When you have to keep track of millions of tiny little Components the biggest challenge is not sorting them in boxes by type of device or by value or whatever crazy syste myou could make up (there was a german meme of a hoarder sorting stuff by how "rectangular" things are that comes to mind)
A whole new world in complexity opens up once you realize that you also have to match footprints and symbols for your preferred Ecad to even use these parts.
And for this we can exploit Farnell/Newark barcodes that are present on the packages and invoices! These are commonly printed for the people packing orders to check if they have the right parts prepared and keep track of lot numbers as well as for big firms to bock the stock in quickly.
We can easily take advantage of that with just a simple barcodes scanner .
I actually prefer the older type that only reads standard barcode as it avoids accidentally reading nearby qr codes, also you may want to avoid dirt cheap ones, as they sometimes misread and a single digit can make a big difference for component numbers..
Here is the one I use: https://export.farnell.com/opticon/c37-usb/barcode-ccd-usb-black/dp/2536869?st=barcoded%20scanner
Scanning the order code or the manufacturer part number leads directly to the product page-> where we can download the symbol and Footprint and 3d modell in a simple package.
I then extract the files I need for my application (usually Kicad files and Step model).
After importing those files into Kicad.
For parts that did not come in packages with convenient barcodes or got repackaged since ,I print barcodes myself with a lable printer and stick them on the packages myself.
No comes the magic.
when working on a new design that should use stocked parts, I first select the parts physically in my stockpile, take the packages with me to my computer.
In kicad I press A (insert component) and scan the part number on the package.--> this exact part is now inserted in my schematic!
What if a part in stock is NRND or no longer manufactured? simply put I just put a label on the package with the new alternative partnumber-> so whenever I use up an old part, the schematics already have the new partnumber on them, which makes it possible to send of the design to a manufacturing service without havign to rework it.
of course in case apart does not have a pin compatible Alternative, I mark it just as NRND and don´t match a new part.
I hope this is helpful to other people that drown in a flood of tiny parts...
