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Conventional asset tracking solutions usually meet multiple competing requirements of various companies in any industry niche. As a result, these solutions often lack one or more features that a company would ideally like. They must then adapt their business processes to whatever the asset tracking solution offers.
However, this one-size-fits-all approach is no longer enough to meet the competitive demands and efficiency requirements of large organisations and complex workplaces. Increasingly, companies using or offering asset tracking solutions are looking to customise tracking devices to meet their exact requirements.
In particular, the capability of devices is growing in sophistication, extending well beyond basic location tracking to monitoring the status of the asset and its surroundings. A mix-and-match approach in selecting from a range of technologies is enabling this growing capability.
In response to this challenge, Genesys is launching an Asset Tracking and Monitoring Platform that allows companies to rapidly develop a custom asset tracking and monitoring device that meets their exact requirements, as follows:
For large organisations: The platform allows organisations with significant asset tracking/monitoring requirements to bring their whole asset management system in-house, with no strings attached, such as ongoing subscriptions or integrating multiple third-party software platforms into backend systems.
For asset tracking/management providers: The platform enables rapid development of bespoke hardware that seamlessly integrates with your service offering, providing unique features that deliver that crucial competitive edge.
For other service/product providers: The platform enables providers of adjacent services and products (that work in the same environments where asset tracking is a common requirement or priority) to add value to your services with a customised asset tracking/monitoring solution.
The platform comprises pre-developed modules covering common asset tracking technology requirements, that can be easily customised to any particular application.
Genesys offers a full product development service to adapt the platform to your needs. The product development process consists of defining the requirements for the custom application, including developing a custom enclosure and attachment to the asset, defining the requirements for the device and the software required for tracking, monitoring, backend integration and any other custom features and functions; selecting the appropriate sensors, location engine and communication options, including combinations of these as required; customising the integrated mobile App that is used for registering devices into your system and any other user interface requirements.
A rapid prototyping process delivers a device with a baseboard and a custom sensor board. The baseboard provides most of the features common to all asset tracking applications and hosts the microcontroller that enables your custom requirements. A custom sensor board is developed with any specific sensing, location, or communication options required for your particular application.
After initial field trials and finalisation of the requirements, an optimised single-board solution can be developed. However, it is possible to go straight to this solution if there is a high degree of confidence in the requirements from the outset.
This platform applies to any industry with high-value assets, typically in insecure locations with a tradition of high loss or misplacement where large numbers of assets are moving around. Typical industries include:
Construction (equipment left in corners of sites or remote areas, including landscaping)
Health care (equipment moved around wards, floors, etc)
Military (military equipment around base and on deployment)
First responders (fire/police/ambulance equipment deployed in a hurry)
Research institutions (lab equipment going missing around campus)
Hospitality (high-value items in rooms going missing)
Logistics/freight (movement of products – containers, pallets, etc, including cold chain, high-value courier items)
IT Hardware (tracking computers, laptops in offices etc)
Government (local government, transport authorities, equipment and mobile assets)
Manufacturing (Mobile Manufacturing equipment and products moving through a process)
In developing your custom asset tracker, there are many technical considerations and trade-offs to take into account, including:
Battery life
Recharging options
Communication options and combinations
Operational sensors that enable deployment and essential functions
Monitoring sensor that reads the status of the asset and its surroundings
Location engine options and combinations
Specific requirements such as flight mode and tamper-proofing
Integration with other separate asset management technologies, such as barcoding and RFID
In addition, there is a range of commercial considerations such as unit costs, installation, maintenance, regulatory compliance, and more that are not challenging but need to be considered.
For more information contact Genesys for a free consultation to better understand how to develop your custom asset tracking and monitoring solution.
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