Retailers across world are accelerating their move to connected 2D barcodes and the window to get ahead of it is now. Markem-Imaje says the manufacturers treating this as a routine compliance update are about to miss the bigger story: the infrastructure behind the new code could be the most valuable operational upgrade on the table this year.
Across the industry, the same notice is landing on operations managers' desks: a retailer packaging compliance team specifying GS1 Digital Link QR codes, with a deadline attached. The instinctive response of most manufacturers would be to patch the artwork, get the code on the pack and tick the box. Markem-Imaje's advice is that this instinct is not providing any competitive advantage or let alone, making the best out of this QR code implementation. The manufacturers pulling ahead aren't the ones reacting fastest to the notice. Instead, are the ones who are using it to look at the full picture.
What's actually changing and why the rush
GS1 Digital Link readiness comes down to three capabilities working as one system, and right now most manufacturers have at best one of them in place.
- Data control: Markem-Imaje's CoLOS® software connects directly to ERP systems, turning work orders into precise print instructions automatically at changeover — removing manual input and the risk of the wrong code on the wrong pack.
- Print technology matched to the substrate: Thermal Transfer for flexible film, continuous inkjet for bottles and cartons, laser for high-volume permanent marking, and more.
- Inline vision inspection: Scaling from basic readability checks to full packaging intelligence that decodes QR content, checks it against the production manifest, and confirms the right product is in the right pack.
What sets Markem-Imaje apart is that it's the only place manufacturers need to go for all three. Data software, print hardware and vision inspection are usually sourced from three different vendors, integrated by the manufacturer, and supported by three different helplines when something goes wrong. Markem-Imaje delivers all three as one connected system, from one supplier, with one point of accountability which matters considerably when a retailer deadline is fixed.
The hidden cost most manufacturers haven't spotted yet
Here's what's easy to miss in the rush to comply. A manufacturer producing the same product for two retailers: same formulation, different pack counts and branding. This is often running two separate packaging SKUs. Two artworks, two inventory pools, two changeovers every time the line switches. With CoLOS® driving inline variable printing, that collapses to one substrate, one artwork, and data that updates automatically with the work order. Higher purchasing volumes, lower inventory, no more variant imbalance.
It's the same story across export markets. Different labeling rules per jurisdiction — alcohol formats, health warnings, regulatory symbols — usually mean a separate label SKU per destination. Late-stage customization through Markem-Imaje's inline capability removes that altogether: one substrate, printed to spec at the line based on the destination in the work order. Manufacturers sitting on this kind of complexity right now are the ones with the most to gain.
The code on pack is more than compliance
A GS1 Digital Link QR code is a live URL. For a retailer, it returns product data for shelf compliance. For a consumer it can return a product story, a sustainability report, a loyalty reward, or a market-specific promotion. Everything from the same code, without touching the packaging.
Because CoLOS® pulls data directly from the ERP, the same source that drives the print instruction also populates the digital experience behind the scan. What the product is and what the consumer sees are the same thing, automatically.
For brand protection, each unit or lot is serialized at the line, and that data is passed to a cloud solution so a consumer or inspector can verify the product anywhere in the world. And because every scan is geo-located, product diversion is detectable the moment it happens.
VIDEO: How CoLOS® creates a GS1 Digital Link QR code
Don't make this comparison mistake
The most common reason manufacturers talk themselves out of acting now is that they compare the investment to the wrong number.
- Benchmark inline variable printing against a basic pre-printed compliance fix, and the return looks marginal.
- Benchmark it against what SKU proliferation is already costing: working capital tied up in packaging inventory, procurement complexity, changeover time, artwork management overhead, and the case flips.
These costs are happening today. They're just not on anyone's radar as packaging costs. Markem-Imaje's readiness assessments are built to surface exactly that, fast, and before the next retailer deadline forces a rushed decision.
The window is open now and here's what happens if you wait
Markem-Imaje supports rollouts from a single pilot line to a full factory network, at whatever pace a business needs. Because data, print, and inspection come from one integrated solution rather than three bolted-together systems, that rollout moves faster and carries less integration risk than a fragmented approach.
The decisions made on the first line: data architecture, software foundations, verification standards, set the limits on everything that comes after.
- Get them right now, while there's still room to plan, and the GS1 Digital Link mandate becomes the trigger for a much bigger operational upgrade.
- Get them wrong, and the bill comes due fast: a second retailer mandate months from now, a new export market requirement, or a competitor that quietly rationalized thirty SKUs while you were still running fifty.
Emergency retrofits cost more than planned investment. Delisting costs more than both. The manufacturers moving on this now are the ones setting the pace and everyone else will be reacting to it.
Key Takeaways
- Retailer mandates for GS1 Digital Link are accelerating. Manufacturers treating this as a routine update are already behind.
- Markem-Imaje is the only vendor delivering data, print and inspection as one end-to-end solution. One supplier, one point of accountability.
- CoLOS® connects ERP work orders directly to line-level print instructions, removing manual changeover risk.
- Inline variable printing collapses multi-SKU complexity into one substrate, a cost most manufacturers haven't spotted yet.
- The ROI case is strongest measured against SKU proliferation costs, not a basic compliance fix, and the window to plan for it is now.
