Over the years, businesses can acquire numerous assets that float around in their inventory logs unchecked. In some cases, these assets are expensive investments that have been with the company for a long time, but they either don’t know where they are or exactly how old they are. Asset tags are attachable identifiers that businesses can put on their inventory assets. They can be of almost any material, but metal asset tags are some of the most sensible choices.

Benefits of Asset Tags

Here are a few reminders about how important tagging is.

  • Better accounting and compliance: With asset tagging, you get a simple record-keeping mechanism that makes accounting easier. With the assigned information, your company can assign the proper depreciation value for the books and take a look at maintenance schedules to ensure service level agreement (SLA) compliance.
  • Easily accessible: When dealing with many items, visibility is a challenge. With a data matrix built around the inventory management of your tagged fixed assets, it’s more convenient to bring up the data and trace any information you want from a computer or mobile device.
  • Save time and money: Tracking down assets takes human and financial resources. With one centralized location containing all the necessary documentation, the time savings translates into money savings.
  • Location-sharing audit trail: If a piece of equipment is shared between departments, scanning the asset tag as a way of checking it out means there’s an audit trail that’s easy to follow.
  • Improved security: When equipment goes missing, it’s a scramble to figure out when and where it was last used without a proper asset tag. Having high-end security labels with the kind of durability that makes them hard to remove helps your bottom line and peace of mind.

Deciding Asset Tracking Priority

While you consider all your assets highly taggable, it’s best to whittle down the list to handle the highest priority assets first:

  1. Tools with higher risks of theft or misplacement: Items that fit this criterion should be first on the list to get tagged. Laptops and external drives may contain proprietary data that, in the wrong hands, can wreak havoc with your business. When looking to see which assets fall into this category, look beyond their monetary value.
  2. Items used constantly: Items used in everyday workflows, such as printers, fall into this category and will definitely need aluminum asset tags.
  3. High-demand and moving between locations:​​​​ If you run a construction company, for example, and you’re constantly moving your heavy equipment between sites, then that’s the type of asset that would benefit from tamper-proof, heavy-duty stainless steel or anodized aluminum tags that can withstand harsh environments, high temperatures and abrasions.

What to Put on Asset Labels

With custom asset tags, you can add your company name and logo. You can also use item-specific information, such as serial numbers, as an identifier. If you’re dealing with a strictly numeric group ID, consider adding a recognizable product category name to the number to make it more readily identifiable.

Using QR Codes and RFID Tags

QR codes are black squares arranged in a grid design that depicts specific product information. Its popularity in the retail space means its use will surpass 5 million by 2022. As a result, many smart device manufacturers are adding QR code reader functionality to their devices. As an asset tracking tool, it becomes faster and more convenient to check assets in and out using a mobile app.

RFID tags are devices that use a chip and antenna to physically track assets. Their data can be read with a special scanner that can pick up the antenna signal. This type of label is for larger pieces, such as construction equipment, where implementing this type of solution is deemed cost-effective.

Using Barcode Labels

Barcodes are the more traditional asset management tools that most, if not everyone, has used at least once. These vertical black bars can hold a lot of information that can come through on one scan. There are different types of barcode tags, depending on whether you’re scanning them up close or from afar. Once you come up with your inventory control symbology for custom barcodes, you can add it to your metal asset tags, along with any other labeling ID tags.

Whatever you decide, Metal Marker Manufacturing can help your business create the best asset labels and nameplates for your tracking needs. For almost a century, we’ve been making high-quality metal tags for long-lasting identification solutions. For pricing options, fIll out the form or call us at 800-428-0095.