Kanoa Helms

Bar codes are everywhere. Most commonly associated with retail products, bar codes are also frequently used in shipping logistics, inventiry and asset management. But do small businesses with simple operations really need bar codes?

It's no fun being an asset tag. They're very boring and aren't usually on the guest list for raging parties or hip events. But asset tags perform an amazing service for sophisticated organizations seeking to track and maximize valuable property.

Asset management systems range from a name scrawled on a valued possession to high-speed asset tracking modifying extensive asset data in real-time. Implementing a professional program is quite easy if the core components and basic functions are understood.

Asset tags are often stuck on high-end workstations, heavy-duty construction equipment, vehicles, furniture and fixed assets of all sorts. They stay or go as needed — to the moon or the bottom of the ocean, on a missile rocketing towards detonation or attached to medical equiment saving a life. They endure a roller-coaster ride through damage and destruction, theft and recovery, and creative construction to ensure that valuable property is fully utilized and a company's investment is maximized.

Asset tags differ from barcode labels by utilization and constitution. While barcode labels are often printed on inexpensive adhesive paper, asset tags are usually manufactured from a polyester or aluminum substrate and the photographic image is embedded below the surface for improved durability. Barcode labels and asset tags both have a wide variety of uses and are critical to efficient business operation and the global economy.

Setting up a professional asset management system is actually quite easy. Let's discuss the four major steps to implementing a system, then explore inexpensive and enterprise-level software solutions by comparing four major software packages ranging from cheap to expensive. Once the software is decided upon, only a couple more components and you're done!

Implementing an asset management system can range from simple and easy to complex and labor-intensive. Small businesses can easily cope with simple asset accounting and tracking methods. As companies grow a threshhold is reached where a professional asset management system is required for optimal organizational performance.