Thinking about assets might take your brain immediately to your bank account. However, asset tracking is the practice of understanding all the physical assets that you have in your possession and tracking them. When you’re starting a business, asset tracking for your physical assets is necessary, so you know what you have and how to manage them.

Asset Tracking Defined 

Asset tracking occurs when a company tracks its physical assets. In order to do this, your Asset Tracking System must include a mobile barcode scanner or a radio-frequency identification (RFID) reader.

Your physical assets can be things like generators, vehicles, computers, or other technological equipment. Assets provide value to your organization and are important for your organization to function economically. Tangible assets are these physical items, while intangible assets are things like contracts, software you own and patents.

Assets are not the same as inventory. Assets are individual records with a quantity of (1). If you’re working in an organization that regularly stocks inventory, you may want to explore an Inventory Tracking Solution.

Benefits of Asset Tracking

It is extremely important to have a detailed asset management system for all of your assets. When you’re starting a business from the ground up, you have to be aware of what adds value and what you could possibly sell or get rid of to make more space in your workspace. 

It helps to know what you have so you know what you need to upgrade or replace in order to remain at the cutting edge of your industry. You can cut costs and, also find better, more efficient ways of doing things. Your administrative employees will be able to work faster because they’ll have a very detailed log of materials to reference. 

Investing in asset tracking is also good for keeping accurate company records and understanding what your taxes will be because of accurate breakdowns for each department. Asset tracking is also required recordkeeping in some industries, so it’s good to stay ahead of the game.

How To Track Your Assets

Barcode Asset Tracking 

Larger physical assets may have a barcode label attached. You can find a lot of different apps with scanning software that can help you manage these items and have an up-to-date log of all of them right from a mobile device. Since it’s electronic, it can be accessed by all the employees who need it. Asset tracking software is especially useful if you have multiple offices or employees who have to work off-site. 

RFID Asset Tracking 

RFID tags broadcast the location of your assets. This is a good method for making sure there are no mistakes in your asset tracking. These do require handheld scanners, so it’s important to decide how many of these you’ll need in order to get started. 

GPS-Based Asset Tracking 

Asset tracking software that uses a GPS tracking device can transmit through cellular networks or satellites. The benefit of this system is that it can communicate across distances and keep accurate, up-to-date logs for everyone using it. 

There are mobile GPS asset tracking devices, and they can also be hardwired into a large piece of equipment. You’ll also be able to set alerts in a geofence so you can keep track of your larger items. If they go anywhere, they’re not supposed to be, you’ll know immediately. GPS asset tracking software also lets you keep everything on one, easy-to-use dashboard. Fleet management systems can be simplified with a GPS asset tracking system. 

Asset Tracking Software

The first decision you must make is to add scanning capabilities to your existing Asset Management System or purchase a new Asset System that includes state of the art scanning capabilities. 

Asset tracking software integrates all of the various elements of tracking assets into one package. Rather than relying on hard copies of paper or manual spreadsheets, software can help you keep all of the assets in one system and update them when they need maintenance or need to be replaced. Tracking important physical assets and having a record of their movement is extremely important. 

This software is especially helpful the more high-tech you go with your tracking. For example, GPS-based systems give you a visualization tool to see where various larger assets (like trucks) are during the day. You’ll be able to give more accurate times to your customers for service requests and product delivery. GPS asset tracking also allows you to improve security measures with geofences: you’ll get a notification if a valuable piece of hardware goes where it’s not supposed to.

Benefits of IT Asset Management Software

IT asset management software can greatly contribute to the success of your organization. Having a system in place provides more order, control and insight over your systems and assets as well as providing a clear picture of what you currently have. Information stays up to date helping teams track the complete life cycle of assets. 

Some key benefits of IT asset management software include the following: 

• Reduce costs: IT asset management software helps to reduce costs by assisting in the financial success of any company. It allows you to know what assets need to be replaced or updated, providing insight into resources that are not being utilized in cost-effective ways. ITAM can help ensure only compliant technologies are being used.
• Improved security: ITAM systems not only help to keep track of assets but also reduce the risk of unforeseen security attacks. These attacks can seem worse if the asset is not being tracked or managed. IT asset management gives you a better understanding of which devices, tools and services are a threat and how. Assets being tracked can also reduce the risk of lost or stolen items and aid in the recovery.
• Increase productivity: IT asset management increases employee productivity through better organization, more accountability and allowing organizations to make well-informed decisions.
• Save time: ITAM software saves time by reducing the result of errors and eliminating the need for outdated systems such as the use of spreadsheets and manual uploads. You won’t have to spend countless hours sifting and sorting through papers. Equipment oversight provides a clear picture of asset status, saving time and money, and removing a lot of manual work.
• Centralized operational system: A good portal will have a centralized dashboard storing all information in one place. This system allows employees and IT teams to monitor vendor data, warranties, lease terms, agreements and make for more visibility and accountability.
• Information up to date: Assets can be tracked by multiple people in multiple places allowing for better organization, less misunderstanding and unforeseen errors.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best way to track assets? 

It depends on how many physical assets you have to manage and how many people need access to that asset tracking software. Barcode scanning, RFID tracking and GPS systems are common for a variety of businesses. 

What is an asset management tool? 

An asset management tool is your asset tracking software where you can keep track of all of your important physical assets in one place. Asset tracking helps organizations improve their operations and cut down on administrative redundancies. 

What is the best asset management software tool? 

It depends on a number of factors: how many user profiles, how many assets need to be tracked and if you need to keep track of assets at multiple locations. 

What are the risks of going without an asset management solution? 

Without an effective asset management solution, you risk losing more assets to theft, purchasing duplicate assets that aren’t necessary and incurring more downtime as maintenance and service needs may not be adequately tracked. You also lose out on the opportunity to pinpoint asset under-usage, leaving you at risk for renewing costly, unnecessary asset leases.