Any business that uses tools and equipment faces a few challenges. The first challenge is simply keeping track of tools so you know where they are when you need them. Second, dealing with equipment loss or theft. Third, the associated costs because loss, theft, or even misplacement often result in an unplanned purchase of a replacement. Businesses have come to accept equipment loss as a normal part of business and expect it in their budget. Many have tried to mitigate these problems with paper or spreadsheet-based logs, but the process is unreliable and slow. However, Redlist offers Tool Check-In/Out software that is a more reliable and easy to implement solution to these problems.
Address the Common Causes
Equipment theft is the most common cause of equipment loss. Yet, every business is different, and maybe your business hasn’t experienced equipment theft. Nonetheless, equipment theft isn’t the only problem that tool tracking software solves.
Misplacement shows up in many forms. Someone may have taken the tool and didn’t return it, or they lost it. Additionally, someone may put a tool back in the wrong location, and now it can’t be found. Without tool tracking, you have no way of knowing where the tool is, who had it last, or where they might have put it.
An incorrect tool log is also a major issue. If someone did not update the log paper or spreadsheet, a tool could be available for use and show that it isn’t. Or, it could show available and have your team looking for it when it’s actually out in use. Either you waste time looking for it, or you waste money buying an additional tool you don’t need. Redlist’s tool tracking is accessed via the cloud-based mobile app, which ensures that everyone can easily update the tool log and view real-time tool availability data.
Benefits of Tool Tracking
Implementing a tool tracking software will:
- Increase Employee Accountability – A digitized tool tracking process makes it a team effort to better track and care for your company’s tools.
- Prevent Theft – You discover equipment is missing sooner and can trace its check-out history to help track it down.
- Find Misplaced Tools – At tool check-in, employees can document where they left the tool in the storage room so the next employee can find it.
- Reduce Inventory – Tool tracking creates visibility into your tool inventory and actual usage. This often results in realizing you have more than you need and reduces additional inventory costs.
- Integrate with Asset Management – Redlist auto-populates reports with your tool and equipment usage data that you can use to create a usage-based maintenance plan.
- Improve Scheduling – When you can see your available tools, equipment, assets, and people all in one software, you can schedule jobs when everything and everyone is available. Alternatively, you can easily schedule maintenance when tools and equipment are not in use.
- Optimize Warranty Use – You can configure Redlist’s tool module to fit your needs, even including tracking your tool or equipment warranties to get the most out of your warranty before it expires.
Reduce Equipment Loss with Redlist
Tool tracking by paper or spreadsheets is not reliable enough to truly mitigate equipment loss. It leaves room for error, is often limited to one device or person, and tends to be a less efficient process. Additionally, it doesn’t allow for data reporting and analysis of usage trends, predicting future needs, or integrating with maintenance planning or job scheduling. The benefits of using Redlist’s tool tracking software go beyond equipment loss by providing you visibility. Your tool tracking process will be more efficient, and you won’t have to accept the negative impact equipment loss has on your bottom line.
