Example workflow Manufacturing

How a Workshop Can Send Kanban Reorders by Scan and Email

Scan the card of every empty bin, check the part name in the pop-up, and send the list to your supplier with one tap. No typing part numbers, no phone orders.

This page shows how DataScan can be set up for this task. It is an illustration, not a report about a specific customer. All codes and values on it are examples.

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Factory worker scanning the barcode on an empty parts bin to add it to a replenishment list

The problem

A two-bin kanban system is simple on the shop floor: when a bin is empty, its card goes back to purchasing and the supplier refills it. The weak point is the step in between. Cards collect in a box, someone types part numbers into an email or reads them out on the phone, and an M6 turns into an M8 on the way.

Suppliers who refill bins on site or by consignment have the same problem from the other side. They need a clean list of which bins are empty, with their own part numbers, not a photo of a handwritten note.

If every bin already carries a barcode label, the list can be built by scanning the labels. The phone shows the part name for each scan, so a wrong card is noticed at the bin, and the finished list goes to the supplier as a file attached to an email.

The setup

Continuous Scan suits bins that are always refilled with one standard quantity. Single Value Scan suits bins where you send a quantity with each card. A lookup list of your bins adds the part name to the pop-up and to the file.

Scan mode Continuous Scan, or Single Value Scan when each line carries a quantity
Lookup data A CSV of your bins, imported in Lookup Scan: bin barcode first, then part name, supplier part number, standard refill quantity
Enable Cross-Reference On, so each scan shows the part name (the second column of the CSV) for a moment
Cross-reference with Lookup Data On, so the part name, supplier part number and refill quantity are added to every row of the export
Prevent Duplicate Scans On, so a card held in front of the camera twice in a row is recorded once
Email (SMTP) Your own mail server with TLS/SSL, To Email set to your supplier's order address
Subject Line and Email Signature Your customer number in the subject, your company address and contact in the signature
Delete Data After Export On, so the next round starts with an empty list once the email has been sent

Step by step

  1. Import the bin list Export your bin master from your ERP or spreadsheet as a comma-separated CSV with the bin barcode in the first column, and import it in Lookup Scan on the phone used for the round.
  2. Walk the line and scan empty bins Open Continuous Scan and scan the label or kanban card of each empty bin. The pop-up shows the part name, so you confirm every card at the bin.
  3. Check the list The scan list shows every bin you captured. A line scanned by mistake is removed with a swipe.
  4. Send it Tap Send Email. The file goes through your own mail server to your supplier, with your customer number in the subject.
  5. The supplier works from the file The supplier opens the CSV or Excel file and sees bin, part name, part number and refill quantity for every empty bin.

What you get out

With cross-reference turned on, each empty bin becomes one row with your lookup columns after the timestamp:

Column Example value What it holds
Barcode BIN-0471 The bin or kanban card label
Timestamp 2026-03-14 07:15 When the bin was scanned
Part Name Socket head screw M8x30 From your bin list
Supplier Part No SHCS-M8-30-A2 From your bin list
Refill Qty 200 From your bin list

The last three columns carry the header names of your own CSV. In Single Value Scan, a Quantity column follows the barcode.

Fits well if…

  • Your bins or kanban cards carry a barcode, or you can label them.
  • Your supplier accepts orders as an email with a CSV or Excel attachment.
  • You want the part name on screen while scanning, from a bin list you already have.
  • One person collects empty-bin cards on a regular round.

Send Your Next Reorder by Scan

Import your bin list, scan a few empty bins, and email the file to yourself first. The free trial includes every feature.

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