends & variations evaluation

Looking Ahead to 2021 we are excited about the solutions our vendor partners are providing to manufacturing operations, construction projects and food processing requirements. Whether your needs are for marking or the related equipment Leading Marks is prepared to help evaluate your applications with sample marks with the various technologies.

We strive to better understand your requirements based on the industry specifications, product and/or substrates to be marked, the environment it is subject to, available budget and other expectations that apply.

To better acquaint you to the product solutions and the limited ability to visit during these continued uncharted times, we are preparing a schedule of webinars with our vendors. If you want to be alerted to the workshops, please email sales@leadingmarks.com.

Exciting things are in store in 2021 as Leading Marks continues to Identify Solutions to suit your needs.Happy New Year!

Lets meet up at PittChem Day on Tuesday, October 2, 2018.  This event, held at Heinz Field, is organized by the Chemical Association of Pittsburgh. The Chemical Association of Pittsburgh is a non-profit corporation formed to foster and promote interest and awareness in the local chemical industry and to encourage wider acquaintance among those engaged in the allied industries.

​The day long event will feature a number of speakers and some great networking opportunities
As a sponsor, Leading Marks  will be displaying solutions for marking solutions including:

• BePop Printers
  • CPM-100G3U
  • CPM-200GU
• EBS Ink Jet Print Systems
  • EBS 250
  • EBS 260
  • EBS 6500

For additional details visit the PittChem Day website.

JADCO Manufacturing, Inc. in Harmony , PA, is a leading global provider of wear resistant steel products to combat impact and abrasion challenges for over 40 years. Founded in August of 1980,  JADCO offers an unparalleled array of proprietary products to optimize operations.

by Laurie Barcaskey

Stamps & Stencils, Portable Devices, and In-Line Systems apply marks directly onto product without disturbing the product integrity and eliminates the need to apply labels where adhesive may be a deterrent. Electronic devices provide versatility of changing marking detail quickly and automatically.

Varying ink options provide contrast to the substrate or when needed to define a process designation. Whether your need is in the manufacturing or packaging process, or at the final stage of shipping, current marking devices improve the process where industrial markers and stencils were  common tools of the trade.

• Stamps & Stencils most commonly used in hand stamping operations with rubber stamps, self-inking stamps or rubber rib-type & rollers. Oil-board or mylar stencils as pre-cut made-to-order or made in-house with manual or computerized machines are inexpensive options for larger text requirements or when applying shipping details.
• Portable Devices improve the legibility of manual ink stamping operations, as well as enable the marking details to include bar codes for improved traceability.
• In-Line Systems are most commonly used for automated lines where traceable identification such as batch, heat or product numbers need to span the length of a product, or application of the mark is done while the product travels through the production line.

by Laurie Barcaskey

Well, we’ve all heard it and hate the saying “but we’ve always done it that way.” Yes, I’m included in saying it, hearing it and resisting the thoughts of change at times but it’s inevitable and best if we embrace it and help make it happen.

Selling marking solutions is no different. I hear reasons like “I’m using Brand XYZ and they have always delivered”, or “it works for our needs right now.” Or even, "Well, it’s interesting but I’m not sure it fits our operation."  And of course, "We’ve always done it this way."

Consider hand stamps for direct-part marking. Yes, it might be a caveman way of applying the mark and has its place in production. Let me ask a couple simple questions though.

• When was your last injury from a foul-blow of the hammer striking the stamp?
• How much did that workman’s comp claim cost?
• What about the legibility of the mark if it was more than one character — alignment, consistent depth of impression?
  

Well maybe a quick solution is to add a hand stamp holder to make it a safer marking process. Maybe it’s time to consider adding a holder/type arrangement or dot peen marking system that would provide you more consistency not to mention versatility.

Then again, maybe it’s using paint markers or stencils & ink rollers to apply text to beams, cartons or preformed concrete components. What a mess and waste of material. Talk about penmanship – what’s it going to be like in the future now that they don’t teach cursive writing in schools? Some of the newest technologies for applying ink marks are handheld, Bluetooth or computer-driven and are more environmentally friendly – not to mention economical in the long run by eliminating material waste or one-time use of stencils.

Well it’s cumbersome to rotate wheels around one character at a time – especially when you might have to make 50 to 100 of the same legend. Using proven, traditional components I’ve been able to take a new solution to an industry that wasn’t even looking.

Every mark you make that the customer sees is reflective of your corporate image. Branding is a topic for another day. Yes, you can get inexpensive solutions on the internet, especially for commodity items like labels and rubber stamps. But do you get the service and support that offers alternatives with your company’s interest in mind? Oh I forgot, you’ve always worked with that company and don’t want to make the change.

There’s that word again – change. I might not be the one you have worked with for years on your marking solutions. You might not have even been aware that there are experienced consultants out there to help offer suggestions for you to consider. Well there is, and I’m happy to schedule an appointment to review your marking process to see how it might be improved. Identifying solutions and improving processes are what I do. What is it you have been resisting to change?

by Laurie Barcaskey

When people ask me what I do for a living and I say “I sell industrial identification equipment and solutions for traceability” it’s not unusual to get a blank look and immediately asked “What’s that?”

As soon as I mention VIN identification and car recalls they get it and we talk further about the many places that marking is around us.

Now that more and more parts are marked with the addition of bar codes, organizations often struggle with how to capture and use the data. Smart devices and bar code scanners that interface with databases allow quicker capture of the data.

As industry requires marking more often, I must admit that marking and traceability of products has never been more exciting.

How can I help you mark your part and capture the details?

Are your handwritten marks with paint markers causing you problems? What about the mess of stencils & ink rollers? Look no more!

The EBS Handjet 250 is a portable ink marking tool that has Bluetooth capabilities with 10-message and 30-message libraries. Legibility is achieved with a 5×5, 7×5 or 16×10 character matrix and allows the imprint of alpha-numeric characters, logos, and barcodes – including date codes, serialization and more.

It signals a new era in portable, hand-held ink-jet coding, replacing antiquated hand coders such as stencil machines, stamps and roll coders, which are laborious and expensive in use and problematic with ink management.

Weighing in at just under two pounds – including its on-board rechargeable battery and ink cartridge – the HandJet EBS-250 is the ultimate in lightweight, compact coding.

With its patented print technology, the unit improves and economizes ink management to make traditional manual coding methods like stencil marking, hand stamps and roll coders virtually obsolete.

The EBS Handjet 250 allows marking on wood, cardboard, metal (painted & bare surfaces), plastics. This includes flat and round surfaces. Accessories for stabilization on curved surfaces available.

By using solvent-based inks in an array of colors, the HandJet EBS-250 provides fast, clean printing on a variety of corrugated materials, in addition to metal, glass and plastic substrates. The unit’s high-volume ink-jet cartridge efficiently provides up to 100,000 characters with a dot matrix of 7×5.

Available inks include Acetone, Ethonol and MEK. Color options include however limited by ink chemistry in some cases: Black, Blue, Red, White, Yellow and Clear (UV readable).

This light-weight tool provides flexibility of marking with inks without the mess and provides consistent in mark appearances that allow for traceability.

The HandJet EBS-250 uses a simple MicrosoftTM Windows®-based program to format and transmit messages that are easily created on a personal computer. Messages can consist of alphanumerics and logos from Windows® fonts and symbols, as well as diacritical characters.