You can’t turn on the news these days without hearing about how the economy is affecting one thing or another. I would like to take a radical glass is half full approach and look at how today’s economy could potentially have a positive impact on something – asset tracking. We all know budgets are tight and a lot of new equipment purchases are being delayed. Isn’t that the perfect time to do an internal inventory of the equipment you already have?
Let’s look at the objectives of an asset tracking program. First, it should make a company more efficient – allowing them to know where a specific piece of equipment is and other pertinent information, i.e. maintenance information, etc. Now look at the alternative – companies spending thousands of dollars in manhours alone searching for lost assets; purchasing unnecessary replacement equipment only to find the “lost” equipment later. In addition, unused assets may be an unnecessary tax liability and cause a company to overpay insurance premiums.
Implementing an effective asset tracking program is not terribly difficult. Different technologies are available, i.e. bar code and/or RFID depending on the needs of your specific company. Centennial Associates with MetalCraft labels help companies implement an asset tracking program.
We all need to be careful about how we spend our money these days. Companies with an effective asset tracking program will be ahead of the game when the economy turns around (and, yes, it will turn around). And seriously, who wouldn’t want that?
Reprinted with permission MetalCraft Blog Wednesday, August 19, 2009
