The internet of things (IoT) has made leaps and bounds in an effort to improve productivity the last 20 years. It has significantly improved things such as reducing operational costs, protecting assets, and decreasing bottle necks. Many companies have been slow to adopt these powerful tools, and we are here to help improve the process. Whether you’re a long time GPS user, or looking into tracking for the first time, these tips can help anyone.
1. Track every asset
It may seem like the smart cost saving option to track your assets together in bulk or 1 in every 10. We find in a lot of circumstances that it is more beneficial to put a tracking unit on every single asset. For example, if you run a construction company that only 20% of assets on a job site, you will have an idea of where that group is. However, what happens if one of the assets without a tracking device goes missing? If ALL the assets are tracked, you would know it’s status instantly. Whether it is being relocated, having maintenance, in a strange location on the yard, or even stolen.
2. Utilize your data
There are obvious benefits of tracking your assets such as knowing location or instant updates on accidents. However, if your utilization ends there, you are missing out on some valuable tools. Now that you have an abundance of data at your fingertips, put some of it to use by increasing productivity of your assets. For instance, finding bottlenecks and reducing costs in places such as holding facilities. These are just some of the many possibilities that data can produce that can have a major impact on your ROI and overall profits.
3. Take note of patterns
This tip piggy backs off the last point of utilizing data. Patterns can really help determine the effectiveness of supply routes, shipping partners, holding locations and much more. Specifically, it helps to give you a realistic expectation of travel time, reduces costs, and can keep partner companies accountable.
4. Give more access
A mistake we see with a lot with companies is restricting access to segments of the company that could benefit from more information. It is understandable to restrict access to high value cargo and contract obligations, but most cases, it’s not necessary. In short, giving asset tracking capabilities to more employees can help reduce needless communications and reduce frustrations within an organization.
5. Organize Early
Upon getting any new tracking system, it is best to plan out what hardware is tracking what asset before you mount it. With an excel sheet write out every asset you will be tracking and organize them in a logical manner. Try to involve only a few key members in this step so to avoid over complicating. It will make installations and database creation much smoother.
6. Have a purpose
We find that some new customers tend to use technology for the sake of keeping up with the times. However, it will be much more beneficial in the long run to sit down with multiple departments and find individual pain points. In addition, this new technology can help reduce friction in the business cycle when used correctly. If you spend the time to find these issues, you can then put a plan into action with the new data. This can help not only in reducing friction, but also save money in places you would never have thought.
