Count and recall all your fixed assets. You might have more than you realized.
If that sounds familiar, it is time to improve your asset tracking techniques.
Asset tracking is the method of tracking your physical assets using techniques such as barcodes, RFID and NFC tags.
Asset tracking is important for your organization’s foundation and its compliance. You are responsible for locating and replacing lost or missing physical assets, and for replacing those that have reached the end of their lifecycle.
Asset tracking solves several business challenges. It helps companies become more efficient and improve their bottom line by making the best use of the resources they already have.
Useful Asset Tracking Tips for Tracking Your Assets Efficiently
Here are some useful asset tracking tips that will help you track your assets in the most efficient way.
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Know what you need to track: Keep the maintenance schedule, equipment uptime and downtime, and the number of people assigned to each machine in mind. Building an asset management system into your organization’s daily routine can increase the production equipment available to you. Lower overall costs also improve your services and help you sustain maintenance programs.
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Know the full project lifecycle: If you run a manufacturing plant, you need to consider the full project lifecycle. When you consider the lifecycle of an asset for a single long project, which might last 20 years or more, it becomes clear that the project needs careful study.
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Know your company’s priorities: Before making a purchase decision, always evaluate and prioritize your company’s requirements. Rank what you need from a fixed asset package, then evaluate how each product measures up against those requirements.
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Know the reporting and analytics in your software: To manage assets properly, you must know the exact quantity of each item and have visibility into it. Look for an asset management program that collects the metrics you need to measure asset performance.
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Have visibility before you purchase: Visibility of assets lets an organization redeploy overused and underused assets and decide when to raise a purchase order. Before raising any purchase order, check which assets are already available, so your organization does not overspend on surplus assets.
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Track every asset that comes into your company: One of the best asset tracking tips is to count and record the assets your organization owns from the start. When adding a new asset, do not skip entering its information before it is put to use or handed to a customer. This makes sure an asset cannot disappear before anyone has recorded it.
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Use unique asset tracking numbers: Use your own tracking numbers to avoid problems with duplicate serial numbers. Duplicate numbers cause confusion. They damage data integrity, lead to inaccurate customer balances and inventory, and for rental businesses can reduce income and hurt customer satisfaction.
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Know the level of service you must sustain: Define the level of service you need to sustain. This helps you put an asset management system in place and explain your work to stakeholders. Service level requirements can be updated as you grow and as regulations and technology change.
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Know the difference between asset tracking and inventory tracking: Asset tracking differs from inventory tracking in some ways. Asset tracking manages internal resources that need to keep operating. It covers tracking items that are lent out and monitoring asset depreciation, maintenance and warranty contracts. Inventory tracking manages products that are sold, distributed or consumed, tracking their receipt, storage, shipping and sale.
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Conduct equipment analysis: Keeping an eye on the quantity and quality of assets is necessary for the company to run smoothly. One way to bring excess inventory down to the level you need is to review your equipment regularly.
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Balance costs, opportunities and risks against assets: Asset management balances costs, opportunities and risks against the performance you need from assets, so the organization meets its objectives. This allows an analytical approach to managing an asset through every stage of its lifecycle, from the first idea that the asset is needed through to its disposal and any liabilities that come with it.
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Optimize each asset’s lifecycle: The lifecycle of an asset covers its whole life, from creation through purchase, operation, maintenance and upgrades to disposal. Understanding the asset lifecycle lets your company plan the asset’s future and decide what to do about its condition in terms of tasks and costs.
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Use an asset gap strategy: Gap analysis is the process companies use to compare their current performance with the performance they need or expect. It shows whether the company is meeting expectations and using its resources effectively. Gap analysis is needed in asset management to understand the company’s current state in terms of time, money and labor, and compare it with its target state.
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Build a database of your assets: The company should start by creating a database to check which assets are available in inventory. Enter the details of each asset in the database so that authorized people can see the associated data after each scan.
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Watch for ghost assets: “Ghost assets” are assets that have been lost, stolen or made unusable but are still listed as active fixed assets in the system. You need to carry out accurate physical audits of assets on a regular basis to find ghost assets.
Putting These Asset Tracking Tips to Work
I hope these tips help you manage and track your organization’s assets.
Asset tracking and management are important because they help a company monitor and manage its assets in a systematic way.
The benefits of asset tracking and management include more productive and efficient assets, which ultimately puts a business in a better position to increase its return on investment.