5 Factors to Consider When Selecting Tool Management Software

For any modern construction company, an inventory management solution is an essential element to ensure that your organization is operating at peak efficiency. A modern inventory management solution goes far beyond simple tracking tools and equipment. A solution like Align delivers analytic insights to drive strategic decision making, automates time consuming inventory activities, and ensures that all inventory is accounted for thus avoiding costly delays and productivity bottlenecks. But with so many options to choose from, picking the right solution can feel like taking a shot in the dark. When considering a tool management software solution these are some essential categories to keep in mind to ensure you are picking the right solution for your organization. 

• Company-wide visibility - Making sure that your entire organization is on the same page often requires an inordinate amount of coordination that can cause more confusion than it resolves. A modern inventory management solution should help field, warehouse, and back office teams know where tools and equipment are at all times with minimal effort. This insight will help teams to have the equipment they need when they need it and avoid delays and log-jams in the loading deck of the warehouse. A modern solution like Align also seamlessly provides information regarding tool location, condition, and utilization. This allows users to ensure safety standards are maintained and accurate job costs and billing information is delivered in a way that ensures expensive equipment will be accurately billed ensuring that it is only used for what the job entails, helping to improve the bottom line of you and your clients. 

• Training & Support - A new and unfamiliar piece of technology can often be a bigger source of confusion rather than a boost for organizational productivity. Having personalized and easily accessible training resources available for your teams is essential to getting the highest ROI out of your purchase. Without effective educational resources being available to teams, the ins-and-outs of a complex piece of technology will end up causing confusion regardless of the utility or quality of the product. Align provides live online training through Align University where Align team members can help walk you through the ins and outs of our product. Along with the educational resources, Align also offers professional services as well as a support team that can assist you through any challenges or questions that arise.  

• Industry Experience -  The challenges that construction companies face are myriad and difficult to understand for someone who has never experienced them first hand. More than 30 years ago Align Technologies (formerly ToolWatch) founder Don Kafka had enough of losing valuable tools and productivity to theft, hoarding, damage, and mismanagement. From this problem Align Technologies was born as the construction industry's leading tool and equipment management solution. Since then Align has incorporated thousands of product improvements with insights from our internal team with deep construction industry experience along with insights from thousands of customers. The insights gained from decades of experience and the accumulated knowledge of a user base that touches nearly every niche of the construction industry has produced a solution in Align that ensures you’ll have all the features you need when the time comes. 

• Going Beyond Just Tool tracking - When it comes to an inventory management system, tool tracking capabilities should be only one of the features that you should expect. A modern inventory management system should not only keep track of inventory but should also be able to offer analytical insights on tool utilization, location, safety conditions, billing, servicing, and job site shifts all within a largely automated system to ensure that your people don’t have to waste time with productivity killing processes. With Align you get next level insights that go far beyond just simple tool tracking to ensure that your warehouse, field, and back office team are all aligned to drive productivity, reduce waste & theft, and give analytical insights that can be used to drive strategic decision making ensuring that your entire organization is operating at 100% capacity. 
• Return on Investment - When considering your options, getting to the bottom line of what you get in return for your investment is typically the most important decision factor for most organizations. To ensure you are getting the most from your purchase it is important to focus on a solution that provides holistic insights and boosts productivity across all areas of your business, including field, warehouse, and back office. These factors along with pricing plans that can be customized to ensure that you are only paying for features that help your business are essential to getting the highest returns on your investment. For a more detailed discussion of what Align could offer your business please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of our subject matter experts below. 

Although tool tracking is a fairly fundamental need for modern construction organizations, selecting the right systems has the potential to have a big impact on operational efficiency, project margins, and ultimately profitability -- making it a strategic decision of utmost importance.