What if you had a 21st century Star Trek transporter that could whisk you in a millisecond to anywhere in your organization — from jobsite to warehouse to back office and beyond —while displaying data in micro-level detail about all tools, assets, materials, and labor across multiple projects or locations? Chances are, such a technological marvel could keep your company on a course to maximum profitability.

Today’s comprehensive asset management software does exactly that for companies in the construction industry. Instantaneous access to all of your operation’s information grants you the ability to forecast results and drive major strategic decisions, not only at the project level but throughout your entire Enterprise.

Embracing a comprehensive asset management system will streamline processes across all departments and teams, for instance:

• Job costing and billing: Eliminate guesswork and perform precise costing and billing with automated calculations that take place for both functions simultaneously.
• Purchasing and receiving: Work with the warehouse and yard teams to buy smarter through comparison shopping features, preferred vendor lists, and recommended item lists, and to onboard new tools and equipment.
• Paperless asset tracking: Maximize the value of some of your company’s most important assets. When you empower your organization to manage tools and equipment with virtually zero paperwork across warehouses, tool cribs, job sites, and trucks, you’ll see efficiency improve enterprise wide. Streamlining communication leads to improved tracking, increased accountability, lower tool and equipment costs, higher productivity, and improved operational and strategic decision-making.
• Just-in-time inventory: Ensure your teams have all project necessities at their disposal to reduce costs and increase profitability. The time your team spends searching for materials and small items is lost time that can never be recaptured and can cost your construction company thousands of dollars each year.
• Consumables and supplies: Knowing exactly how much you have of each type of material or consumable, where it is located, and who is accountable for it lets you keep just the right amount on hand and move assets fluidly from one site to another as needed.

Now’s the time to explore the expanding universe of asset management systems available today. You’ll be amazed at their capability and impact, and even Mr. Spock would appreciate the logic.

By Jay Martin