Avoiding Duplicate Data Entry

Duplicate data entry wastes time and leads to mistakes. It can take a number of forms:

1. Writing information down on a paper form and then subsequently keyboarding the data into a computer.

2. Retyping, copying, or cut-and-pasting, data from one computer application into another.

3. Entering data into an Excel spread-sheet and then manually transferring the data to another application.

When you add up the amount of time wasted in duplicate data entry in a typical industrial organization, you often find that the total time is equivalent to several full-time employees. This cost, often amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, is a direct burden on the company that can be eliminated through the use of better technology.

There is also the cost in terms of mistakes that have to be corrected, especially with pencil and paper data collection. When one employee writes down a 10 digit part number and another employee types it into the computer, there are bound to be mistakes. Typically the people making the mistakes are the least paid and the IT staff and managers who have to find and correct the resultant problems are the most highly paid.

Finally, there is the cost in terms of time delays. There is typically a 24 hour delay from someone writing data down on a paper form and it being entered into a computer. This means that information is a day old and can result in poor management decisions or a lot of wasted management time trying to find out the actual status of their inventory and operations.

Some of the technologies that BellHawk Systems uses to eliminate duplicate data entry are:

1. Replacing paper and pencil data collection with real-time barcode scanning.

2. Using mobile data collection devices for point-of action data capture and validation.

3. Implementing interfaces to automatically transfer data between applications and databases.

4. Automatically tracking equipment, people, receipts and shipments using RFID.

5. Implementing web interfaces to legacy systems to simplify data entry.

BellHawk Systems has made an investment of well over a million dollars in software modules and tools to automate the capture and automated transfer of data. The integration tools are available for free and the data capture modules are available at a modest cost to clients who use BellHawk Systems’ services to implement solutions to their duplicate data entry problems. 

For a free consultation on how to avoid duplicate data entry, please call (508)-865-8070 and dial “1” for client services or send an Email to ClientServices@BellHawk.com.