Barcode Asset Tracking—Data Capture Solutions

Put simply, barcode asset tracking relies on a system of specialized barcode labels, scanning devices, and software to organize and automate the tracking of data related to inventory, IT assets, physical assets and equipment, scheduled maintenance, and other operations-critical information.

Asset tracking systems are used across wide-ranging industries that include manufacturing, healthcare, transportation and logistics, travel, warehousing and distribution, retail, and more. Yet, no matter the industry or specific data collected and delivered, all these systems share the same three basic building blocks:

Barcode and/or RAIN RFID labels and/or tags →
Barcode scanning devices and related technologies, including IoT sensors →
Asset tracking software →

Many systems build on these basic blocks to increase automation, reduce labor, and even further improve data accuracy. Sometimes that means incorporating data capture solutions like fixed industrial scanning or RAIN RFID (radio frequency identification) and IoT (internet of things) connected sensors at critical points where eliminating line-of-sight scanning can improve speed and efficiency. Other cases can call for network optimizations or other problem-solving to speed up data handling or eliminate wifi dead zones.

It takes the right technology partner to help identify data capture opportunities in your processes and match your operational needs with the best combination of technologies and solutions. But an individual, cost-effective data capture system for warehouse, manufacturing, healthcare, or any other environment can be as complex or as simple as the job demands.

How do you know whether you’re making the most of data capture opportunities in your processes?

Tracking and managing inventory and assets is critical to operational excellence. A barcode system delivers a return on investment in every area where asset management matters, by improving:

Efficiency

Just compare the difference in time required to scan a barcode versus hand-jotting notes and entering data into multiple spreadsheets for a given asset and you’ll quickly understand the efficiency a barcode system delivers. Eliminating the menial, manual tasks enables teams to focus on what they do best: solving challenges, thinking critically, and delivering value to your enterprise team. And automating data visualizations saves time and labor while delivering on-demand information to your internal customers.

Accuracy

Not only is data handling easier, but barcode scanning significantly reduces opportunity for human error. And because stakeholders simply log into the system to see real-time information on a user-friendly dashboard, there aren’t multiple versions of similar spreadsheets floating around on desktops and servers.

Barcode asset tracking helps establish one single source of enterprise truth—for real-time visibility, connected data, and better decision-making.

Visibility and transparency

You decide what’s most important in an asset’s life cycle—age, condition, usage, maintenance schedules, contracts, lifecycle ROI, etc.—and those are the critical details your stakeholders can see on demand. And you can eliminate data gatekeeping without putting data accuracy at risk by implementing user-based access and edit permissions.

At enterprise scale, achieving operational excellence demands more than just data collection; it requires in-depth, accurate, connected, real-time data visibility. Barcode and RAIN RFID-enabled asset tracking solutions can help you achieve that goal.

Whether you’re starting a business from the ground up or your company is a well-established enterprise, if you’re not tracking assets, you’re accepting unnecessary risks. Tracking company assets enables you to discover and monitor:

Asset usage, locations, assigned users
Rotational asset and check-in/check-out histories
Unused equipment, tools, or ghost assets that waste resources
Depreciation schedules
Equipment and devices in need of replacement, upgrade, repair, etc.
Service contract schedules
Inspection, calibration, and certification scheduling
Order and delivery tracking
Time to deployment
Data required for regulatory compliance
Insights into assets’ costs versus ROI

If your business relies on traditional asset tracking methods like pen and paper, clipboards, or spreadsheets, it’s likely that a barcode asset tracking system could deliver the right combination of cost-effective implementation and significant ROI.

Begin with Barcode Labels & Tags

Whether you’re implementing a barcoding system for warehouse environments, retail distribution centers, IT asset management, manufacturing equipment, healthcare, or another application, barcode tags and labels are a fundamental building block of virtually every asset tracking system.

Each unique item is labeled with a barcode assigned to the individual asset, following industry standards and best practices. Depending on the use and application, the barcode printed on the label may be created solely for internal use (such as a SKU, or stock keeping unit) or for global use (such as a UPC, or universal product code, following GS1’s Global Trade Item Number standard). Barcoding is proud to be a GS1 Executive Partner!

Standard UPCs enable businesses to sell goods globally, ensuring interoperability with other businesses that use the same standards, so they’re typically applied to products entering the global supply chain.

Internally, your barcode system creates a logical organizational structure for equipment, tools, devices, and other assets. If you’re implementing a barcode system in a warehouse, all assets and inventory items require barcode label solutions. Depending on the industry and work environment, it can be a challenge to choose the right type of barcode, label materials, sizes, placements, and printing technologies.

You may even have unidentified opportunities for automation using RAIN RFID tags or labels and IoT-connected sensors. It takes a deeply informed, holistic approach to identify these areas and implement data capture systems and solutions that capitalize on the strengths of each technology to deliver optimal ROI as a system.

You’ll get the right guidance from experts who work hard to understand your processes and people before jumping into recommending labels, scanners, or software solutions.

Barcode Scanning Technology & Hardware Considerations

Barcode scanner types and hardware configurations come in virtually countless combinations. If you’re just getting started, the choices can be overwhelming, ranging from the tiniest wearable barcode scanners to fixed industrial scanners that work in line with your manufacturing, packaging, and handling processes.

It can be a tall order to choose barcode labels, scanners, and printers that are compatible with one another, with your inventory/asset management solution, and with your processes and employees’ needs…but the efficiency, accuracy, and visibility you gain can be transformational to your business.

RAIN RFID: Enhancing Data Capture & Automation Capabilities

Since the 1970s, the barcode has transformed industries like retail, warehousing and distribution, manufacturing, logistics, travel, and healthcare. And as revolutionary as those black and white bars were back then, they were just the start of data capture technology advancements making industry more accurate, visible, and connected than ever before.

RAIN RFID (radio frequency identification) has also become an indispensable component of data capture systems, purpose-built to help solve specialized needs that often arise in work environments.

Situations that may call for integrating RAIN RFID and IoT-connected sensors into a data capture system often include:

Situations where line-of-sight scanning is difficult or impossible
Opportunities where eliminating barcode scanning can further increase efficiency and/or accuracy
Food supply chain and perishable goods logistics
Inbound and outbound shipment verification at the dock door
Returnable transport item (RTI) tracking
Retail inventory management
High-value asset and tool tracking

Implementing RFID specialized uses and capabilities with expert guidance and technical support services can save you time, money, and headaches by precisely matching your data capture and analysis needs at every point in your processes with the most appropriate technologies and solutions.

Too many businesses spend too much time and money tracking equipment and assets, IT hardware and devices, maintenance and service contracts, and consumables inventory using piecemeal jumbles of software applications, spreadsheets, checklists, clipboards, even email trains (yes, really). But here’s what businesses really need to understand:

The future of enterprise applications is mobility.

Organizations that can consolidate data collection, analytics, access, and reporting into a single enterprise implementation plan—like Barcoding’s IntelliTrack inventory and asset management solution—can get there faster and easier.

When your mobile security solution is also your enterprise fleet management solution, your users get mobile app convenience, your stakeholders get instant access to analytics, and you get one solution, one service provider, and one single enterprise source of truth.

That super-streamlined user experience is only possible with excellence in asset management.

Discover the Difference a Trusted Partner Can Make

Maybe you’re brand-new to barcode services, software, or systems and you want the peace of mind that a device rental can bring. Maybe it’s simply time for a device refresh, and your team would benefit from expert guidance and mobile device deployment support. Whether you’re implementing a new-to-you technology or you’re newly in need of managed mobility services as your business grows, the right partner is the one that puts the focus on you.

Look for a team of experts who’ll spend the upfront time listening and learning about your business, your people, and your processes. One that emphasizes IT operations best practices and maintains a network of partnerships with multiple OEMs and service providers to ensure the best match between your needs and your solutions.

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Barcode AssetTracking

Overview →

Benefits →

When to Implement →

Labels & Tags →

Scanning Technology & Hardware →

RAIN RFID →

Integrated Enterprise Solution →

Working with a Trusted Partner →

Do You Need It?Where Should You Start?

Overview: How Barcode Asset Tracking Systems Work

Start by consulting with an expert.

What Are the Benefits of Barcode Asset Tracking?

Is it Time? How to Know You Need Barcode Asset Tracking

Ready to see it all by achieving unparalleled visibility and transparency?

How do you know it’s time to implement barcode asset tracking?

Data Capture Solutions & Systems

What Could You Solve with a Single, Integrated Enterprise Solution?

Ready to talk barcode asset tracking?

Reach out to Barcoding today.

Barcode Asset
Tracking

Scanning Technology
& Hardware →

Integrated Enterprise
Solution →

Working with a
Trusted Partner →

Do You Need It?
Where Should You Start?