The front-end scanner is installed behind a cross-cut saw. It scans the cut parts from both ends. This allows internal defects such as pith to be detected using their contrast. This information is used for subsequent sorting of products for finger jointing or shared profiles and forwarding of these to a new ejector. This reduces rework and maximizes recovery. The front-end scanner can be retrofitted to existing scanner systems and can be used on cross-cut saws with manual marking.