New Technology Helps Streamline Product Tracking Efforts

By Mike Rozembajgier

With the FDA and Congress turning their attention to the recent joint replacement recalls, new technology is poised to beat them to the punch. A new mobile app called iTraycer, which debuted earlier this month, is designed to trace medical devices from manufacture to surgery and beyond. This is just the latest example of how new technology is helping streamline the process of tracking products and identifying potential problems.

iTraycer is the first mobile phone-based system for tracking medical devices, but a range of new databases have been created across industries to keep track of product distribution and product safety trends. Whether it be the FDA’s Reportable Food Registry, industry-implemented produce traceability initiatives, or the CPSC’s electronic recall database, advanced technology is playing an increasingly important role both in identifying product safety problems before they get out of hand and streamlining the recall notification process in the event of a recall.

But these examples hardly represent the full extent of technology’s role in recall planning and recall management. A mobile recall app developed by regulators earlier this year makes it easy for consumers to check for recalls on products even before purchasing, and eNotifications are becoming an increasingly important  supplemental tool for companies managing a recall to get the word out to customers.

With the public spotlight focusing more brightly than ever on product safety, companies would be wise to leverage these technological advances to protect consumers and themselves. Manufacturers are being held increasingly responsible for product safety problems, especially if they fail to identify developing safety issues and act quickly to remedy them. Regulators are monitoring recall effectiveness more closely than ever before. Electronic databases play a critical role in successful recall notification and execution.

Instead of viewing these advancing technologies as a threat to business, manufacturers should instead embrace these new technologies as a fact of life in today’s era of increased regulatory scrutiny. While advances in tracking technology can make it easier for regulators to spot problems and crack down on offenders, these advances also provide manufacturers with the same opportunity to beat regulators to the punch. Technology is a critical tool for not only preventing product safety problems in the first place, but also for quickly identifying and addressing those issues if they do become a problem.

Stericycle ExpertRECALL™ is the industry leader in recall logistics and regulatory compliance for consumer product, pharmaceutical, medical device, juvenile product, and food and beverage recalls. ExpertRECALL’s professionals are experts in recall management who can help you streamline the entire product recall process.