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Discovering the Foundation for Asset ManagementAcquire... Deploy... Track... Retire

2Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 3

The Foundation ......................................................................................................................................... 4

Acquire ..................................................................................................................................................... 6

Deploy ...................................................................................................................................................... 7

Track ......................................................................................................................................................... 8

Retire ........................................................................................................................................................ 9

Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 10

Some of the People We’re Helping ......................................................................................................... 11

Table of Contents

Asset Management:Enterprise Visibility

Asset Management is an increasingly difficult challenge for all organizations.

There are an infinite number of ways companies will need to track their assets, all of them unique according to their own business systems, organizational processes, and corporate environments.

Recognizing this, how does one break this complexity down into something manageable?

How does one speak with clarity on a subject of such diversity?

We believe the answer is to understand the four core categories

Introduction

that, to us, are the foundation of any meaningful asset management strategy.

These four categories – acquire, deploy, track, and retire – provide the basis for all Use Cases within asset management. In other words, no matter what types of assets you need to track, or how unique your particular environment is, the foundation of your asset management strategy will remain a constant, always built upon these four foundational categories.

The trick will be for you to then build out your particular Use Cases configured for your unique business systems, processes, and environments, within each of these four categories.

In the final analysis what this means is that for you to successfully track your assets, you’ll need a system that is founded on the four core attributes of the asset management domain. You’ll also need that system to be configurable in order to allow these four core attributes to express themselves appropriately in your unique environment.

Let’s take a look at the four core attributes of asset management and understand something of the Use Cases that fall within each.

3Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

4Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

Asset Managers must control costs and improve performance and accountability of assets; all-the-while “keeping it simple”

At its core, Lowry defines asset tracking using the following four categories:

• Acquire

• Deploy

• Track

• Retire

The Foundation

Asset Lifecycle

Acquire

• Financial Info

• Asset Info

• Logistics Info

• Track Custodian and Signature at Each Step

• Verify Deployment

• Moves

• Updates

• Reallocations

• Easy Audits

Deploy Track Retire

• Enforce Disposal Policies

Let’s break these down a little further and see what Use Cases fall within each.

5Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

The first of the four is Acquire. How do you integrate asset tracking/ management into the acquisition process?

Acquire is where assets are initially brought into the asset management system. There are many ways to “acquire” assets within the system.

The following Use Cases fall within the Acquire category:

1. Create Assets Manually An asset can be created quite simply through the user interface. While this works for one, or maybe just a few, assets, it will be far too time consuming for larger numbers of assets.

2. Create Assets via Import

Acquire

Acquire

• Financial Info

• Asset Info

• Logistics Info

The existing asset inventory can be imported into the asset management system via csv template. This can be done yourself or with help from your solutions provider such as Lowry.

3. Create Assets via Automated Interface The existing asset inventory and subsequent changes to the inventory can be regularly updated through an automated interface with other customer business systems such as a procurement system, a CMDB, etc. The solutions provider should include an API to use for this sort of automation.

Figure 1: Acquire

6Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

The second of the four is Deploy. How do you track/ manage the deployment of your asset inventory?

The Deploy category is where assets are placed into the company’s environment for use within their operations, or storage for use at a later time.

The following Use Cases fall within the Deploy category:

4. Register Assets New assets can be registered in the solutions web interface, through a manual import, through an automated interface, or in the solution’s mobile app.

5. Tag Assets

Deploy

• Track Custodian and Signature at Each Step

• Verify Deployment

Deploy

• Barcode or RFID labels can be printed during registration in the web or mobile application,

• Labels can be printed for individual assets after import,

• Pre-encoded RFID tags can be associated to assets using the mobile application, and

• RFID tags can also be re-encoded using the mobile application.

There are several options for identifying assets with unique barcode or RFID labels, including:

Figure 2: Deploy

7Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

The third of the four is Track. How do you track/manage the lifecycle of your assets once in the system?

The Track category is where the lifecycle of the assets are tracked. From asset acquisition, to deployment, to any and all changes that occur during the assets lifecycle, every transaction associated with each asset must be recorded.

These transaction details must then be available through various means, such as a web interface, reporting interface, or dashboard interface, for use within the organization.

The following Use Cases fall under the Track category:

6. Audit / Physical Inventory

Track

Figure 3: Track

Audits of the asset inventory can be performed with ACS Mobile. During an audit the expected assets for each location will be displayed for the user. As the user scans each asset in the area they are checked off of the expected asset list. Any scans of unexpected assets will alert the user, so that they may choose to move the asset to its expected location, or choose to update the asset’s current location to the area being audited. Any expected assets not found in the area being audited may be flagged as missing allowing for subsequent follow up.

7. Search Users may search for assets in ACS Web by asset type, location, status, department of ownership, assigned user or any other asset attributes such as asset description.

• Moves

• Updates

• Reallocations

• Easy Audits

Track

8Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

Track (cont.)

Figure 4: Track

• Moves

• Updates

• Reallocations

• Easy Audits

Track

8. Find Assets Users may locate specific assets by searching for their unique RFID tags using the handheld RFID reader. When searching for a tag the user is guided to the asset by a “Geiger Counter” like audible indication where the frequency of the notification increases as the user approaches the asset.

9. Update Assets Asset information can be updated via ACS Web, in real-time wireless or disconnected batch mode in ACS Mobile, or csv import in ACS Web.

10. Export Asset information can be exported in csv format via ACS Web or through reports in additional formats such as xml, pdf, doc, xls, or csv.

9Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

The final of the four core attributes of asset management is Retire. How do you track/ manage the retiring of your assets at their end-of-life?

The Retire category is where assets that are at their end-of-life are removed from active use and disposed of in some manner.

The following Use Cases fall under the Track category:

11. Dispose Assets At the end of the assets’ useful lives their final disposition can be tracked within the system for reference and reporting purposes. All retirement and disposal information is retained to ensure that policies are adhered to and compliance can be demonstrated. Disposal reasons include:

Retire

Figure 5: Retire

• Lost

• Destroyed

• Salvaged

• Sold

• Custom

Retire

• Enforce Disposal Policies

The proper foundation for asset management will allow for each unique companies unique processes to be implemented with their unique business systems so that each organization can achieve its own best value from a modern asset management solution.

There really are an infinite number of ways companies can track their assets, and all of them really are unique according to their own business systems, organizational processes, and corporate environments.

The only way to bring clarity to a subject that has an infinite number of configuration options is to break it down to its core components.

That’s what the four categories of acquire, deploy, track, and retire, really are.

In all our experience, no matter what types of assets you need to track, or how unique your particular environment is, the foundation of your asset management strategy will always remain acquire, deploy, track, and retire; these four foundational categories.

Let us help you make sense of your asset tracking/management needs by showing you how the LowryTrack Asset Control System (ACS) can bring the kind of configurability you need to make “Proactive” asset management, or better, your reality.

Conclusion

10Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

11Lowry Solutions | Discovering the Foundation for Asset Management

First off, thank you for considering Lowry Solutions as your source for information regarding your asset tracking/ management needs.

Since 1974, Lowry Solutions has been an industry leader in Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) system integration. As an award winning Premier AIDC Systems Integrator, Lowry is committed to ensure we are building upon and providing our customers with dynamic solutions that meet the needs and requirements of their business.

Some of the customers we’ve helped achieve Proactive or Service/Value Oriented asset management maturity levels include the following:

About Lowry – Some of the People We’ve Helped

• Vehicle Tracking• Parts Tracking• Test Lab Equipment Tracking

Automotive

• Tool Tracking with Calibration Interface

Aircraft, Space, and Industrial Application

• IT Asset Tracking with CMDB Interface

State of Michigan

• IT Asset Tracking with Mapping Functionality

Municipality

• IT Asset Tracking• Fixed Asset Tracking

Financial Services Credit Union

• File Tracking

Financial Services Document Custodian

• File Tracking

Marine Corps

• Weapons Tracking

Criminal Investigations Lab

• Creative Assets with SAP Interface

Designer Clothier

• Material Tracking with SAP Interface

Global Silicones Provider

Given the breadth of customers we work with and the verticals we support (remember, asset management is a vital discipline across all verticals), Lowry tailors each project to the individual needs of each organization. This mindset is evident in the LowryTrack ACS product itself, which is built from the ground up for scalability and configurability. It is also expressed in the full suite of product and service offerings available at Lowry Solutions, which help us provide you a successful implementation regardless of your needs, be they focused in hardware, software, training, services, or some combination thereof.

Also, the customized Lowry Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM) Agile Implementation methodology is the underlying strength of our successful implementations. This methodology allows for a thorough and complete testing and “Go-Live” process while also providing the detail necessary for future functionality considerations and possible expansion to other areas within a customer’s organization. Training, along with ongoing maintenance of the in-production solutions, is also addressed in the process.

Through this pragmatic approach, Lowry eliminates waste from the outset, adds value at every stage, and embraces change to produce a better solution. Lowry has multiple years of experience working with customers from diverse backgrounds and understands that not everyone is fully versed in the combined Agile Implementation methodology. Lowry therefore is committed to working with its customer’s team to further demonstrate the benefits of the Agile Implementation process.

For more information, contact us at (800) 733-0210 or visit us online at www.lowrysolutions.com.

At Lowry Solutions, our FOCUS always remains helping our Customers become more efficient and productive by applying technology solutions to our customers business that will increase productivity, reduce costs, and improve their customer service.

Lowry Solutions, Inc.(888) 881-2477

info@lowrysolutions.com | www.lowrysolutions.com

© Lowry Solutions, 2015