The Warehouse is Changing - Here’s How You Can Keep Up

It used to be so simple: if you needed a tool, you went to the shop manager or the tool shed and you grabbed the tool. When you were finished with the tool you returned it. If a co-worker needed the tool, you gave it to them and they returned it.

The quantified workspace has changed all of that. Today’s warehouses and workshops are bastions of lean operation. Sharing, a skill taught in elementary school but forgotten once the concept of “mine” becomes ingrained, is once again front and center. The idea of doing more with less means that the ratio of 1:1; one tool for every one worker, is a thing of the past.

Technology took us here and technology will be what makes these kinds of lean operations possible. Tool and asset management software is the hub around which every operation in your warehouse, workshop, or industrial center will flow.

If your company has yet to make this migration, it is likely not all that far away. Fundamental shifts in the way business is conducted can only be resisted for so long. And, inevitably, your sign-in/sign-out log will be replaced with a high quality and highly reliable tool and asset management software suite.

The impact of tool and asset management in an organization can’t be overstated. Whether the assets themselves become more portable; as with what happened when already-transportable laptops gave way to tablets, or asset sharing dictated that a piece of heavy equipment had to go from stationary to movable, managers need to know where their departments’ assets are at all times.

At the same time, the wear and tear on these valuable assets will need to be tracked. Sharing means that a single asset will see far more use than it would if it was assigned to only one user. As a result, you’ll need systems in place to watch for accelerated wear and tear and to deal with the acquisition of a new tool or asset once the current piece reaches the end of its usable life.

Again, tool and asset management software is there for you. Whether its tracking check-in/check-out or tracking visible signs of aging, wear and tear, or even abuse at the hands of your employees, your tool and asset manager will provide an indexed storyline of that tool’s life. And, when necessary, powerful reporting tools will allow you to pull records and assemble that story faster than ever.

This blog makes frequent mention of life in a data-driven society. The benefits of tracking these types of quantifiable data points apply to the acquisition and tracking of your tools and company assets just as much as they do to tracking an entire fleet of vehicles. Accountability and complete asset lifecycle management are just the start of the benefits of introducing this technology into your environment.

Stop wondering where your critical assets are and what kind of condition they’ll be in for that next job and start making a solid tool and asset management strategy a cornerstone of your business today.