Tool Tracking Systems Help Surveying, Mining Services Calibrate Instruments
How do tool tracking systems help surveying and mining services? Modern surveyors are responsible for measuring, designing and planning both surface and underground mining projects. Technology allows surveyors to perform this function with great precision. Wim van Wegen, a writer for GIM International, a global magazine for geomatics professionals, describes the common technologies used in mine surveying today: terrestrial laser scanning, airborne laser scanning, airborne photogrammetry, unmanned aerial systems, and satellite imagery. Tools must be calibrated periodically to ensure their continued accuracy.
Tool tracking systems provide surveying and mining services with a means to stay on top of calibration schedules and plan them for timeframes that present minimal disruption. Attempting to track and manage calibration schedules using an Excel spreadsheet or even a paper log often results in oversight or other human error. Tool tracking systems centralize all of that data in one convenient location. Depending upon the system they choose, surveying and mining services companies can use the software to establish custom deadlines for calibration along with corresponding notifications and alerts. By housing all of the information related to your technology in one place, you can quickly access records. From there, you can determine who is responsible for administering the calibration, when that calibration is scheduled to take place. You can validate the completion of the calibration and view the results (pass or fail).
Fixed asset audits are another function that tool tracking systems can make considerably easier. In the planning stages, surveying and mining services companies must assess the proposed scope and demands of a project. From there, they determine their equipment needs and availability. An asset audit provides a detailed picture of the assets a company has in its possession, the condition those assets are in, and where those assets are located. Having this information in hand prevents surprises and delays later.
Asset Panda’s mobile tool tracking system makes it easy to transition your old systems to our powerful platform. Because it syncs with the cloud, Asset Panda provides you anytime access to the real-time data you need to run your business at optimal levels. From calibration and maintenance to audits and depreciation tracking, Asset Panda simplifies the task of asset management and helps you get the most out of your investment.
Why Routine Calibration Matters
The need for regular calibration becomes clear when you consider that the accuracy of data depends on it. “Surveyors must as professionals fulfill certain legal, regulatory and/or accuracy requirements for their clients,” said David Martin of the ESRF Survey and Alignment Group in another article for GIM International (“Calibrating Survey Instruments: A Modern Calibration Bench”). “Today … the rapidity and simplicity of modern survey instruments result in a tendency to assume measurements are exempt from error. This is, of course, simply not true. Instrument verification, testing and calibration are every bit as important today as they were in the past.”Tool tracking systems provide surveying and mining services with a means to stay on top of calibration schedules and plan them for timeframes that present minimal disruption. Attempting to track and manage calibration schedules using an Excel spreadsheet or even a paper log often results in oversight or other human error. Tool tracking systems centralize all of that data in one convenient location. Depending upon the system they choose, surveying and mining services companies can use the software to establish custom deadlines for calibration along with corresponding notifications and alerts. By housing all of the information related to your technology in one place, you can quickly access records. From there, you can determine who is responsible for administering the calibration, when that calibration is scheduled to take place. You can validate the completion of the calibration and view the results (pass or fail).
The Importance of Regular Maintenance
Of course, calibration is only one aspect of tool and equipment tracking. Technology fixed assets must be routinely inspected and periodically updated. Proper maintenance helps companies maximize the lifespan of their equipment, keep it running optimally and avoid unnecessary slowdowns, breakdowns, expensive repairs and/or replacements. Tool tracking systems also allow surveying and mining services companies to set up custom alerts reminding them of key maintenance dates. Each asset’s complete maintenance history may be stored in the system. Managers may run a cost analysis of any asset to determine how much repairs have run over time and whether a replacement may be necessary.Depreciation and Auditing
Surveying and mining services companies, like any organization, also must report the value of their equipment and other fixed assets for accounting and compliance purposes. Tool tracking systems automate that process, eliminating guesswork and costly mistakes.Fixed asset audits are another function that tool tracking systems can make considerably easier. In the planning stages, surveying and mining services companies must assess the proposed scope and demands of a project. From there, they determine their equipment needs and availability. An asset audit provides a detailed picture of the assets a company has in its possession, the condition those assets are in, and where those assets are located. Having this information in hand prevents surprises and delays later.
Asset Panda’s mobile tool tracking system makes it easy to transition your old systems to our powerful platform. Because it syncs with the cloud, Asset Panda provides you anytime access to the real-time data you need to run your business at optimal levels. From calibration and maintenance to audits and depreciation tracking, Asset Panda simplifies the task of asset management and helps you get the most out of your investment.
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