One of Creative Force’s missions is to keep your sample management easy by not having to manually manage your samples via various Excel files! Scanning the samples into Creative Force makes the samples’ data visible and easy to access by anyone on your team.
First and foremost, the user role account must have permission to ‘Edit’ the samples to be able to scan them. They should also have ‘Edit’ permission on the ‘Global Scan Flow’ if they want to edit and/or save a new scan flow.
In Gamma, you will find the ‘Scan’ button in multiple places.
Under Logistics
Clicking Scan here, will lead you to the Unlimited scan scope automatically.
On Products, Jobs and Samples page
Clicking ‘Scan’ here, you will be able to select the scanning scope.
Scanning scope
After clicking ‘Scan’, the Scan box will appear. There are two options:
Job: you will do the check-in for specific jobs. Then, Creative Force will know how many samples to expect and will show you the exact number of samples to scan minimizing the chances that you miss an item.
Unlimited: you won't check the samples against the requirements of a particular job. Any time that you scan a sample, you are telling Creative Force to execute certain actions as per your setup.
Scan screen
With the ‘Actions’ button, you can ‘Print sample label’ for a barcode or ‘Export CSV’ of the sample lists.
Scan flow groups
The scan flow is categorized into three different groups: Check-in, Check-out and Other which include Change location and Assign to wardrobe. Each of these actions is called a ‘Core Step’, each scan flow can only contain one core step or no core step at all.
Scan flow settings and alerts
Click the settings button next to your scan flows drop-down box. You can set up different settings and alerts for each scan group.
With Check-in flows, you can also select the default sample type when creating new samples from already checked-in samples.
On all of the available flows, you can set up the Scan Behavior when the alert box appears.
Ignore Alert: Scanning the next sample dismisses the current alert and moves on.
Primary Action: The user must interact with the alert before moving on.
Disable Scan Interaction: Scanning is disabled, the user must use the mouse or keyboard to interact with the alert and proceed.
Scan flows
Under ‘Flow’ you’ll find a drop-down menu where you can select the scan flow. The default flow cannot be deleted only duplicated. By choosing a flow, you will see the default order of the steps within that flow. You can then change the step order, add or remove any steps, and save a new flow for yourself or share it with other team members, and they can eventually edit that flow for all other users.
For example, if you select the default ‘Check in with data review’, you will see the following step order: Scan sample -> Review data -> Add to container -> Check in. You can always add more steps or remove the steps you don’t need and change this step order. Then, save a new custom flow. Each step can only be added once to a scan flow.
Note:
Only the user who creates a custom flow can delete it.
The custom flow can be duplicated and renamed at any time.
Each scan flow can only have one core step or no core step at all (core steps are explained further below in this article).
You can also change the action by clicking on the drop-down menu and replacing it. Clicking on the bell icon will activate the sound alert.
Scan flow actions
Check-in (core step): you can check in the samples to let your team know that the samples are available in your studio and they are ready to be photographed.
Check-out (core step): once a sample is no longer required by production (i.e. ready to go back to storage or to be boxed up and sent back to the supplier of the sample), it needs to be checked out. When selecting locations, Creative Force will only show checked-out locations to ensure that you aren't accidentally checking items out to check-in locations.
Change location (core step): change the samples’ location to track them more easily
Assign to wardrobe (core step): assign the samples to the wardrobe to use them as props on the set
Review data: By clicking the setting icon, you are able to set which data fields you would like to review when scanning the samples. With this action, you can add additional information that wasn’t provided when the product was created, or you can check if the data is correct or missing.
Update property: This will help you to quickly apply the same value to samples in bulk. Every time a sample is scanned, the value will be added to that sample and you don’t have to review the data. You can add multiple properties or remove the ones you don’t need.
Add to container: This step can be auto-executed by crossing the eye icon to activate it. By selecting a container before scanning in the samples and activating the automatic step execution, the scanned sample will be added to the selected container without asking for your confirmation every time. If the container is in a check-in location, the samples will be checked in. If the container is in a check-out location, the samples will be checked out.
Print sample label: This step can be auto-executed by crossing the eye icon to activate it. In order to ‘print sample label’ automatically, make sure to have direct printing connected to Gamma or use our Triad app to help with the printer connection.
Scan flow actions dialog
After you have decided on your scan flow, you can start scanning in samples. If your scan flow contains an auto-executed action, you will not be able to go back to this step while scanning, the system will bring you back to the previous manual step.
Note:
Clicking ‘previous’ does not undo the previous action, it only brings you back to see the settings more easily.
When there is only one blue button available, you can either click on it directly or simply hit Enter on your keyboard to select it.
The counter here counts the successful scans not the number of different barcode scans.