Why use colour-coded rack labels?

Rack labels that are both legible and easily recognisable are essential to the day-to-day operations of any warehouse. After all, you want your goods to be stored in the right place and delivered to the right customers. This process requires an efficient warehouse management system with matching software and well-designed barcode labels. If you are used to working with standardised yellow or white labels, colour-coded rack labels with corresponding colours on the beams of each pallet rack level offer several advantages to your warehouse operations.

ONE2ID color-coded warehouse labels supply chain

ONE2ID warehouse labels pallet labels order picking warehouse location signs

ONE2ID warehouse labels floor identification order pick labels

ONE2ID warehouse barcode labels stock count colours

Colour-coding on beams and uprights

Scanning the first crossbeam

Are pallets often put away anywhere but into their assigned places? Do your operators spend a lot of time searching for goods and having to fix order picking errors? If that’s the case, your warehouse operations will benefit from using multicolour labels on your crossbeams. The human brain detects colours more easily and quickly than it does the written word. By using colour-coded rack labels your operators are trained to recognise colours instead of having to actually read the information on the labels.

By colour coding your rack labels each single location is linked to a specific colour, which reduces the time it takes your forklift drivers to find the right location. They simply scan the barcode on the first crossbeam and using simple colour recognition, they put away the pallet at the right location. This coding system will reduce unnecessary strain, keep your operators alert as the day progresses and in turn less prone to making mistakes.

Combining bulk storage and picking areas

Are your primary picking locations replenished from bulk storage locations that are located directly above in the same pallet rack? Even then, you can still utilise colour-coding on your crossbeams to distinguish between the different locations. Our production team will design single-colour labels for the first beam to identify ground locations and picking locations at eye level. The multicolor labels with corresponding level colours can then be placed on the higher-located beams, thereby maintaining a good and clear overview of your location numbering both for your operators and within your warehouse software. It goes without saying, our team can also design and manufacture multi-color pick location labels for your individual pick racks.

VNA and stock count

If your daily operations include the use of man-up trucks, multi-coloured labels are the way to go. Our label designers will add a custom barcode (1D or 2D) to your colour-coded level labels which is directly linked to your warehouse software. This same code also comes in handy when it’s time for the annual stock count.

Rack tunnels

If your warehouse design has incorporated rack tunnels, or cross aisles, into the layout of your rack system, we will design custom labels for placement on the uprights instead of the crossbeams. Your operators will still be scanning the barcode on the first level, but the label, in most cases fit with a magnetic backing, will be placed on the upright instead. Please click on the image to view an example of combining regular pallet racking labels with magnetic labels on the uprights as well as our recommended placement for the upright labels.

Customer experience working with colour

All the advantages of working with colour-coded rack labels are listed on this page, but the best proof this system works is, of course, the day-to-day experience of one of our valued customers. At totaalBED, the warehouse operators have been working very succcessfully with multicolour rack labels for several years now. In the video below, both the director of operations and the warehouse manager explain why they chose colour-coded rack labels to begin with and what the main advantages are for them.

Standard designs colour-coded racking labels

ONE2ID Racking labels warehouse scannning 3 levels

ONE2ID Rack labels barcode scanning 4 levels

ONE2Id Colour-coded warehous labels 5 levels

ONE2ID Warehouse pallet racking label 6 levels

The benefits of colour-coded rack labels

1. WORK FASTER
The brain recognises colours instantly as opposed to alphanumeric information. If a pallet location is associated with a specific colour your operators will register it more quickly, retain the information more easily and work faster.

2. MORE ACCURACY
The brain registers bright contrasting colours in a flash. If a pallet location is identified by a bright colour, it is instantly recognisable to your operators, which will help them work with more accuracy and reduce the number of errors made when picking orders or moving pallets around.

3. SAFER WORK ENVIRONMENT
Recognising colours requires less brain capacity than decoding numbers and plain text. By working with colour-coded labels your operators will be less fatigued and stay more alert. Their alertness enhances a safer work environment.

4. SAVE MONEY
The use of colour-coded rack labels will reduce the number of picking and packing errors and thereby reduce the number of orders that need to be replaced or refunded. This money-saving system will guarantee you satisfied customers.

5. EASY SYSTEM
Our system of colour-coding is universally recognisable and easy to understand, making it suitable for foreign-language employees and temp workers alike. They need minimal instructions before they can start working and they are less prone to making mistakes.

ONE2ID multicolor warehouse rack labels barcode scanning

ONE2ID warehouse labels multicolor barcode labels order picking

Custom advice on colour-coded labels

If you want to save time and money, order your colour-coded rack labels at ONE2ID. We will guarantee you a label design that will enhance your work processes and to ensure faster scanning, our labels are finished with a light-absorbing matte laminate. Our system of colour-coding is a perfect addition to any 5S or lean working method.

We can offer advice on which colour will suit which level best, which is an important factor when you employ operators who suffer from being colour blind. You may be surprised to know that the use of multicolor rack labels is every bit as effective on people who experience colour blindness. They will obviously not see the actual colours the way most people do, but the noticeable contrast between the different colours allows them to distinguish between colours and thereby also recognise the specific colour assigned to a storage location.

Please contact one of our label advisors for tailor-made advice on the use of colour-coded rack labels. We can visit your workplace and offer a free assessment or you can give us a call to discuss your labelling needs.