California Academy of Sciences digitizes its 18 million insect collection

The Academy, which houses an acre of cabinets filled with 35,000 drawers, previously relied on a outdated geographic labeling method. Chris Grinter, the collection manager, noted that the old system carried problematic historical associations. The new standard utilizes 10 distinct bio-geographic regions, each assigned a specific color and numeric identifier designed to be inclusive and color-blind friendly.

To implement this at scale, the department adopted Epson ColorWorks CW-C6000A printers paired with BarTender software. This setup allows staff to generate durable, perforated labels on demand, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual cutting of printed sheets. Because scientific taxonomy changes frequently due to DNA analysis, the ability to update and print labels instantly provides a significant efficiency gain. The hardware also produces alcohol-resistant labels for vials, ensuring that clarity remains intact during long-term storage. By moving to an in-house, on-demand workflow, the museum has transformed a once-static archive into a dynamic, accessible research asset.