Good Morning List,

Last year my company asked me to use the principles and practices of records management and apply them to keeping track of their inventory of power tools that their construction crews use at their various job sites. So I set up a central tool repository, logged the tools (drills, circular saws, scaffolding, etc.) into a database and marked each tool with a number, and started tracking tools "out" to users much as I do our records. (I also track maintenance and costs for billing.)

My problem is that tools often travel from one construction site to another without coming first into the central repository so I can log where they are going. I have told the supervisors they can simply call me with the tool numbers en route to the next site and I will do the rest. They never do this. As you can immediately see, this causes my whole tracking system to fall apart. Particularly for billing, I need to know which tool is where. Their solution is for me to travel to all the jobsites once each week and log in which tools are at which construction sites. I can  certainly do this, but it seems cumbersome and time consuming.

I'd be interested in any thoughts anyone might have on improving the situation, whether technological, administrative, or operational. I have not assumed that the system I put in place is correct, so don't hesitate to comment on my approach in general.

Thanks for your help,
Gary Link, CRM
Corporate Records Manager
Astorino
227 Fort Pitt Boulevard
Pittsburgh, PA  15222
412.765.1700
412.765.1711 Fax
www.astorino.com

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