If you’re in a decision-making role in your company in this economic environment, you are looking for ways to conserve cash,  and reduce (or eliminate) capital purchases that aren’t absolutely mandatory.  Everyone is being forced to revisit and review operations, supply contracts, headcount — you name it — in order to be as strong as possible as we head into what everyone seems to think will be, at best, a bad recessionary period.  I even heard today that the NFL, the most successful sports league ever, is laying of 10% plus of their staff because of concerns that the weak economy will negatively impact season ticket sales next year.

So the concern for the NFL and for a lot of managers is “how can I proactively position my business to survive, and prosper if possible, through the downturn?” 

At Lexicon, we suggest that you take steps to make your existing automatic data capture equipment infrastructure, your barcode scanners and portable data terminals, continue to work for you.  For example, if you have already invested in and paid for robust, durable devices from Symbol (PDT 6846, MC9060, etc.) or Intermec (T2425, T2435, T2455), then make plans to keep them maintained and productively deployed.  Unless you’ve got a new business requirement that makes these devices (or similar ones) obsolete, we can help you keep them running reliably — for years to come, in some cases.  We can put annual or multi-year maintenance contracts in place for these types of devices that will keep your operation supported — and provide value and savings to your company in the process.

In this business climate, keeping the proven, “paid for” barcode equipment productive will really stretch your ROI - and makes too much sense to ignore.

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With the economic news seeming to grow ever more dire by the day (we read about the “latest” bailout of Citigroup only this morning), it’s only human of us to long for something positive on the financial front.  But the bad news just seems to keep coming for banks and financial companies, mortgage lenders and residential builders, and now with a recession looming and consumers cutting back on purchases, retailers of all stripes have really been stung.  Circuit City’s bankruptcy filing is only one of the latest on a long list of retail store closings, cutbacks, and liquidations so far in 2008.

And though the inner-child in us may wish for only a “happily-ever-after” economy, the grizzled, history-reading capitalist in our nature is aware that the business cycle is as real (and as certain) as the changing of the seasons - even if economists, those “dismal scientists”, are somewhat less adept at predicting its comings and goings.  The expansion and contraction of economic activity (and the success or failure of firms) has been a standard feature of free market capitilism and presumably, also of what we’ve got now:  a “mostly free market with a government-provided, taxpayer-funded safety net for some big guys on Wall Street”.  

So, while the Treasury Department will use the public purse to save some, the great majority of economic participants will have to claw back the old-fashioned way:  we’ll learn from our mistakes BECAUSE we’ll have to pay for them.   I mean, does anyone really think that speculators who bought credit default swaps from AIG (and who were subsequently bailed out when U.S. taxpayers stepped up with a cool $150 billion) really learned any of the valuable lessons that a free market can impart to those who take foolish financial risks?  I don’t think so; it takes an “actual loss” to make one respect that old hypothetical “risk of loss”.

Anyway, for all those non-bailoutees among us, here’s some upside.  There is a lot of good product on (or coming to) the market and it will be value-priced.  Myriad retail shutterings and failures will lead to substantial amounts of quality equipment, tools, fixtures, hardware, and the like coming available.  The next few weeks and months could be an ideal time to look for bargains in many areas, and thus presents an opportunity for well-capitilized organizations to actually reduce their budgeted capital outlay, while nonetheless positioning to expand market share.    Well, if you can’t join ‘em (in the bailout), then beat ‘em . . . with basic, sound, risk-respecting execution.  Don’t overpay.

In our corner of the economy, legacy barcode and enterprise mobility equipment from Symbol Technologies, Intermec, Zebra, Handheld Products, etc., we’ve found some of the most popular barcode and rf portable data terminals, barcode scanners, and printers and we’ve got them if you need them.  And we’ve got a great repair and maintenance capability to keep your existing barcode and enterprise mobility infrastructure runnning strong.  After all, good old American quality, value, & frugality never go out of style.

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Dave Wiedman, our chief operating officer and Scott Robinson, who leads our Sales Operations function will both be at the Impact Now event that ScanSource is hosting in Orlando next week.   If you are a solution provider or value-added-reseller, you are certainly familiar with ScanSource.  However, if you are a barcode equipment user, you may never have heard of this great company who is a “value-added” distributor of data capture and enterprise mobility equipment (among other specialty technologies).  ScanSource really serves the solution provider community, along with equipment manufacturers, in order to efficiently empower the rapid delivery of equipment through the supply chain to equipment user organizations.  They do a great job with logistics, inventory, order management, supplying credit, technical support, marketing support, education, training, etc. 

The Impact Now show is an opportunity for a lot of networking, educational opportunities, and some fun, as well, for much of the vendor community in the barcode & related businesses.

We know that many of our reseller partners will be there.  Give Scott or Dave a call if you want to sit down and discuss any business or service opportunities while you’re in Orlando.  Scott has come up with a promotional opportunity that you’ll want to take advantage of (50% off a flat rate repair) — or just get them to buy you a beer — they’re mostly always up for that . . .

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Alright, this is a big day at Lexicon because we’re now “live” with the release of the latest version of Repair Engine™, our online Service Management System. You can read more details in the press release.

The big news in this release is the addition of Asset Management for barcode and enterprise mobility equipment. Symbol scanners & pdts, Zebra printers, Intermec data collectors or printers — you name it — if it’s enterprise mobility gear (and probably even if it’s not — more on that idea in the future), you’ll be able to use Repair Engine™ to manage and control these small, but critically important and expensive assets better than ever, in any enterprise - big or small.

And we’ve integrated the new asset management features with a more powerful, more intuitive Return Authorization module that will make getting an “R.A.” easier and faster than ever.

AND, another really cool feature is that if we’ve repaired a device for you in the last 5 years, an asset management record for that device is already in Repair Engine™, along with all the repair history for that Symbol PDT6846 or Intermec T2425, etc., — and you can access it with a single click.

OH, and this also a first for us: check out the new screencasts below for Repair Engine™’s Asset Management and RA Generation. These are great tools that make it easier and faster than ever to learn how to interact with powerful Repair Engine™ features — tons better than a “help file”.

There’s more to tell and there’s still more new Repair Engine™ features coming this year — so stay tuned and please let us have your feedback after you’ve checked out Asset Management in Repair Engine™.

Repair Engine™ Asset Management Screencast

Repair Engine™ Generate RA Screencast

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Down Market Hits 1-YR Mark With No End in Sight; Retailers Report Weak September Sales; Paulson Says Global Markets Remain Strained — Just another day in this “sub-prime” credit crisis of a paradise that we’ve apparently been lurching toward since (what turned out to be) the market’s high-water mark of October 9, 2007.  But since most of us couldn’t predict the future, we didn’t realize that the stock market and maybe the economy, certainly some sectors of it, were about to head south.   A USA Today article on the stock market action at the time conveyed a sunny and widely-held outlook:  “Market’s Run Could Keep Going For a While”.  What a difference a year makes.  Now we clearly see how wrong most experts (and most of us non-experts) were about the market and the economy a year ago. NOW the common, widely-held outlook regarding our economic prospects is anything but sunny. 

So what are the lessons, the takeaways?  For what they’re worth, here’s what we’re thinking about and doing at Lexicon.  We remember that:

1)  Business will go on.  Our barcode equipment repair customers and our Symbol, Intermec and Zebra used equipment customers will continue to ship products to retailers and consumers.  Doctors and hospitals will continue to treat patients.  Groceries and gasoline will keep right on selling.  Volume will probably slow down some, maybe more than a little, but the economy has always been cyclical (and always will be).  In time, the negative cycle will turn positive.  We don’t know when that will be — and neither do the financial pundits on CNBC.  Politicians have even less of a clue.  In the meantime, we’ll just keep working.

2)  And we’ll focus on what we can control.  It’s prudent to pay attention to expenses, inventory, and A/R all the time — now it may be critical.  Be conservative with personal spending.  Diversify in terms of your investments, customer concentration, market segments, and the banks you do business with.  This crisis, if that’s what it turns out to be, should serve as the last lesson a reasonably intelligent person will ever need on the risks of excessive borrowing.  Owing to human nature, many just won’t the get the word.

3)  If you’re managing the fundamentals soundly (see number 2), then don’t obsess on the panic-tinged, breathlessly and continuously-delivered  “news”(or speculation) delivered around the clock via cable tv and the internet.  Realize that the crisis has been good for CNBC’s ratings – advertising revenues have no doubt risen right along with their ratings!  This trouble hasn’t been trouble at all for that business.

4)  And that’s the final lesson we’ll take away:  even in tough economic times, some companies and individuals will thrive.  Remember at the end of the day, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is basically the sum of all “sales” that occur in the economy.  Even when GDP starts to turn negative as a result of the widely anticipated recession about to befall us (and GDP hasn’t been negative yet, by the way) some - even many - companies will grow sales and profits, gain market share, continue to innovate to better serve customers, etc.

While the sunny forecasts of October 2007 have been replaced by ones of impending doom, we take comfort in knowing that these latest predictions are likely wrong, too.  Let’s just keep working.

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Hey, it still works!

Since we’re in the business of providing repair and maintenance for Symbol, Intermec and Zebra equipment and we also sell a fair amount of popular legacy barcode equipment (which is a nice way of saying we sell a lot of used Symbol, used Intermec, and used Zebra gear), we’re in a position to observe trends in current and future barcode & mobility equipment usage.  Over the last sixty days or so, we’ve seen an upswing in customer inquiries and orders for devices like the Zebra 140xiIII, the Intermec T2425, and the Symbol SPT 1846.  These particular models are just representative examples — frankly demand in general for maintenance of barcode/mobility gear that is 5 years + old and older is more robust than we’ve seen in the last 6 - 12 months.

Given the daily headlines about the “crisis du jour” in the U.S. economy, enterprises of all types are looking for creative ways to conserve cash and still meet operational objectives.  We believe that many more decision makers, of late, are recognizing the benefit and value of maintaining an existing installed base of Symbol MC9060 or Intermec CK61 (or similar PDTs) terminals and are instead, putting off a major technology refresh until the business cycle turns.  Maintaining a proven technology platform that is still supporting enterprise business objectives — even one that is 5, 7 or 10 years old — by adding quality used/refurbished equipment to that platform as needed, can make good business sense and save big dollars for your company — at a time when we could be staring down a major recession.

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Last week we posted about when it can make really good sense to rely on an onsite maintenance contract to support Zebra barcode printers or similar Intermec, Datamax or Sato models.  Our recommendation, perhaps surprisingly to some, tilted heavily (sorry) in favor of making the support strategy call based on the weight of the label printer.

Fortunately, for the sake of economy (which means there is an opportunity for you to save your organization some maintenance budget money here) the reverse is also true:  it makes practical and economic sense to use a return-to-depot strategy for Intermec, Datamax, or Zebra printers in approximately the 55 lbs. and under weight category.

Why It Matters.  First there are a ton of barcode label printers in this size class in use today, so there is a lot of money to potentially be saved.  There are a host of examples of field-proven label printers of this type from Zebra (Zebra S600, Zebra S400), Intermec (the Intermec 3400, Intermec 4420), and many more that do a great job in industrial, distribution, retail and healthcare environments.   Most of these devices are smaller, so-called “table-top” barcode label printers and will range in weight anywhere from about 17lbs on the light end up to that mid-50lb threshold on the heavy end.  These printers, when properly packed (wrapped in bubble wrap about three times around, placed in a properly-sized, heavy duty corrugated box) can ship via UPS or Fedex ground service, safely and reliably. 

The advantage to the user organization in this case is the savings and (and usually, the repair quality).  Depot repair is much less expensive to provide than on-site service for the repair or maintenance company.  There are obviously no travel costs (tech travel time, vehicles, fuel) and the really big thing is that in a repair center, you get great economies of scale.  Over time, the depot-based technician will have at least a four times advantage in productivity (on average) compared to the “road warrior” tech.  The on-site printer maintenance customer pays the freight — the depot repair printer customer reaps the savings benefit.

Also, because the repair center (when it’s well run) is the home of all the spare parts, all the standard repair diagnostics and repair processes, etc., repair and maintenance quality should be more reliably and consistently delivered on average, when compared to on-site. 

Finally, what makes a label printer “return-to-depot” service strategy really viable for this class of Zebra or Intermec printer is that spare printers are so affordable.  Typically, for only a few hundred dollars, high quality used and refurbished spare units are widely available in the market so that your operation doesn’t suffer downtime.

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“This has gotta be an easy call.  I can either call a technician to come on-site to repair my Zebra 170xiIII (or my Intermec 3400, or whatever) or I’ll bubble-wrap it in a double-walled corrugated box and ship it to a repair depot . . .”  Piece-of-cake.

Maybe.  We frequently get asked by clients who use our barcode scanners and portable data terminals repair center to support their (Symbol scanner or Intermec scanner and printer devices, typically) about whether we can also repair their barcode label printers (usually Zebra printer or Intermec printer; sometimes Datamax printer or Sato printer).  The short answer is usually “yes”, but frankly these label-printing sub-systems often make for more complicated service strategy decisions than many users realize . . . so this multi-part post will offer some keys to consider as an OPS Team creates a support plan.

Number One and don’t laugh:  How much do my label printers weigh?  Two common sense rules of thumb apply here, and though Zebra label printers aren’t sold by the pound, the more expensive the Zebra, the heavier Zebra. And the real kicker, the heavier the Zebra (or Intermec or Sato) the trickier and more trouble it is to safely ship.

Take special precautions when you’re shipping heavy (70 lbs plus or minus and up), wide-web (more than 6 inches wide) thermal/thermal transfer label printers; unless you ship in the original container with all the original packing, then box the printer, wrap it/pad it well in in about three layers of bubble-wrap (no polystyerene peanuts, please!), strap it to a pallet, and ship it for repair service via an LTL carrier.  Specify that it be returned to you in the same manner.  If you ignore this guideline and ship via a parcel carrier ground service, be prepared for carrier damage due to the weight/dimensions/design of the printer in combination with inadequate packaging.

The bottom line with these wide-web workhorse printers like the Zebra 220xiIII, or a similar model from Intermec, Datamax, or Sato is you should consider an onsite printer maintenance contract just because they don’t travel well. We’re not minimizing other important issues like the nature of the application (i.e., can I afford to be without the printer for hours, days or more, etc.), the availability of print capacity on other printers or lines in your shop, or the presence of on-site spares - but from our experience and that of many Lexicon customers, don’t miss this simple truth — it will save you heartache.

Note that our general recommendation in this case was for an onsite maintenance contract for heavy, wide-web thermal label printers.  Change any of these variables and we’ve got other, and we believe better ideas to consider for Zebra printer or Intermec printer maintenance and repair support.

Check Part Two of this post for some of those thoughts next week.

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We’re starting to hear from various people in the barcode equipment business that the Intermec T2425, aka the Intermec “Trakker” or “Antares” portable barcode scanner will no longer be serviced by the manufacturer after the end of this year.  We have also heard that this “service end-of-life” will extend to some other members of the same Intermec product family including the Intermec T2410, Intermec T2415, Intermec T2420, Intermec T2455, Intermec T2480, Intermec T2485, and Intermec T2486.

These handheld, fixed, and truck-mount barcode data collectors have in many ways set the standard for the durable, mobile enterprise-quality terminals of today like the Symbol Technologies (now Motorola) MC9090 or MC9060.  Many of the Intermec T2425 RF terminals or T2420 Batch terminals and the T2455 truck-mounts placed into service more than ten years ago are still providing reliable, faithful service today.  These terminals were (and still are) true industrial-strength specimens - no wonder they’re still ticking.  Intermec’s design has stood the test of time.

Lexicon intends to continue to repair, service, and maintain these great Intermec barcode scanning terminals.

HOWEVER, like we said at the top of this post — we’ve only heard this info informally.  If anyone has additional facts, details or corrections, please comment (there’s a link at the beginning and end of the post) and we’ll get the post updated.  Thanks in advance.

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We recently posted on the United States Tennis Association’s (USTA) use of the Symbol SPT1846 handheld terminal. Just a quick note on the USTA, which is a not-for-profit volunteer-run organization whose mission is to promote the sport of tennis throughout America and at every level, not just for the pros. These folks are passionate about the game of tennis and are committed through their work across our nation to spread its benefits (good health, fitness, as well as positive social and community-building outlets for life).

In Lexicon’s own hometown of Conyers, Georgia, we’ve had a dedicated group of community-minded people put on a great tennis-themed fundraiser each August for the last three years as our own little prelude to the US Open – the Kim Atkins Memorial Tennis Tournament.  The event raises awareness about and benefits the fight against breast cancer. We (along with many others in town) have been privileged to support this great charity event, which raised close to $40,000 this year toward the purchase of a mobile mammography unit, and which was recognized by the USTA, as a 2007 USTA Charity Event of the Year. Well done to Benny and Jean and all your great volunteers!

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