Part ID in Paperless System

We are currently in the process of moving into a paperless system in an electronics manufacturing environment. I am evaluating software for the creation/control of work instructions and other such important documents but one stumbling block we can't seem to get over is in part ID. We have a lot of products that look very much the same once they're in housings but need something to differentiate them from one bin to another. Not only is this a requirement internally but for ISO certification having some kind of identification throughout the process is important. Just wondering what others might be doing to get around this problem. Our obvious answer is that we will go 99% paperless and have an ID ticket in the bin, but if there is anything that someone else has done that totally eliminates the paper requirement I'm open to just about any suggestion. Thanks!

Bar code and laser scanners..