Product category:
Printing materials, equipment and services
News Release from: Zebra Technologies | Subject: QL220 IP-addressable mobile printers
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 05 November 2003
Wireless technology cuts costs by up to
75%
Believed to be the first IP-addressable mobile printers available on the market, the products will increase mobility and communications of warehouse staff.
Zebra Technologies has introduced the first IP-addressable mobile printers available on the market Manufacturers and warehouse managers will be able to equip staff with the first mobile label and receipt printer of its size that can be linked wirelessly to the corporate IT network - directly and in real time
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 31 Jan 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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Designed to withstand the rigors of manufacturing, warehousing and distribution environments, a mobile printer produces 4in labels at print speeds of up to 4in/sec.
The new QL220 is being introduced by Zebra Technologies, a global leader in delivering on-demand printing solutions for business improvement and forms part of the QL series of printers.
Whilst it's QL320 3-inch and QL420 4-inch counterparts are typically used for printing larger labels for picking or identification applications in the warehouse, the smaller 2-inch QL220 is ideal for address label or receipt printing.
QL mobile printers offer users the convenience of printing labels and receipts at the point of application, while at the same time allowing access to up-to-date information through wireless (802.11b) connectivity to the company's network.
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For manufacturers and warehouse managers, this means that workers no longer have to walk back and forth to collect labels from a fixed print station.
This increases productivity, and reduces the risk of workers picking up someone else's labels and wrongly labelling products.
To give an example of the cost efficiencies that are possible, take a warehouse with 25 shifts per week (see note 1 below).
If 10 products need to be labelled every hour, and with a fixed printer, he/she takes one minute to print and collect each label, the time spent collecting labels over the whole year adds up to 1,625 hours.
In comparison, using a Zebra mobile printer, it only takes a quarter of a minute to generate each label, so the label collection time is only 406 hours - a reduction of 75 per cent.
If both these figures are multiplied by an average labour cost per hour of GBP 10 (EUR 14), using a Zebra mobile printer generates a saving of GBP 12,187 (EUR 17,066).
There are many areas in the manufacturing, warehousing and distribution process where the QL220 can be used to eliminate the non-productive time spent moving back and forth to collect labels from a fixed printer.
For example: * Goods inwards - product identification label, cross-dock label, query label.
* Picking - replenishment label, bulk pick label, picking ticket, re-pack label.
* Packing - delivery address label, pallet manifest label, carrier label.
* Delivery - receipt label, mis-route label, re-direct label.
* Collection - receipt label, returns label.
* Inventory - bin/rack label, repairs item identification label, stock check label.
The QL220 LAN version is fully IP-addressable and can be accessed and managed as any fixed station printer on the network.
The printer features its own web page that can be browsed remotely, via a wired or wireless network connection, and allows the user to view general status, communication and battery information.
If the user is experiencing technical difficulties, instead of sending out an engineer, IT administrators can browse the web page to diagnose problems from wherever they are based.
This is both time and cost efficient.
Similarly, more advanced radio frequency settings, encryption and security information can be viewed and updated by the administrator.
As security is an important issue where wireless networks are concerned, the Zebra QL220, as with the rest of the QL printer range, can support the commonly used encryption and authentication wireless security protocols * WEP (wired equivalent privacy), LEAP and Kerberos.
Other features of the QL220 include: * Ergonomic design, compact size (181.6mm/7.15 inches by 90.7mm/3.37 inches), lightweight (.59kg/1.3lbs with battery), yet rugged, durable, and easy to use.
* Modular design that enables printer connectivity to be upgraded as needs and wireless technologies change; connectivity options include 802.11b and Bluetooth.
* An optional LCD panel to carry custom or application specific screens giving the user real time information such as for example battery life left or network connection status.
* Lightweight lithium ion rechargeable battery.
Now, with the full complement of advanced QL printers available to cover a broad range of mobile printing applications for the warehouse and logistics sector, Zebra is phasing out its Encore series of mobile printers.
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