Asset management is the management of items, investments, and resources on behalf of organizations. This type of management control decreases costs across:
- The acquisition,
- Operation,
- Maintenance, and
- Renewal of assets when resources are limited.
Asset management focuses on the continuous deliverance of services to customers.
Assets may range from physical items, such as equipment, to non-physical assets, such as people and intellectual property. In addition to those assets, asset management can include developing, maintaining, and upgrading assets. It also includes operating assets and their disposal when they exceed their limitations.
Every organization needs to keep a record of its assets. Record keeping of assets is necessary because stakeholders have information regarding available assets they can use to receive optimal returns.
The assets which a business or a company has can be categorized into two subcategories – fixed and current assets. Companies acquire fixed assets for long-term use. The existing assets can be converted into cash, within a short amount of time.
For asset management, one of the important things to know is the development of the best asset management plan. Below, we have described some of the ways to have the best asset management strategy for your organization.
1. Get rid of pen & paper inspections
The new age of technology makes it easier to electronically document assets and other information. Assigning and keeping track of information on paper as hard copies is a tedious task. It is also difficult to manage.
Invoices, receipts, requests for bids, warranty coverage, or purchase orders, can all be captured electronically and stored online. By using such software and technologies, record keeping of assets becomes easier to manage.
Digital asset record keeping benefits companies by eliminating costly and inefficient redundancies. In addition, digital record keeping simplifies the process of auditing and reconciling information. Electronic records can be easily analyzed and discrepancies highlighted.
2. Utilize digital asset tracking
Proper asset management incorporates digital asset tracking to keep track of the status of all assets. Whether assets are liquid or fixed, it becomes easier for businesses to understand where their assets are located.
Companies can use digital asset tracking in different ways. Equipment asset management systems enable the owners to keep tabs on their assets, including their location and their status.
Details about an asset’s maintenance record can be provided using digital systems quickly and easily. This allows management to make decisions on whether repairs are warranted for assets, or if they need to be replaced.
This innovative technology allows businesses to gain a better understanding of the equipment they need or don’t need. Due to these features, investments in purchasing are controlled. This allows companies to use assets more efficiently.
3. Use digital dashboards
Using digital dashboards to get a holistic view of assets is another good strategy for asset management. This allows businesses to manage and keep track of their operations from any location.
Digital dashboards also enable companies to gain control of the condition and status of their assets in a quick snapshot view. The best thing about digital dashboards are the reports that are generated within seconds, containing full information. This information includes the health of the equipment and tools at any given time.
Using digital dashboards dramatically reduces time and increases efficiency. It allows organizations to get a holistic view of assets across the whole business. These dashboards also reduce administration costs and ill-informed and expensive decisions, due to poor quality or incorrect data.
4. Automate preventative maintenance activities
Asset management systems use inspection data in setting up the preventative maintenance schedule of your company. Preventative maintenance activities focus on preventing problems with equipment. This includes:
- Dealing with unscheduled downtime, and
- Expensive reactive fixes.
Emergency expenses, such as repairs and other equipment maintenance, are easily eliminated when work is scheduled. The improvement of equipment increases asset longevity.
The support of assets is conducted through effective preventative maintenance. Condition monitoring is another essential component of preventative maintenance activities.
5. Give your manager the tools they need
Asset managers need digital tools to plan their work properly. Digital tools give managers the flexibility of supervising assets. Digital tools also let managers maintain their resources and assign work.
These digital tools define the processes related to:
- purchasing,
- documentation,
- distribution, and use,
- software changes,
- production costs, and other related instances.
Managers use these digital tools to help them determine the status of remote devices associated with the organization. Asset management tools maximize the tasks involved in the process of controlling the asset inventory of the company. Asset inventory control helps companies gain access to their companies’ resources.
6. Organize your Asset Portfolio
An asset portfolio is a way of grouping assets together. This could be financial, in which case it would include details of:
- stocks,
- bonds,
- commodities, and
- currencies owned by the company.
It could also be based on infrastructure, in which case, equipment, physical facilities, and machines would be considered.
Portfolio management is used by companies to determine their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This portfolio type includes investment mix and policy, matching investments to objectives, asset allocation for companies, and balancing risk against performance.
Updating this collection of data offers a clear idea about the assets a company has. It also highlights their purchased and depreciated value, and the total value of its assets. Asset portfolios enable owners to develop strategies and plan out work to increase the ROI for a business.
Conclusion
The best asset management is possible if you continuously keep your portfolio updated. Using the latest technology to help with asset record keeping is also the way to go. Field Eagle inspection software can help your company achieve and exceed its goals.
Field Eagle uses precise and holistic data to make knowledge-based decisions for your company. This software provides services that include easy asset tracking and inventory management.
With Field Eagle, operations are paperless and fully support digital asset tracking. Field Eagle is easily integrated with other data systems to maximize operational, reporting, and productivity goals.
