This is the second installment in our 3-blog series about reducing costs and improving operational efficiencies around respiratory equipment management.
Previously, we covered how to maximize revenue per unit. This blog discusses how to improve total asset visibility. The final one will cover ways to improve operational efficiencies.
Let’s start with definitions. Asset visibility is the ability to see and track assets throughout their lifecycle, from procurement through disposal. Total asset visibility is a step beyond asset visibility, providing real-time visibility and analytics to help organizations make better decisions about asset deployment, retention, and disposal.
At its core, asset visibility is knowing what you have, where it is, its last service history, and its current condition.
To save costs associated with assets, an organization needs to access information at any point in time about the quantity, location, and condition of the assets. In this way, real-time decisions can be made about when to buy new, repair, or retire devices. This enables each asset’s lifetime costs, usage, reliability, and depreciation to be readily known.
For each device, you should know:
- Where each item is located
- Its current condition
- If it is patient ready and, if not, how long it will take to become patient ready
- Where is it best located (geographically) to meet demand
- The total cost of ownership on each device
- Initial purchase price
- Service and repair costs
- Last date of service or repairs
- Access to service reports
Considering the implications of that last bullet, service reports are particularly important in asset visibility because:
- They inform repair or retirement decisions.
- In the event of a recall, reports are critical to know if a particular asset is included, and if so, its current location.
- Reports must also be instantly and easily accessed for audits – from any location. For example, if “Branch A” is being audited, but service reports are kept at headquarters, they must be located digitally by Branch A when needed.
- Digital records of scrapped devices should be kept to get a clear picture of lifetime value, total cost of ownership, and asset turnover. In addition, understanding the recycling profile and reducing landfill use is key for ESG (Environmental Social Corporate Governance) scorecards.
Paper records increase administrative overhead, and create an unnecessary burden when modern technology is available. Quality Biomedical exists to provide an easy, streamlined approach to medical equipment repair, specifically respiratory devices, and eliminates the reliance on manual, paper-driven methods for record-keeping and tracking.
This technology is available when using Quality Biomedical’s service. This online portal, branded as Qconnect,™ is command central where reports are easily available with just a click of your mouse. In addition to knowing the particulars about each asset, systemwide reporting of combined assets is critical to help control costs. Reports should include units received, units serviced, and units returned to your inventory.
Another time-saving technology offered by Quality Biomedical is called “QTags”. By simply applying a QTag™ label to each device needing service, then scanning the QR code with a mobile device, RMAs are instantly created, pickup is automatically scheduled, and a trackable chain of custody is in place.
Quality Biomedical has long been a technology leader in the repair, warehousing, and logistics of respiratory equipment. – Maximizing your profitability is a natural result of the efficiencies we provide. Our tech-enabled services give you access to tools that help you make better-informed business decisions for profitable outcomes.
Schedule a demo today to see for yourself how easy-to-use technology can make a big difference in managing your fleet of respiratory equipment.
