Cardinal Health improved scanning performance and accuracy, and reduced hardware costs by integrating Scandit’s barcode scanner SDK into their mobile order entry application.

Cardinal Health is pleased with how much better, faster, and easier order entry has become for its customers since the launch of the Scandit-powered Order Express app. Glowing customer testimonials are a testament to overall process improvement.
Brendan Gardner, Product/Market Manager – Mobile, Cardinal Health

Challenge

Improve product ordering process for pharmacy customers

Cardinal Health is a leading healthcare services company headquartered in Dublin, Ohio. The company specializes in wholesale distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical products, serving more than 100,000 locations including pharmacies, hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical laboratories, and physician offices. They employ 36,000 people worldwide, providing medical products to over 75% of hospitals in the US.

Cardinal Health’s pharmacy distribution division caters to the needs of hospitals and pharmacies, enabling online ordering via their Order Express portal for various types of pharmacy products (including prescription and over-the-counter medications). Cardinal Health used to provide their pharmacy customers with an embedded laser or LED scan engine device, to help facilitate and ease the pharmacy product ordering process, through decoding of a wide range of barcodes. 

These devices had scan accuracy rates of around 70 percent, which prompted the company to look at alternatives that would, in turn, help lower costs and minimize errors for customers. Cardinal tried leasing purpose-built scanner hardware to their customers, but then decided to test a more cost-efficient option with consumer device apps. They tested native scanning functionality on consumer devices and found those to be severely lacking in speed and overall scan performance. 

Solution

Replace dedicated devices with Scandit’s barcode scanner enabled Order Express app

Cardinal Health then tested Scandit’s Barcode Scanner SDK along with some others, and found Scandit’s solution best-suited for their requirements in terms of accuracy, speed, and ease of use. The company launched their Order Express app (on iOS and Android devices), built by a third-party vendor but now managed by Cardinal’s internal IT team. 

With over 2,300 downloads and approximately 1,500 active users at the time of launch, the company continues to encourage their customers to use BYOD (bring your own devices) smart devices to download the free Order Express app.

Results

Simplified order entry process delivers accuracy and cost-savings

The Scandit-enabled Order Express app has eased the overall order entry process, with scan accuracy now standing at more than 95 percent. This app works offline and has the ability to be completely disconnected. 

Cardinal’s intends for their customers to use the app as a building tool (adding products to shopping carts) and then using the desktop website to place the final order. While the company is experiencing challenges in getting their large customer base to consider using their own devices for the order entry process, they have received extremely positive feedback and glowing testimonials from those who have.

Cardinal Health has seen cost savings from its move to a Scandit-powered app when compared to their investments in purpose-built barcode scanners. The company is pleased with the app’s scan performance and ability to decode a wide range of barcode symbologies—everything from linear to 2D. Cardinal Health is especially happy with Scandit’s responsiveness to feedback and new feature requirements and updates to continually improve overall performance. The company sees their relationship with Scandit expanding with new software versions, features, and updates.

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