TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM IN SUPERMARKET GIANT

Information systems were used widely in shop and in the distribution of goods and one area in which their use is particular important is supermarket. Computer systems are used in a variety of ways in the modem, large supermarket, from stock control to maintaining temperatures in fridges and freezers. In this section, we will look more in more detail at these systems in one particular large supermarket, which is part of a national chain.

The supermarket uses several computers which are located in a room known as the system office and form the supermarkets own Local Area Network. These computers are used to control the stock and are connected to the checkouts. These are the ‘branch computers’. The computers are multi-functional, and each can access the data, which give the management a number of access points.

Admin and stock control staff now have access to hand held computers, SEC (Shelf Edge Computers). These are used for price change, creating stock pictures (information on stock totals) and for forecasting deliveries.

Like many companies, they have experimented with giving customers hand held scanners to enter their own shopping. The experiment has been discontinued due to huge stock losses, staff called them ‘Shop and Rob’ rather than ‘Shop and Go’. The company is currently looking at developing a better system to get round these problems.

Located at each checkout is an ELECTRONIC POINT OF SALE (EPOS) till. EPOS till comprises a keyboard, a digital display, a scanner which reads bar codes, a set of scales, a printer, a credit/debit card reader and a till drawer. Each till also has its own base to which all of above is attached. It is the base unit which is connected by cables to the branch computer in the supermarket’s system office.

Each product to be sold must have an identifying code number which is different from that of every other product. Different sizes of the same product even need different code numbers. These code numbers are printed onto the labels or packaging of the product in the form of bars codes.

The bar codes on products are read by the EPOS tills at the checkout. This is achieved by using a scanner, which sends out infra-red laser beams via a set of mirrors, enabling the bar code to be read at most angles. When an item is passed over the scanner, the black and white parts of the code are detected by laser, as the black parts reflect very little light whilst the white parts reflect most of the light. This is converted into electrical pulses which are sent along the cables to the branch computer. The branch computer then searches its stock file for the product matching the EAN number. When this record is located the price and description of the product is extracted and sent back to the EPOS till at the checkout which then shows this item and price on the digital display, prints them on a receipt and adds the price to the total. At the same time, the branch computer records that one of this item has been sold.  When a bar code has been correctly scanned, the scanner emits a bleep. If no such sound is made, the item can be passed over the scanner again until it has been correctly read. The keyboard used to enter codes of products that will not scan, for example reduced price items.  The scales at the EPOS till are also linked up to the branch computer. All loose fruits and vegetables are weighed at the checkout. Each product has a code number which, when typed in at the keyboard, gives the customer a description of the product on the receipt along with the weight and price of the purchase. The weight of the product also deducted from the stock file. As well as printing an itemised receipt, the printer attached to the EPOS till can also print the name of the supermarket, the date and the amount owing on cheques and debit/credit card vouchers. This lessens the chance of mistakes as well as minimising the amount of time a customer has to spend at the checkout.

Not every customer pays by cash or cheque though. Many now opt to pay by a debit card. In these cases, the costumer’s card is swiped through the card reader which reads the information (such as the account and the expiry date) held on the magnetic strip on the back of the card. The latest in store development has been the arrival of smart card readers at the EPOS. A debit card with a smart chip is placed in the reader and the costumer then enters their PIN to authorise the money being taken out of their account. This is more secure than signing a docket as it cannot be forged. This information then added to the details of how much the costumer has spend and, after checking that sufficient funds are present, used to transfer this amount from the costumer’s bank account to that of the supermarket’s. This process is called ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER and works even if the supermarket’s bank is different from that of the costumer.