As the current economic climate continues to place added pressure on retailers to reduce costs and streamline operational efficiencies, stationary POS scanners are quickly becoming one of the centers of convergence amongst POS peripheral equipment. Currently, retailers across the globe are in search of solutions that will allow them to optimize counter-space, while improving productivity and consumer throughput. As far as stationary scanner suppliers are concerned, the next-generation product offerings are appropriately positioned to do just that.
"The convergence of complementary technologies continues to be one of the most significant issues affecting the stationary POS scanner market," cited Rory Gardner, Research Analyst for VDC Research. "Over the past few years, we have witnessed a drastic improvement in the level of collaboration occurring between stationary POS scanner suppliers and other retail automation equipment manufacturers, especially electronic article surveillance (EAS) suppliers. Working together, these two communities have successfully created simplified and efficient in-counter solutions capable of performing several core tasks (i.e., scanning bar codes and deactivating EAS tags) simultaneously."
As a vital component of many POS solutions, especially self-service alternatives (i.e., kiosks, self-checkout), advancements in stationary scanner functionality are driving demand in this product segment. POS hardware suppliers are continuously enhancing and refining their products, providing increased functionality while reducing the physical dimensions of their systems. The integration of EAS deactivators and weigh scales with stationary POS scanners is one example. The need to integrate these devices at the point of sale without increasing the footprint of the POS system is driving the need for collaborative new product development among suppliers of these solutions to combat shrink. Product shrink continues to plague retailers costing the market upwards of $50 billion dollars each year. The next-generation stationary scanners are being designed to address current and emerging shrink scenarios:
o Switching bar codes or using fake bar codes to reduce costs;
o Scanning inexpensive items and placing expensive items on the conveyor belt; and
o Placing smaller items within larger ones.
o Integrating weighing scales with advanced systems of checks and balances to ensure product identification and pricing;
o Integration of EAS deactivators into scanning solutions; and
The global market for stationary POS scanners is poised to experience stable growth over the next five years," stated Gardner. "Growth will continue to be driven by several factors including new product enhancements and announcements that are more aligned with consistently changing enterprise end-user requirements and preferences."
These issues and more are explored in depth in VDC's most recent retail automation publication, Volume 8: Stationary POS Bar Code Scanners. This report provides detailed global forecasts for those stationary scanners used across a retail location (with emphasis on the point of sale) and provides meaningful insights regarding the suppliers, resellers, and users of these devices.
In 2007, the global market for stationary POS scanners approached $400 million. VDC anticipates that revenue shipments for stationary POS scanners will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.3% approaching $517 million by 2012.
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