Objective 1

 

Introduction of barcodes to facilitate customer service at the Odolanów Branch

The project involved the implementation of a barcode-based system for labelling and recording single and bundled bottles filled with gaseous helium at the PGNiG Odolanów Branch.

Each year, over 40,000 bottles and bundles of bottles are filled with five different types of gaseous helium and delivered to nearly 300 customers. At times, customers have raised complaints concerning the quantity or quality of the helium, in which case the Branch has to review their requests. However, it is often difficult to gather the crucial details about the subject of the complaint, such as the delivery date, type of helium and the condition of the tank used.

To this end, PGNiG decided to introduce thermal transfer printing in the form of barcodes. This technology allows it to label filled tanks (bottles and bundles) with individual IDs (barcodes) and update helium shipment databases with the details of each operation related to a given tank. System terminals are portable, which means that files and databases related to each tank can be created or updated with data on relevant transactions from any location. The database, which can be accessed by the operator, contains information on the cleanliness of the tank, its next scheduled attestation and any previous technical problems. This system enables control of the tank and its proper preparation for filling, while facilitating fast retrieval of comprehensive data concerning previous operations in which it was involved. In this way, complaints can be processed on the basis of data stored in the system and the customer does not have to be involved in the process of gathering and transferring information.