Giving fixed assets inventory numbers: a system and a tag

An office has twenty identical chairs, ten identical monitors and five laptops. The records say "laptop, 5 units", yet nobody knows who has which one, or which has gone missing. Identical items can only be told apart by a unique number. If you build the number properly and stick the tag in a sensible spot, you can find any piece of equipment with one scan.

Why you need a number

An inventory number does four jobs:

• it tells identical items apart;
• it links the equipment to its record: purchase date, value, responsible person;
• it keeps things clear when equipment is moved or sent for repair;
• in a count, each item is scanned and checked against the list.

The number on the tag should match the number in the accounting register. Two numbering systems quickly cause confusion. Whatever number your accounting system issues is what goes on the tag. Agree the procedure with your accountant.

The benefit shows up in a count. Say nineteen of twenty identical chairs are found. Without numbers you do not know which one is missing; with numbers, the unscanned number itself gives the answer.

Building the number

The best number is plain: a prefix and a running figure, for example INV-000418. Five rules:

1. The number is unique: it is issued once and never reused.
2. It is sequential and meaningless. Do not build the department, group or purchase year into it, as those change while a stuck tag does not.
3. All numbers have the same length, with leading zeros.
4. The prefix (INV) tells an inventory number apart from product codes.
5. If you need a branch marker, add it to the prefix once and for all.

For example: three branches with around 400 items each make 1,200 in all. Six digits reach 999,999, so you will never need to lengthen it.

The list gives each item one row: inventory number, name, serial number, location, responsible person and condition. When the place or the person changes, only those columns are updated; the number stays the same.

The tag: material and position

Equipment stays for years, so ordinary thermal paper will not do. Thermal transfer printing on a durable material such as polyester, or thin metal foil, is dependable. The adhesive should be strong and suit the surface.

For the code on the tag, Code 128 or QR will do: Code 128 is compact and every scanner reads it, while QR also opens on a phone. Print the number itself beside the code in a human-readable form.

Before sticking, wipe the surface with alcohol and let it dry. If you worry that a tag will be peeled off and moved to other equipment, a special material exists that tears when removed.

The tag should sit somewhere visible, away from hands and abrasion. Fix the position by type once, so that everyone sticks tags the same way and the scanner knows where to look:

• monitor: the back panel or the lower bezel;
• laptop: the underside cover;
• desk: the edge under the top;
• chair: under the seat;
• printer: the rear or side wall;
• cabinet: inside the door or on a side wall.

Do not stick tags on a hot surface, beside ventilation holes or where they are often rubbed.

The working order

1. Get the accounting list.
2. Walk the building, physically look at each item and compare it with the list.
3. Do not number an item that has no number at once: first find out which accounting record it belongs to.
4. Print the tags and group them by room.
5. Stick them on and scan each one.
6. Compare the number scanned with the list and write any differences into a separate table.
7. Also enter each item's factory serial number on its card.

Divide the building by floor and room and close one each day: then part of the work is finished and the rest is clear.

If a tag peels off or goes missing, the serial number helps you restore the item. Add a photo of the item to the card too, since in a disputed case it comes in useful.

Conclusion

Keep the inventory number plain: unique, sequential, meaningless. The tag should be durable and in a fixed place, and the list should match the accounting one. The Shtrix team builds the numbering system, prints and applies the tags, checks each by scanning, and prepares the result for 1C or Excel.