It really depends on the barcode... A lot of times the numbers are
codes for categories... For insatnce the number (alphanumeric and
integers) could translate into other meanings.

Just for example of what I am talking about at my work we use barcodes
to find information, the bar code is written in such a way that you can
find the day, year, and unique number for the piece of information you
are looking for.

We use Julian dates where I work (day of the year numerically), the
bar-coded numbers look like: 20042922-0122300, and what that translates
to is 2004 (year) 292 (the numeric date for today) 2 (a sorting number
we use to classify data) and then 0122300 (a unique number for the
information) but the bar codes can even be coded to mean anything.
EX: 11=large 12=small 13=medium 14=custom size, etc..

That is a bad example of how it may be, but what I am getting at is
that he may be able to develop a bar-code system that uses numeric
feilds to define attributes of whatever he is doing, and in that case
the PHP script would be able to translate those fields into useable
information which is then stored in the database, and would then save
him a bunch of time... Coding would take longer, but be better for the
customer by a long shot.