Asset Management and its benefits

Asset management: definition and benefits

Assets, equipment and vehicles are the backbone of your business, which is why it makes sense to monitor them. By carrying out proper asset management with specific metrics, this enables you to improve productivity and efficiency and have better cost control. Whether you’re trying to get better visibility into your equipment in general, want to improve asset utilisation, or decrease maintenance costs, a computerised maintenance management system (CMMS) can help you with asset management. As well as managing assets, it also streamlines maintenance processes and makes for easier overall management and planning. GPS technology is one example of a CMMS system and can facilitate asset management for your business.

It is important to realise that assets don’t only include powered assets (i.e vehicles). Unpowered assets are also essential to a company and its success and these include assets such as tools, generators, trailers and shipping containers. Unpowered asset management works in the same way as powered asset management – with it also being possible to use the same GPS technology to keep track of valuable unpowered assets.

All that is required is to simply install a small, mountable asset-tracking piece of hardware, and you can easily monitor and track equipment via a laptop or smart device. Let’s take a closer look at the top potential benefits of asset management and equipment tracking that is suitable for any business.

Centralise data in one place with asset management

Businesses own and operate potentially dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of powered and non-powered important assets (including trailers) of various makes, models and manufacturers. While many may be equipped with an OEM-installed telematics system, some older or non-powered assets are not, and these various telematics systems are independent of one another, meaning operators or managers have to access several different sources to pull the asset data they need.

By using a centralised GPS equipment tracking solution that integrates with existing systems, businesses can consolidate all the data from their physical assets (including trailer tracking)—regardless of make, model, or manufacturer—into one place in order to streamline asset management. In addition, businesses can achieve full asset visibility, including location, current status and usage history on a single, web-based dashboard that enables fast search and the option of tag filtering.

Increase value with asset utilisation reports

With a centralised source for all asset data, businesses can better make sense of data to improve asset utilisation and inventory control. For instance, with access to utilisation reports, managers can view which pieces of equipment are being used (when and how often) across geographic locations. Armed with this information, they can make more informed decisions about renting or selling an asset, or whether under-utilised, owned assets from other locations can be deployed elsewhere.

Likewise, asset utilisation reports can also be used to identify underperforming assets using precise metrics on how often and how long a piece of equipment ran on a particular day or during a certain period of time. This data can then be matched against actual work progress to identify discrepancies or inefficiencies.

After all, utilisation ties into productivity. There can be both productive and unproductive use of assets, so it is crucial to be able to identify if and how assets are being used. By incorporating asset management and therefore being able to access real-time asset tracking data, this puts this powerful information right in a manager’s hands, so they are able to make more effective business decisions.

Improve asset lifecycle maintenance

Asset management can be used to improve the accuracy and efficiency of regular maintenance by reporting on mechanical health and asset status based on usage metrics (e.g. engine hours) in near real-time. Verified, paperless inspections help keep assets in optimum condition, which can improve on-the-job safety, equipment productivity and overall job efficiency.

For powered equipment that requires preventative maintenance or routine fixes, a consolidated and comprehensive asset tracking solution provides a holistic view of maintenance alerts – regardless of manufacturer – including alerts for when parts need replacing. This can ultimately help prevent costly downtime due to breakdowns. And given that assets can be on a five, ten, or fifteen-year lifecycle, it also helps stay on top of maintenance for the entire asset lifecycle and helps managers adhere to regular maintenance schedules.

According to Amin Amini, Associate Director of Global Solution Engineering at Verizon Connect,

The whole point of preventative maintenance is to maintain that lifecycle and get the most out of your assets. You need your tools, you need your vehicles, you need your machines to be at a 90% or better uptime, so you can make sure the job is getting done and getting done on time.

Achieve greater security for important assets

Given the often-significant purchase cost of assets and the very real risk of theft, businesses that lease or own equipment want to protect assets at all costs. The threat of theft is a serious matter - with more than £77 million of products stolen from air, road, sea, and rail freight supply chains in the UK in the first half of 2020, this subject is not to be taken lightly. With asset tracking technology in place, managers can receive notifications when an asset is operated (powered on and used) during an unauthorised time period or if an asset is being moved or towed during off-hours or without permission.

In addition, businesses can utilise geofence alerts to create a virtual perimeter which, if breached, sets off an immediate alert. Asset tracking systems make it possible to accelerate asset recovery in the event that one is stolen and helps with the accountability of assets.

Strengthen asset management protocols

With the right GPS-based asset-tracking solution, your business can run more efficiently.

Verizon Connect has extensive experience helping businesses operating in all industries to improve productivity, safety and security both on job sites and on the road. Our asset tracking solution allows businesses to monitor heavy equipment, improve asset utilisation and reduce the risk of theft and unauthorised use