Asset Tracking: How to keep track of your Resources
20.08.2024by
Annalena Rauen
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Tracking the location of delivery vehicles and goods in real time at any moment – just a dream? Not at all! With modern asset-tracking technologies, companies can easily enhance their inventory management.
The days of long searches for lost pallets or missing delivery vehicle locations are over. The time saved by employees can be used more efficiently, allowing for better work allocation.
What does Asset Tracking mean?
Asset tracking is an innovative method for monitoring company resources, such as vehicles and goods, in real time using networking technologies like GPS and LPWAN. It enables businesses to accurately track the location and condition of their assets, increase efficiency, minimize losses, and optimize inventory management.
There are numerous company resources whose location, condition, and usage can be monitored with asset tracking:
Vehicles and Fleets: Cars, trucks, and delivery vans can be tracked using GPS trackers and LPWAN modules. This optimizes routes, monitors fuel consumption, and enhances vehicle security.
Machinery and Equipment: Industrial machines, tools, and construction equipment can be equipped with RFID tags or GPS trackers to monitor their usage, schedule preventive maintenance, and prevent theft.
Inventory and Stock: Products and materials in warehouses and retail stores can be tagged with barcodes, QR codes, or RFID tags, facilitating inventory management, tracking, and reordering.
Documents and Files: Important documents, files, and contracts can be tracked with RFID or barcode systems to ensure they are easily locatable and secure.
People and Employees: In certain environments, such as hospitals or construction sites, employees wear devices that monitor their location and safety.
How Asset Tracking works
Asset tracking can be integrated into various aspects of a company, with a generally similar process: Specialized devices or technologies, known as asset trackers, can be attached to company resources. These trackers collect data such as the location, movement, or condition of the asset (e.g., temperature).
The collected information is then transmitted in real time via networks such as cellular, GPS, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth to a platform. There, the data is analyzed, visualized, and presented in user-friendly dashboards. This allows companies to track the location and usage of their assets at any time. This real-time monitoring enables quick responses to changes, better maintenance planning, and the prevention of losses.
What is an Asset Tracker?
An asset tracker is a specific device used to collect condition or location data about an asset. An asset tracker can be a sensor, a GPS device, an RFID tag, a BLE beacon, or a sensor with a cellular module. The tracker itself captures and transmits the information, which is then processed and displayed on a dashboard.
Why is Asset Tracking important for companies?
Asset tracking plays a crucial role for companies seeking greater transparency in their inventory management.
Increased Efficiency: By combining localization, geofencing, and motion detection, asset tracking optimizes resource utilization and reduces downtime. It helps avoid unnecessary costs by enabling preventive maintenance and minimizing losses due to theft.
Cost Reduction: Companies can lower maintenance costs by using condition monitoring, such as tracking the temperature of their machines and vehicles, and conducting timely maintenance.
Enhanced Safety: Real-time monitoring of machines, vehicles, and other assets helps identify and address safety risks early, thereby increasing overall operational safety.
Improved Inventory Management: Asset tracking provides a precise overview of inventory through accurate localization or level measurement, making it easier to track and reorder stock while reducing both overstock and shortages.
Optimized Resource Utilization: With precise tracking, such as geofencing, companies always know where their assets are and how they are being used.
The most important Asset Tracking Technologies: An Overview
The use of modern asset tracking technologies can lead to impressive efficiency gains for companies. Many businesses have seen maintenance productivity increase by 28.3%, resulting in a 20.1% reduction in equipment downtime. Additionally, maintenance and repair costs have been reduced by nearly 17.8%. Below, we provide an overview of the most important asset tracking technologies used in various applications.
Narrowband IoT and LTE-M
The cellular technologies NB-IoT and LTE-M are specifically designed for IoT applications. They offer wide coverage and high energy efficiency, making them ideal for tracking assets in remote areas or without a power source.
Example: A utility company uses NB-IoT to connect smart meters in rural areas. The meters transmit their data over long distances with minimal energy consumption, allowing for regular and reliable monitoring of energy usage.
GPS-Tracking
GPS trackers are widely used and are ideal for tracking vehicles and other mobile assets. They provide accurate real-time location data, transmitted via cellular networks, making them especially useful in fleet management.
Example: A logistics company uses GPS trackers to monitor its truck fleet in real time. This allows dispatchers to optimize driver routes, improve delivery times, and respond to unexpected traffic disruptions.
RFID
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) uses radio waves to transmit data from RFID tags. This technology is ideal for tracking inventory and goods in warehouses, as it enables fast scanning and automated inventory management.
Example: A retailer uses RFID tags to efficiently manage their stock. When a product leaves the warehouse or is moved to the sales floor, the RFID system automatically updates the inventory, simplifying reordering and preventing stock shortages.
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a power-efficient wireless technology specifically designed for IoT applications. It enables short-distance wireless communication with minimal energy consumption, making it ideal for wearables, smart home devices, and beacons.
Example: In a hospital, BLE beacons are used to locate medical equipment and wheelchairs within the facility. Healthcare staff can quickly find the necessary equipment, improving efficiency and patient care.
QR-Codes and Barcodes
These technologies are cost-effective and easy to implement. QR codes and barcodes are attached to assets and can be scanned with smartphones or specialized scanners to update information on location and condition.
Example: In a warehouse, QR codes are attached to pallets. Employees scan the codes with their smartphones to update the location and condition of goods, simplifying inventory management and improving the tracking of incoming and outgoing items.
Wi-Fi-Tracking
Wi-Fi tracking utilizes existing Wi-Fi networks to locate devices. This method is particularly useful in office environments and other buildings where a strong Wi-Fi signal is present.
Example: Wi-Fi tracking can be used in large shopping malls to analyze visitor movement patterns. This allows operators to better understand which areas are highly frequented, enabling them to optimize marketing strategies, improve store placement, and enhance the customer shopping experience.
Asset Tracking in Practice: PERI SE Tracking Solution
Asset tracking also brought an end to the search for an efficient tracking solution for PERI SE from Weißenhorn. The global specialist in formwork and scaffolding systems can now precisely track its formwork elements on construction sites. PERI found the ideal solution with a combination of two IoT tracking systems: a low-cost tracker from Telekom roughly locates the elements via LTE-M, NB-IoT, or 2G, indicating which parts are on which construction site. An additional Bluetooth Low Energy tracker from Syfit captures the exact position of the elements on-site. This integration into the Internet of Things offers PERI numerous advantages: the company can provide additional services to its customers, maintain oversight of rented parts, manage inventory more efficiently, and announce more accurate delivery times.
Successful implementation of an Asset Tracking Strategy
The implementation of asset tracking in companies can significantly enhance efficiency and transparency. Here are the key steps to successfully introduce asset tracking:
Define goals and choose technology: Set clear objectives for asset tracking, such as cost reduction or increased security, and select the appropriate tracking technologies like GPS, RFID, or Bluetooth based on these goals.
Pilot project and system integration: Conduct a pilot project to test the technology under real conditions, and then seamlessly integrate the asset tracking solution into existing IT systems like ERP or CRM platforms.
Employee training and engagement: Train relevant employees to effectively use the new technology and ensure their involvement in the process to guarantee the success of the strategy.
Continuous monitoring and optimization: Regularly monitor the performance of the asset tracking system, make necessary adjustments, and analyze the collected data to make informed decisions and refine the strategy as needed.
Who benefits from Asset Tracking?
Asset tracking is highly beneficial for companies looking to efficiently manage and monitor valuable resources. It is especially advantageous for logistics and transportation companies, manufacturing firms, construction businesses, and retailers with extensive inventories. By enabling real-time tracking, businesses can minimize losses, increase operational efficiency, and reduce costs, ultimately leading to better control and transparency of their assets.
Ready.Set.Track!
Ready.Set.Track!
Do you want to keep a constant eye on your assets? With our Track and Trace service, you'll always have complete oversight of your valuable goods, cargo, and containers. Equip your business with the efficient Track and Trace technologies today!
Do you want to keep a constant eye on your assets? With our Track and Trace service, you'll always have complete oversight of your valuable goods, cargo, and containers. Equip your business with the efficient Track and Trace technologies today!
2016 hat Anna erstmalig IoT-Themen bei der Deutschen Telekom begleitet. Seitdem betreut sie Kunden Use Cases unterschiedlichster Branchen – immer fokussiert auf den Nutzen, den das Internet of Things generieren kann. Im IoT-Blog beschreibt sie echte Anwendungsfälle und welchen Mehrwert diese Innovationen für die Marktakteure, deren Geschäftsmodelle oder gar ganze Branchen bieten.
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