History tells us that new challenges give rise to new solutions. Society is transitioning from asset ownership to asset usage. This transition means that companies are leveraging usage-based payment models to pay for outcomes from assets and services, instead of owning and maintaining their own equipment. These new payment models frequently rely on detailed asset-level data that enables service providers to deliver a comprehensive value to users and users to gain a deeper understanding of their operations and ultimately business efficiency.
What is active asset management?
Active asset management is a component and benefit of DLL’s Pay-per-use models. It all starts with data. For a usage-based model to be effective, it must be driven by detailed data that is trusted by all parties in the value chain such as owners, service providers and users. The users can leverage this data for insights around:
- Safety and efficiency of asset operations
- Inputs and outputs (fuel use and carbon emissions for instance)
- Cost associated with the performance of revenue generating activity
By leveraging telemetry and Internet of Things (IoT) coupled with innovative financial solutions, asset users can gain transparency into operations and costs going well beyond their current ownership model. Companies can tie these metrics directly to output for revenue-generating assets and leverage asset data to make business-critical assessments, like operations management which may result in quicker decisions, reduced downtime, improved cost savings and lead to an overall better customer experience.
How can active asset management give a competitive edge?
Active asset management helps businesses gain clarity into all facets of asset-based operations. The asset user can monitor actual use versus projected use to make informed decisions along the way. Fleet operators may also use this data to analyze business processes and operator performance, while staying ahead of service needs and optimizing fleet size – and while some industries are more predictable than others, there’s always the chance for unforeseen circumstances, such as downtime or closures. Active asset management coupled with a Pay-per-use financial model can help companies manage their bottom line, whether they’re dealing with planned or unexpected fluctuations in business.
Through ongoing data exchange, manufacturers, service providers, and end users can use active asset management to think differently about:
- Scaling a fleet of assets up or down
- Changing the assets being used
- Usage patterns and behavioral trends
- Identifying problems with assets/units
- Uncovering trends in seasonality
- Proactive maintenance or service needs
- Determining asset or user inefficiencies
How Can Active Asset Management Benefit my Industry?
There are several industry sectors that could benefit from Active Asset Management, here are just a few:
Construction
On large and busy construction sites it becomes hard work to manage a fleet of equipment. Active asset management can help unlock insights like where the equipment is, who is operating it, and when it was last in use. This data can be leveraged to maintain a safe and compliant working environment, while increasing fleet productivity.
Commercial Vehicle Fleet
Managing large commercial fleets can be a challenge. There are challenges when it comes to:
- Maintaining equal usage of each fleet vehicle
- Ensuring the fleet is performing efficiently
- Avoiding unforeseen costs such as excess use charges and disproportionate maintenance expenses
Without the data provided by active asset management, it is very difficult to accurately track and optimize individual vehicle usage. Active asset management can help solve this challenge through the usage data it collects (i.e., how much an asset, such as truck, is used per week), which can help in making decisions such as when a vehicle needs to be serviced, or even when it is time to upgrade an asset.
Healthcare
Hospitals require a large amount of equipment, such as IV pumps, patient monitors and ventilators, to ensure that all patients have adequate attention. With active asset management through DLL’s Pay-per-use models, hospitals can gain clarity into the number of hours used and downtime of equipment. These insights can help hospitals anticipate and prepare for the future, manage spare capacity, and make economic decisions such as fleet optimization. When coupled with a Pay-per-use financial model, activity-based costing is enabled.
Are You Ready to Think Differently?
Gone are the days of “set it and forget it.” Active asset management is a component of DLL’s Pay-per-use solution. We help businesses leverage their asset data to build tailor-made payment solutions. Whether your company already uses asset tracking devices for fleet management or is just starting to think about asset management in a new way, we can help facilitate strategic conversations with asset data as the focus.
Ready to bring a new competitive advantage to your business? Contact DLL’s Pay-per-use team. Pay-per-use is available in Canada, United Kingdom and United States as of published date.
