Antares Vision Group — a technological partner in the digitalization of products and supply chains for companies and institutions, and leader in traceability and inspection for quality control — has implemented the initial phase of a robust traceability solution for cosmeceutical skin care solutions provider Episciences, Inc.

Addressing needs for enhanced supply chain visibility amid substantial gray market diversion challenges, the sophisticated track & trace system was developed by ACSIS, a business unit of Antares Vision Group providing seamless serialization solutions.

Based in Boise, Idaho, Episciences is the exclusive manufacturer and distributor of the Epionce skin care line. Sold through the medical channel, clinically proven Epionce products are produced in an FDA-inspected drug manufacturing facility. Notably, Epionce skin care was the first skin care line on the market to be focused on the health of the skin barrier. Its products are sold throughout the United States, as well as internationally.

Given the high value, high-leverage nature of its products, Episciences found itself particularly susceptible to gray market diversion. In part due to its sheer product breadth — the company manufactures more than several dozen unique offerings — conventional serialization solutions struggled to provide an adequate end-to-end solution. Printability, coding recognition, and false rejects were particularly vexing issues.

The ACSIS Serialization Management solution manages, applies and captures serialization data at the unit, bundle, carton and pallet level, providing manufacturers with the data needed to achieve compliance with evolving government mandates and regulations around product traceability. In doing so, the solution provides seamless integration with enterprise systems such as ERP, MES and serialization repositories, as well as line-level equipment like vision technologies, printing components and packaging automation modules.

Along with robust serialization functionality, the Serialization Management solution can also capture user-defined product attributes at the point of serialization, yielding useful insights to help optimize various points along the value chain. Notably, ACSIS’ user-friendly architecture makes defining and changing data collection parameters efficient and intuitive.

At Episciences’ plant, ACSIS’ Serialization Management system operates on two packaging lines. Its software manages the vision systems, printers, and barcode readers necessary to verify and capture product serial numbers. The system is also the primary user interface for product selection and serialization verification data entry.

Especially important given its broad range of Epionce products, Episciences was able to integrate ACSIS’ Serialization Management system without the hassle and cost of modifying existing secondary packaging artwork or labeling procedures to prioritize barcode placement. This ability to retain its existing carton surface composition exemplifies the disruption-free nature of the overall system.

“The system ACSIS employed for our Epionce products is both highly customized and essentially turnkey, with bare minimum ramp-up and training required,” said Ron Hope, General Manager of Manufacturing & Distribution for Episciences, Inc. “Critically for a manufacturer with a diverse array of products, initiating new SKUs is a smooth process that doesn’t delay the inception of commercial-scale production.”

“The ACSIS solution is the foundation that Episciences is using to build a full end-to-end supply chain traceability platform,” said John DiPalo, Chief Strategy Officer at ACSIS. “By leveraging the complete ACSIS solution, Episciences can track product from packaging through distribution and across the extended supply chain.”