Working with an organic product like wood has its advantages as well as its drawbacks. One of the benefits wood has to offer is its inherently unique nature. No two boards are exactly alike when it comes to their appearance or their internal or external characteristics. Though this one-of-a-kind quality tends to give lumber a sense of beauty and mystique, it can also make it challenging to categorize, sort, and store lumber boards quickly and accurately. That’s one of the reasons why tech-savvy people in the lumber industry have come up with some ingenious methods for increasing efficiency in these crucial areas.
One of those technological wonders is a specialized laser scanner known as the Vision Tally System that can rapidly scan and analyze a pack of wood. This amazing machine can count the exact number of pieces of lumber contained in the pack. It can also detail the thickness, width, and length of the individual boards much faster than a person could ever hope to do so. The results are truly exciting. By eliminating a normally slow, burdensome part of the inventory process, manufacturers or lumber yards who choose to implement this technology can significantly decrease the amount of time and effort it takes to accurately fill customer orders. That saving of time and human effort will ultimately translate into lowered costs for consumers.
How Does Vision Tally Work?
Vision Tally uses laser scanners. With a couple of high powered cameras, this ingeniously designed device inputs data from video images it records from both ends of a pack of wood simultaneously. It takes only two minutes for the Vision Tally to obtain the necessary data to make its tabulations and measurements. Once the information is gathered in Vision Tally’s cameras, the system is set up to generate detailed reports. These reports are set up to be integrated with a company’s inventory software. Using this high-tech system, lumber dealers will have a fast, accurate, and efficient way to keep track of all their inventory.
Compared to traditional ways lumber dealers have kept track of their inventory in the past, the Vision Tally route is a far superior option. Human error inevitably tends to creep in when it comes to tallying up and recording measurements for different packs of lumber. Then there’s the additional wear and tear that happens when packs are opened up and sifted through. With the advancement of modern laser scanning technology, there’s simply no need for lumber dealers to go to the extra time, expense, and hassle of picking through countless packs of lumber by hand or with conventional machinery.
What About the Cost?
Obviously, there will be some initial cost involved in acquiring and implementing a Vision Tally System. Each lumber supplier will have to run the numbers to determine if they’re prepared to foot the bill to install this technologically advanced equipment into their facility. There will also probably be some expense attached to routine maintenance and repairs of the Vision Tally scanning equipment. This initial cost as well as the ongoing maintenance cost, however, should be greatly offset by the amount of time, energy, and effort involved in keeping track of measurements and inventory the old fashioned way.
In our next article, we’ll take a look at some more advantages of the Vision Tally system.
