pharmacode imagesPharmaceutical Binary Code or pharmacode was developed my Laetus GMBH, a German company founded in 1974. Think of the Laetus Pharmacode as the original error prevention solution for the pharmaceutical packaging, except…

…pharmacode is technically not really a barcode, at least not as we think of barcodes. While it does encode numerical data sort of like a UPC does, it does not have a start stop pattern, and thus pharmacode is meant to be scanned in one direction only. Scanning it left to right will get a different sequence of numbers than scanning it right to left. As its official name implies, pharmacode data is binary rather than decimal. The minimum barcode is 2 bars (number 3) and the maximum is 16 (number 131070).

The intended purpose of pharmacode is to ensure that the pharmaceutical product in a package is the correct product, along with the correct supporting documentation. It is a packing control system designed to prevent packing errors. It is also a very robust symbol, designed to survive printing errors and subsequent, post-production damage.

Because of its presence in the healthcare industry, there is some confusion about whether pharmacode will be replaced by the UDI system now in implementation in the US and elsewhere. In fact pharmacode will be unaffected by the UDI initiative since the UDI system deals with medical devices and pharmacode deals only with pharmaceutical products.

Pharmacode can be printed in a wide assortment of colors, unlike barcodes intended to be read with laser or laser emulating light sources. This is possible because pharmacode is scanned with special Laetus white light scanners. This makes pharmacode a very practical format for being printed on packaging or documents that may or may not involve a black ink layer.BW Pharmacode

Verifiers are available for pharmacode from Axicon, who offers the only white light verifier on the market. Webscan also has pharmacode verifying capability but only in laser emulating 660nm red light.

Pharmacode generators are available online as well as through GS1, for companies needing to produce pharmacode symbols for their products.

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3db Barcode Testimonial

Our company (an advanced software company) recently worked with Barcode Test to source a barcode verifier.  Not long ago, we were awarded a contract requiring products to be marked with IUIDs in accordance with MIL-STD-130.  For that standard, marking labels must pass a verification test that evaluates many variables (contrast, size, clarity, syntax, modularity, and more).  After a thorough search, we reduced our options to a select few.

In our search for a verifier, the Axicon line caught our attention.  Barcode Test is our regional reseller for this product.   From the beginning, they were very prompt with their responses.  We ended up having a quick call with John Nachtrieb to go over our needs.  John was extremely easy to work with and provided a lot of great information.  He was very knowledgeable on the matter and was quick to offer up a demo unit (free of charge).

Upon receiving the demo verifier and testing it, a few questions arose.  John joined a call with us and answered all our questions.  Ultimately, the Axicon verifier wasn’t the best fit for us, so we shipped the demo back.  John was completely understanding.  A few weeks later, Barcode Test reached back out with another possible verifier for us to try.  While they didn’t sell that brand, they just wanted to help us find the best option that met our needs. They even offered to send us the unit that they have in-house to see if it worked to our liking. 

Barcode Test is truly a great company to work with.  Their service and willingness to help the customer are far beyond what you typically get from other companies.  They are experts in barcode quality assurance and seem willing to help in any way they can (even if that means not getting a sale and recommending another option that better fits the customer’s needs).  If anyone is in the market for barcode verification/scanning services or products, I would highly recommend giving Barcode Test a call.

Regards,

Production Manager