Automating GTIN & Serial Verification for Saudi Arabia's Drug Serialization Program

Saudi Arabia's Drug Serialization Requirements

Saudi Arabia operates one of the most comprehensive pharmaceutical serialization programs in the world. Every prescription medicine product sold in the Kingdom must carry a unique 2D DataMatrix barcode encoding GS1 serialization data. Importers, distributors, and dispensers are required to verify product authenticity and report logistics events to the national drug registry.

This creates a significant operational burden at pharmaceutical warehouse receiving docks. Every inbound shipment must be verified — unit by unit — before goods can be accepted and put into inventory.

The Scale of the Problem

A typical pharmaceutical distributor in Riyadh or Jeddah might receive:

• 50–150 cartons per receiving session
• 24–48 serialized units per carton
• 2–6 receiving sessions per day

With handheld scanners, a single receiving session can take 2–4 hours. That bottleneck delays downstream operations: put-away, order picking, and dispatch.

Camera-Based Batch Scanning

The solution deployed by leading Saudi distributors is a fixed-mount camera station at each receiving dock.

Physical setup — Any Android smartphone with a 12MP+ camera (Samsung Galaxy A series), a heavy-duty articulated desk clamp arm (SAR 50–150 locally), and an optional LED panel for consistent lighting.

Workflow — Operator opens a purchase order on handheld terminal → presses Trigger Scan → mounted phone captures the open carton → BarqScanner decodes all DataMatrix codes simultaneously → parsed GTIN, Lot, Expiry, Serial returns to WMS in under 5 seconds → WMS flags discrepancies.

GS1 DataMatrix: The Technical Standard

The GS1 DataMatrix barcode encodes multiple data fields using Application Identifiers (AI):

(01) 06253110742539   GTIN-14
(17) 260501            Expiry: May 2026
(10) 6399              Lot Number
(21) ENHAVC6TDMF3      Serial Number

All four fields are mandatory for serialized medicine. BarqScanner parses all AI fields automatically from every DataMatrix in the captured image.

Verification and Exception Handling

The camera station doesn't just decode — it verifies:

• Duplicate serials: If a serial appears twice or has been previously received, it is flagged immediately
• Expired products: Expiry dates are parsed and checked against the system date
• Recalled products: GTINs on the active recall list trigger a QUARANTINE status
• Quantity mismatch: If the carton has fewer units than the purchase order, the session cannot be confirmed until resolved

Connecting to Your Systems

REST API — POST to api.barqscanner.com/v1/scan with your image. Returns an array of decoded GS1 objects — one per barcode. Your WMS validates them against the purchase order and triggers the registry submission.

Keyboard Wedge — Install the BarqScanner Windows agent on the dock PC. Decoded barcodes are typed directly into any focused application field — ideal for legacy WMS systems with no API.

EPCIS Events for National Registry Submission

At session confirmation, BarqScanner auto-generates an EPCIS 2.0 XML document containing all scanned serials as a receiving event, which your integration layer forwards to the national drug registry API.

• bizStep: receiving
• bizLocation: Your warehouse GLN
• epcList: All verified serial numbers
• eventTime and eventTimeZoneOffset

Deployment Timeline

Most distributors are fully operational within 2–3 weeks. The 14-day free trial (100 evaluation scans) lets you test with your actual product cartons before committing.

Getting Started

Visit barqscanner.com to start a free trial, or contact our solutions team for a guided implementation for multi-dock deployments.