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Sunrise 2005 13-digit UPC Barcode Information Page

To meet the need for improving commerce efficiency with the use of UPC codes, the Uniform Code Council has announced that by January 1, 2005 all U.S. and Canadian companies must be capable of scanning and processing EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols, in addition to 12-digit U.P.C. symbols, at point-of-sale. This 2005 Sunrise initiative allows U.S. and Canadian companies ample time to address all conversion issues.

2005 Sunrise:
Currently, only the United States and Canada do not mark their products with EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols. U.S.and Canadian manufacturers are mandated to update their12-digit UPC symbols with the new Sunrise 2005 standard of 13-digit UPC character system. Expanding to the 13-digit Sunrise standard will allow U.S. and Canadian companies to handle a wider range of products and meet the international standards for UPC use.

Importance of 2005 Sunrise:

  • With the exception of the U.S. and Canada, retail products from around the world are marked with EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols. To sell those products in the U.S. and Canada, manufacturers must re-label with a 12-digit UPC symbol. This creates additional expense and time to market issues. Expanding system capability to scan and process EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols, as well as UPC symbols will allow companies to handle a greater range of products in the future.
  • The number of products identified with EAN-8 and EAN-13 symbols will increase quickly after Jan. 2005. This is due to the fact that UCC company prefixes will no longer be issued to new companies based outside the United States and Canada. Therefore, these new companies will be marking their products with EAN-8 or EAN-13 symbols. In addition, some U.S. and Canadian companies will be assigned UCC company prefixes with lead digits of 10 to 13. These prefixes can only be used to create EAN-13 symbols, and not UPC symbols.

Who Will Be Effected by 2005 Sunrise:

  • Any company that currently uses or will use UPC codes for product identification and labeling.
  • Manufacturers, Printers, Graphic Artists and Advertising Firms, and Printers
  • Stores that scan UPC codes such as retailers, distributors, warehouses, etc.

What Needs to Be Done to Be Compliant:

Don't be fooled when someone suggests that you need new hardware to be Sunrise compliant. Many barcode scanners in use will work with the new standard. However, it does depend on what you are using and the current database structure under which a company is working. Many applications and databases in North America are designed to process and store on 12 digits, so even though your scanner might be compliant, your back-end systems are not. This could be a large problem all up and down the supply chain, as well as retail. To be fully Sunrise 2005 compliant, it is best that you actually contact a technical representative at Barcode4Less for a free evaluation of your systems to make sure they are compliant. The call and advice is free and could save you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. Call toll-free 1-888-926-8169.

GTIN Compliant:

GTIN is an umbrella term used to describe the entire family of data structures that identify trade items (products and services). GTINs consist of four data structures that are 8, 12, 13 and 14 digits in length. For example, the EAN-8, EAN-13, UPC, and RSS symbols on products all encode GTINs.

To be GTIN Compliant, a company must be 2005 Sunrise Compliant plus be able to process and store 14-digit GTINs.

Note: you should plan to be GTIN compliant soon, although it is not necessary to be fully GTIN compliant to be 2005 Sunrise compliant.

Recommendations:

  • Contact Barcode4Less to find out what your specific needs are to become Sunrise Compliant.
  • See also what is necessary to become GTIN compliant and what it takes to read RSS symbols for the future.
  • Do so soon. Not making these changes in a timely fashion can cause serious problems including:
    • The inability to share standardized information with trading partners
    • Additional product marking costs for trading partners and the consumer
    • Consumers will experience problems due to improper marking
    • Inefficiencies including delays shipping and market delays

Call toll-free 1-888-926-8169 for a free analysis of your compliance needs.

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