Everything You Need to Know About Asset Tracking

“What is Asset Tracking?”,  “Why it is important?”,  “Is it useful?”, these types of questions we hear every day in our life. So, we took liberty and created something for you, which you may find useful.

In this blog, you will learn Everything You Need to Know About Asset Tracking. Without wasting any more time, let's roll.

What is Asset Tracking?

According to Wikipedia

“It refers to the method of tracking physical assets, either by scanning barcode labels attached to the assets or by using tags using GPS, BLE or RFID which broadcast their location.”

As the name suggests, it is the process of the tracking location of a physical asset with the help of a barcode scanner, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), or any other technology. It provides real-time data and the location of an asset. Sometimes asset tracking is also called Asset Management.

What is the history of Asset Tracking?  

Organizations acknowledged & realized they required a strategical approach to follow the asset location until it reaches its destination carefully and also when they are moving. In light of this need, the process was created to keep track of an asset or inventory however, it was all done on a manual basis with pen and paper.

Later on, the spreadsheet was developed for better tracking & then organizations started counting on Enterprise Resource Planning System for supply chain management & logistics tracking.

At last, innovation took another step ahead, through which organizations were enabled to track their asset easily & exactly! With mobile assistance they can see, what is the exact position of an asset is? This approach allowed the business to improve its customer service and run efficiently.

Why Asset Tracking is important?

Here are the few reasons why asset tracking is important:

• Asset Information on fingertips - When you have all the data on your system or mobile. Then you can efficiently & easily manage your asset.
• Improved Customer Service - Whenever you improve your system, your customer undoubtedly will be happy. Whether this improvement happens in terms of operation or managing inventory.
• Real-time Information - Get the exact location of an asset, who is using that asset & you can also manage your asset from other locations. Also, no chance for asset loss or theft
• Increased Productivity - You can streamline your operation & identify issues before it becomes an actual problem. Better planning & resource utilization in operation.
• Saving money - Unexpected maintenance can be a huge problem if you not cared for properly. Through asset management software, you get the notifications and alerts of maintenance on a regular basis. It will increase its lifespan.

What are the techniques used in Asset Tracking?

There are several techniques for tracking an asset, it works with RFID & Barcode scanner. Let us know one by one.

RFID -

Radio Frequency Identification, its full form. As the name suggests radiofrequency technology is used to send or receive the data information. Through RFID Tag, each item has a unique identification and via that identification, you can track your asset.

An RFID tag can hold more information about an item compared to a barcode scanner. This technology is very similar to barcode scanning technology. RFID is there from world war 2 it is used to identify fighting planes. It has come a long way with lots of improvisation in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, and cost.

Types of RFID - There are 3 types of RFID, Low Frequency covers 30 to 300 kHz, second is High Frequency ranges from 3 to 30 MHz, and third is Ultra-High Frequency covers the reach of 300 MHz to 3 GHz. Overall, they can read data from a distance of 1 meter - 20 meters.

Barcode scanner -

A Barcode scanner is a device used to read barcodes. is a simple tool to use and it is very effective in work. You must have seen them in shopping malls when the bill is generated.

They use a scanner that scans the barcode and decodes the data contained then sends the data to a computer. In simple words, it shows all the information about the specific product or item.

• Types of Barcode scanner and Barcode - As the technology is evolving day by day, there are several types of barcode handheld scanner are available such as Pen-type readers, Laser scanners, CCD readers (also known as LED scanners), Camera-based readers, Omnidirectional barcode scanners, Cell phone cameras, Smartphones.
• Types of Barcode - There are 2 types of barcode, 1Dimensional is traditional, mostly used it is simply such as UPC Code whereas 2Dimensional can scan complex code such as QR Codes & Data Matrix.

Asset Tracking is applicable in which industries?

Here are some of the examples Hotel, Manufacturer, Hospital, Information and Technology (IT), Education, Construction, Utilities Sector, Food & Beverage Industry, and many more.

Is asset Tracking for small businesses?

Business size does not matter as long as you have an important and valuable asset such as a laptop, furniture, vehicle, etc. We believe small or big every business organization has several fixed assets. So yes! It is for small businesses.

Meanwhile, we know every business is different and have a different requirement or demand for asset management software. This is where Asset Infinity come into play, we have software for every kind of requirement. You have a problem; we have a solution.