Setting up office equipment is not easy or cheap. Furniture, IT devices, and heavy equipment cost a fortune and cannot be replaced frequently due to budget constraints. Although smaller losses may appear insignificant at first, recurring misplacements can contribute to a chaotic work environment, leading to delays, incomplete tasks, and a breakdown of processes. Therefore, it is crucial for organizations to implement office equipment management practices across teams.
From regular maintenance to audits, office managers need to take care of it all. Here we discuss what office equipment management is all about, why is it important, and ways to track office assets.
What is office equipment management?
In simple words, office equipment management is the process of managing the acquisition, maintenance, and disposal of equipment used by a business. It includes tracking equipment usage, condition of equipment, maintenance, and repairs, and ensuring that it follows safety regulations.
This process also involves inventory monitoring like ordering new equipment and disposing of obsolete ones to ensure smooth office workflows.
Importance of office equipment management
Did you know that companies tend to spend up to 1.4% of their revenue to replace lost office supplies? Frustrating, isn’t it? This can be avoided by properly tracking office assets. Let’s discuss some ways office equipment management helps businesses optimize workflows:
1. Reduces downtime
Have you ever faced a situation where, while having an important client meeting, your laptop just freezes mid-way, leaving you in a state of panic? It happens to most people. In such a crucial situation, if you do not have a backup with you, unexpected downtime can wreak havoc.
Not only this, but downtime also disrupts the workflow. You can prevent such a situation by having regular equipment checkups so that it’s easy to optimize equipment and they continue to perform at their best. This way potential issues can be addressed before they escalate.
2. Increases work productivity
When employees are working with well-kept office equipment, they struggle less with disruptions. The inability to find the right office equipment due to outdated records can lead to inconvenience and unnecessary back and forth. Managing office equipment with a robust system enables easy access to equipment through updated information. When workers have the right equipment, their productivity will likely increase.
3. Saves money
Needless to say, managing office equipment is a cost-effective way to avoid any double expenses. For instance, if you are managing equipment with the help of software that keeps track of all equipment, you can generate performance reports and plan routine maintenance which is cheaper in comparison to full-blown repair. And let’s not forget that you will not end up buying surplus equipment either.
4. Improves stock control
Without a proper system of supply chain management, firms are likely to suffer from overstocking or shortages. Setting minimum threshold levels to avoid stockouts helps businesses achieve optimal inventory levels. Readily available office inventory enables you to cater to business requirements without last-minute procurement requests. Having the right asset quantity frees up any tied finances the company might need otherwise. Â
5. Helps achieve regulatory compliance
By generating value-added reports all year round, you have access to accurate data on asset ownership. Information on the quantity of tools you have, when they were purchased, and how they depreciate adds great insight to your compliance needs. A reliable database lets you keep up with the latest regulation updates as well.
How to manage office equipment in 5 simple steps
It doesn’t have to be a hassle to manage office equipment here we have paved the way for you:
1. Identify office equipment
The first step towards organizing your office equipment is to know what you have, where it is stored, and under whose ownership it is. An easy way to do this is to conduct an audit. Here are some steps you can take to list down office equipment:
Select audit method: When you start preparing for an audit, outline all the data you will require. Then, figure out the best way to get that information. Depending on the nature of workflows, a barcode scanner can be used to account for tools lying around the office for an instantaneous stock update.
Compile the data : After the audit, you are required to generate a report which basically compiles all your results. Included in the report are the assets currently in use, mathematical errors, and other discrepancies.
Analyze results: This means accounting for missing or lost assets in the financial statements. Designated department heads are also informed about the findings, and potential policy recommendations are discussed. While coming up with solutions, you should also reflect on how to organize better audits next time to cut down on unauthorized equipment usage.
2. Categorize the items
Assets can be divided into various categories, depending on how a firm wants to utilize them. These subdivisions come in extremely handy to accomplish daily tasks without inconveniences:
By location: For companies managing work operations at different locations, this type of categorization is an ideal option. Because of the frequent off-site use of assets, you need to list down tools according to their current location. An example of such a business could be the construction sector, where the majority of tasks happen to take place on job sites. For this reason, it is necessary to track where certain trawlers and excavators are at a certain time.
By function: For access, firms sometimes want to bundle up equipment by their specific attributes. Under this distribution, assets can fall into various subdivisions like furniture, glassware, and lighting equipment. To handle all logistics successfully, firms that provide event management can make use of this categorization. With everything labeled and stored separately, it becomes easier to check out specific types of assets at the time of an event.
By department: Each business comprises many different departments. To provide seamless support to its clients, a telecommunication business could organize its equipment by these departmental classifications. Following this regime, the company would operate under the accounting, HR, marketing, and other departments. Such an allotment works on the principle of specialization of labor and accelerates business progress.
3. Create asset labels
When you decide how you want to categorize your equipment, the next step is to label assets with best practices in mind. Some assets are purchased for rigorous use, while others tend to be transferred a lot across locations. This is why you might need different ways to label different assets. For example:
Time-sensitive inventory: Some assets are highly consumable. It might be helpful to track these through their procurement details. Recording critical information such as expiry dates, purchase time and useful life for time sensitive inventory items makes it easier to track them.
High-value goods: Businesses can decide to track only valuable assets worth the effort. To make good use of available resources, firms therefore create a benchmark for the minimum dollar value they will be willing to tag. This ensures that not every little tool would need to be labeled.
Specialized use: It is also possible that assets might look the same but be used for separate purposes. This is where color coding comes in. Each product with a unique characteristic can qualify for a colored tag, such as all 16GB mobile devices having a green tag and all 8GB mobile devices having blue tags.
4. Appoint equipment managers
One of the most efficient ways to manage workflows is to make someone accountable for all asset management tasks at your organization. An equipment manager lays down the rules and practices to be followed to gain the best possible outcomes for your equipment:
Schedules maintenance: To keep operations running smoothly, asset managers can check equipment in for regular maintenance events. Timely repair and service sessions take care of any potential failures and prolong the working life of tools.
Creates asset reports: It is recommended to generate asset reports on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis to keep track of the depreciating value of the equipment. The wear and tear expenses are easily highlighted and necessary arrangements for replacements can be made promptly.
Ensures procurement: Managing inventory can be quite challenging if one is not reactive enough. Some assets tend to expire quickly and need to be replenished frequently. For this purpose, asset managers should devise a procurement program to generate purchase orders whenever the set minimum threshold for each item is reached.
5. Implement an office equipment management system
To make their duties even simpler, equipment managers can opt for cloud-based asset management software.
Such software comes with features that automate daily business activities like scheduling maintenance and adding location updates. Data secured on the cloud keeps your information safe and free from unauthorized usage. Equipment records are easily accessible to anyone with an internet connection, and the included mobile apps make it easy to update this data at any time of day. Using software generally raises business uptime and provides a greater rate of return on equipment.
Smarter tools for proactive office equipment management
When tracking and managing office equipment, you can set touchpoints across various departments to streamline workflows. Managers can prioritize and protect all of the company’s assets, making them scalable and easier to manage, promoting transparency in operational processes. Using quality equipment management software such as EZOfficeInventory allows you to create scalable, flexible reports, conduct audits in the most critical times, and keep tapping on every detail that contributes towards managing your organization. Smart features like QR codes and RFID tags make the job easier toward smarter equipment management.
