b'38 BUSINESS MANAGEMENT (continued from pg 37)site and often can get buried in the bottom of a trucks toolbox, making them far more mobile than intended.Tool Manufacturer TechnologyTool manufacturers such as Bosch, MilwaukeeandDewalt(adivision ofStanleyBlack&Decker)are leaningintotechnologytohelp preventtooltheftandloss.By givingmanagementandworkers the ability to monitor and track tools moresimplyandeffectively,they are reducing the burden of inventory spreadsheets or everything is hand-written, theremanagement and creating new capabilities that can is often little interest among construction crews tohelp recover lost tools.spend their time doing paperwork.For the most part, the new technologies rely on a I bet that on 50% of job sites that is how inventory iscombination of Bluetooth technology and software taken, says Stoller. The foreman grabs somebodyapps. Milwaukee Tool has a program called One-who writes down a bunch of inventory numbers thatKeythatpairsBluetooth-enabledtoolswitha have been email, then goes around to check off allsoftware app. The tools may be a Milwaukee Tool Dedicated to keeping its members at the forefront in their industrythe tools. The process is painstaking. The personbut the company also provides small asset ID tags in the field has to find everything then transpose itcalled TICKs that can attach to any tool such as a back. ladder. Tools are tracked and managed through the app. You use the app to scan the asset id tag, says GivingresponsibilitytoacraftspersonforatoolGagliano. Every time you do that, it will give you often implies ownership. You have a drill on youra location update with the time signature and date site assigned to Joe who takes it to another site,code. Its really good for scanning in and scanning says Gagliano. but you didnt track that move. Moreout.often than not on a site with a lot of tradespeople, theyre just trying to find the nearest tool to get theUsingBluetoothtechnologyandappstoscan, task done. They think its their tool. A lot of crewwhichDewaltandBoschalsohave,meansthat memberstaketoolshometodosidejobs.Theyinventorymovesmuchmorequickly.Doing dont mean to be malicious about it, but somewhereinventory manually can take two to three minutes in the process that tool may get stolen and doesntper tool, says Stoller. Just digitizing, even without get back. Bluetooth and bar codes, can drive that down 50%. With Bluetooth and bar codes, you can drive that There are technologies out there that can improvetimedownevenfurther.Andyoustarttocreate that system. Using labels with barcodes and QReasy accountability.codes you can scan into an online database can make the process much simpler. Tied to smartphoneThese technologies create seamless management apps,thatmethoddigitizesanonerousprocess.processes between the tool crib, the job site, and Thoseprogramsworkwellinthemanufacturingthe trade person. No longer do workers roam the world where tools tend to stay in the same place,site looking for the impact drill, interrupting everyone but in the construction arena tools move from site toin their work to ask if theyve seen it. Tracking tools The InsulatorApril 2022'