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When assets run daily, it’s easy to miss signs of wear, delay maintenance, or overlook usage patterns. Over time, this leads to unexpected downtime, higher repair costs, and reduced asset lifespan.
That’s why factories need to adopt asset tracking and management best practices to maintain control, reduce risk, and make smarter decisions across the asset lifecycle.
In this guide, we’ll explore what asset tracking is, its types, its benefits, and seven asset tracking best practices to help you track, maintain, and optimise your assets.
What is Asset Tracking?
Asset tracking is the process of monitoring the location, condition, usage, and status of physical assets like equipment, tools, or machinery in real time.
It helps factories and OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) know:
- Where assets are installed
- Who is using them
- How they’re performing
- When they need maintenance or replacement
Asset tracking is usually done in two ways: manual and digital tracking.
- In manual tracking, you use spreadsheets and other manual processes to physically check and update status.
- Digital tracking involves using IoT (Internet of Things) sensors, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags, and barcodes to store, track, and update machine status.
By streamlining asset tracking, factories can better manage lifecycles and avoid unexpected downtime. Real-time visibility across equipment usage also reduces loss and helps you make smarter decisions for maintenance and procurement.
Types of Asset Tracking
Here are some common types of asset tracking based on common methods and technologies:
1. Barcode Scanning
Barcode scanning uses printed labels that are scanned with handheld devices or smartphones. It’s commonly used to track inventory, tools, and basic equipment. Although they cost less, barcodes require extra labor to scan each machine manually and risk human error.
2. QR Code Tracking
QR code tracking involves scannable QR codes attached to physical items. These codes can store more data than traditional barcodes and are easily scanned using smartphones or tablets. It allows factories and OEMs to digitise asset tracking while improving traceability.
3. RFID Tagging
RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags are attached to equipment, tools, or parts and automatically send data about their identity and location as they move through a facility or supply chain.
RFID is especially useful when managing large volumes of assets across departments, production lines, or customer sites.
4. GPS Tracking
GPS tracking uses satellite signals to monitor the real-time location of assets. It provides continuous visibility, helps prevent theft or loss, and supports better logistics planning for OEMs.
Unlike RFID or QR codes, GPS doesn’t require scanning. Once the device is installed, it automatically updates the asset’s location, often through a central dashboard or mobile app.
5. IoT-Enabled Tracking
IoT-enabled tracking involves smart sensors attached to machines or equipment that track and monitor your asset’s condition, performance, and usage in real time.
This type of tracking provides continuous data to your central system. It’s particularly useful for monitoring deployed assets at customer sites, factory-floor machinery, or any equipment where performance data is just as important as knowing its location.
6. Software-Based Systems
Software-based asset tracking systems are the central hub for managing all asset-related data such as location, status, maintenance history, and more. These platforms are often cloud-based and integrate with technologies like barcodes, RFID, GPS, or IoT sensors to collect and update asset information.
These systems help you track assets across sites, schedule maintenance, set automated alerts, generate audit reports, and improve team collaboration with real-time updates and role-based access.
Benefits of Asset Tracking
Here are the benefits of asset tracking:
Real-Time Visibility
Asset tracking gives you real-time visibility of your asset’s location, condition, and usage. By using technologies like RFID, barcode, IoT sensors, and software, you know where your machine is installed, how it’s performing, and which spare parts you may need.
Asset tracking also helps improve your workers’ productivity. Your technicians and managers can access organised asset data and easily retrieve important documentation when needed.
Standardised Framework
Asset tracking gives your team a consistent way to record, monitor, and manage all your assets. Instead of messy spreadsheets or inconsistent logs, your technicians follow one clear system.
This standardised approach reduces errors, maintains data accuracy, and simplifies staff training and cross-team collaboration. It also helps you stay audit-ready, meet compliance requirements, and avoid confusion when assets move between teams or locations.
Better Maintenance Planning
Asset tracking helps you adopt preventive maintenance by giving you real-time data on usage, condition, and service history. Your employees can easily set maintenance schedules based on actual asset performance.
With complete visibility of your assets, you can prioritise what needs attention, order spare parts in advance, and extend the life of your equipment.
Cost Savings
Asset tracking helps you cut costs by reducing loss, theft, and unnecessary downtime. When you know where every asset is and how it’s performing, you avoid buying duplicates, catch issues early, and prevent expensive breakdowns.
Data-Driven Decisions
Asset tracking gives you real-time data on how each asset is being used, allowing you to spot patterns and make smarter decisions. You can quickly identify underused assets that can be redeployed or avoid unnecessary purchases by knowing exactly what you already have.
It also helps you plan future procurement based on actual demand. With clear usage data and performance insights, you can invest in the right assets, retire outdated ones, and improve overall operations.
Compliance & Accountability
Asset tracking automatically records audit trails, service histories, and user activity. This helps you meet regulatory requirements and prove compliance with minimal effort.
You also build accountability across your team. With clear records, everyone is responsible for how assets are used and maintained, reducing misuse and improving operational discipline.
7 Best Practices for Smarter Asset Tracking
Here are the 7 best practices of asset tracking you should know:
1. Centralise All Asset Information
Relying on spreadsheets to manage asset data often leads to errors, missed maintenance, and disorganised records. You need asset management software to centralise your entire asset data into a single source of truth. This allows your technicians and end customers to access accurate information.
Each asset should have a complete profile, including serial numbers, specifications, warranty details, and service history.
For example, Makula’s Asset Hub helps you centralise all asset documentation into a single source. The software is built for factories and OEMs to manage their records, quickly access information, and resolve issues faster.
2. Use QR Codes for Physical-Digital Sync
QR codes attached to your physical assets let field service teams access their digital records instantly. These records can show specifications, service history, manuals, or warranty info from a single scan with a phone or tablet.
QR codes are a cost-effective and permanent solution that makes asset tracking faster, more accurate, and easily accessible on-site. They can hold a large amount of information and eliminate the need for manual lookups or scattered paperwork.
Makula enables QR code asset management by generating unique QR codes for each machine and linking them to detailed digital profiles.
3. Track Maintenance Events in Real Time
You need to log every inspection, repair, or part replacement event as it happens—even the small tasks captured in your daily maintenance checklist. Tracking in real time also helps your team respond faster, spot recurring issues, and log accurate service histories.
However, doing this manually can get complex. Makula helps you track maintenance in real time through automated scheduling, work order management, and on-the-go access to asset history.
You can set recurring maintenance tasks, record service tickets, and send automated reminders to technicians so you can maintain your asset history and lifecycle.
4. Empower Mobile-First Asset Management
You need mobile-friendly asset management tools that let your field teams manage assets directly from their devices. This allows technicians to scan QR codes, log maintenance, upload photos, and view asset history on the go.
Makula provides a native app for the field services team. The software lets you manage work orders, track time and activities, chat with customers on specific parts, and add important notes in real time. All these updates are automatically uploaded and organised in Makula’s Asset Hub for team sharing or future reference.
5. Keep a Digital Audit Trail
Always maintain a clear, digital record of every action taken on an asset. This includes installs, maintenance, repairs, and handoffs. When you have a digital audit trail, you can fully trace your asset performance and hold your workers accountable when needed.
6. Standardise Asset Documentation
Each asset should follow a standard format for storing details like specs, installation details, serial numbers, maintenance logs, user manuals, and warranty terms. This helps you avoid miscommunication, inconsistent asset records, or missed claims.
Makula standardises asset documentation by creating structured digital profiles for every asset, with consistent fields for specs, manuals, warranties, and service logs. OEMs can also use Makula’s Customer Portal to give clients’ technicians access to preformatted documentation, such as user manuals, parts diagrams, and 3D work instructions.
7. Leverage AI for Instant Knowledge Retrieval
Managing multiple assets and their specific details manually can overcomplicate maintenance or service tasks. AI-powered tools can retrieve exact information from the centralised database. This helps technicians get instant answers right on-site.
Makula’s AI Copilot enables field service teams to search across uploaded manuals, spec sheets, and service documents in seconds. Whether it’s a PDF from the OEM or a how-to guide added by your team, Copilot finds what’s been added to the knowledge base and makes it easily accessible on-site, with multi-language support.
For example, if a technician searches for “error code 37”, the Copilot can instantly retrieve related pages from the uploaded manuals or documents, helping them move forward without delay.
Industries That Benefit from Asset Tracking
Here are some industries that benefit from asset tracking:
Manufacturing
Factories and equipment manufacturers rely on asset tracking to monitor machinery across production lines and client locations.
It offers real-time visibility across equipment status, usage, and service history. This helps them prevent downtime, automate preventive maintenance, and manage tools, spare parts, and inventory more efficiently.
For OEMs, asset tracking also improves after-sales support, remote diagnostics, and warranty compliance through a complete digital audit trail.
Logistics & Warehousing
Asset tracking helps logistics teams monitor fleets, containers, pallets, forklifts, and other warehouse equipment in real time. By tagging assets with GPS, RFID, or barcodes, companies can track movement across distribution centres, prevent misplacement, and reduce theft or loss.
Construction
In the construction industry, equipment is constantly moving between sites. Asset tracking helps monitor their real-time location, usage hours, and condition. Companies can also maintain the timely servicing of heavy machinery like excavators, generators, and cranes.
Healthcare
Hospitals and clinics use asset tracking to locate medical devices and schedule maintenance. It also helps them meet compliance for critical equipment like ventilators, infusion pumps, or diagnostic tools.
The Future of Asset Tracking
Asset tracking is more than just location tracking. It’s a smart way of maintaining your asset lifecycle to prevent unexpected downtimes and save operational costs. As new technologies develop, asset tracking will become smarter and more connected.
Here are some future trends in asset tracking:
- AI assistant integrations: AI assistants will retrieve asset data and details from the knowledge base based on natural-language questions. For example, Makula’s AI Copilot allows you to create machine-specific AI assistants to retrieve accurate answers for after-sales support and troubleshooting.
- IoT-based analytics: Real-time data from connected IoT devices will provide full visibility of asset condition, usage, and performance across facilities. This will help companies improve predictive maintenance.
- Cloud-native platforms: Modern asset tracking is shifting to cloud-native, mobile-friendly platforms for real-time access from anywhere. For example, Makula lets technicians scan QR codes, log maintenance, upload photos, and view service history on the go.
- Predictive tracking: As AI and IoT become more integrated, predictive tracking will provide greater accuracy, adjust maintenance schedules automatically, and even recommend parts before failure occurs.
- Sustainability and circular asset use: Future systems will help monitor energy usage, track emissions, and manage the reuse, refurbishment, or recycling of equipment.
Learn more about how Makula optimises asset tracking to improve aftersales, field service, and maintenance for factories and OEMs. Book a demo with us today!
