Understanding Asset Maintenance, Repair, Warranties, and Insurance

Asset Checkout

PeopleSoft Asset Management provides the asset check out functionality in order to prepare, configure and maintain assets for use. This enables you to manage assets as they are moved around the enterprise for use in multiple settings. As well, the usage can be monitored and intervening maintenance or service events can be tracked while the asset is out of use.

Asset Maintenance, Service, and Inspection Management

At various intervals, all assets require some degree of maintenance, such as routine mechanics for company vehicles or repainting an office or building. Scheduling and tracking this type of maintenance provides a more complete picture of the true costs and revenues associated with these assets.

PeopleSoft Asset Management provides features to track the details of individual maintenance events by date and time, the person responsible for the maintenance, the vendor who issued the maintenance contract or warranty, and the cost.

Whenever an asset requires maintenance, you can track exactly when the maintenance takes place, how long it will take, and how it will affect cost and performance. Annual tune-ups may require that some automobiles are unavailable at certain times. Damages to machinery can result in large expenses due to unavailable equipment, as well as replacement and repair costs.

PeopleSoft Asset Management additionally provides the tools to view the maintenance history by type of maintenance performed or by the date that the maintenance was performed. Using inquiry pages, you can determine if any asset, or group of assets, requires a particular type of maintenance too often. For example, a vehicle that requires several quarts of oil more often than every 1,000 miles may have more severe underlying problems. Similarly, a piece of equipment that requires repeated repair or replacement of a particular part may be defective and should be replaced.

When you own assets that require expensive maintenance, you may acquire maintenance contracts with providers covering service and repair. While maintenance contracts do not necessarily have a one-to-one relationship with assets that require maintenance, you may still want to keep track of those contracts, the assets that they cover, the extent of coverage provided, and so forth. PeopleSoft Asset Management provides the tools to track such contracts and to determine repair and servicing costs, the time period covered in the contract, and the exact coverage specified by the contract.

Keeping detailed records of maintenance events helps manage the physical aspects of your assets. You can compare detailed repair estimates to actual costs and evaluate whether a warranty or maintenance contract on the asset can lower the costs that you may incur. Or a review of an asset maintenance history can help you make decisions about addressing underlying costs that are driving up the cost of production. Some assets additionally require routine inspections related to licensing or other validations or certifications. PeopleSoft Asset Management provides inspection and license tracking.

Asset Repair Data Management

In addition to tracking physical information about asset maintenance, it is useful to track detailed financial information. PeopleSoft Asset Management enables you to track:

• How long an asset will be unavailable for use.

• Hours required to service or repair the asset.

• Costs for labor and materials.

• Any other expenses that you may incur, such as rental of necessary replacement equipment.

This type of detail enables you to assess asset maintenance and repair costs. For instance, as equipment grows older, it may cost more to repair and service, especially if the parts are obsolete or out of stock. Tracking asset service and repair statistics helps you to see the financial picture more clearly and may be instrumental in helping you to decide when to retire or replace an asset.

Asset Warranty Management

Warranties can often lower the cost of repair and maintenance of your assets. Keep track of any warranties that you might have, which assets they cover, the period of coverage, the cost of the warranty, and so forth. Manufacturers often warrant an asset, or part of an asset, using specific terms and indicating specific conditions. Such information is easily accessible to all employees in your organization who might be responsible for the physical aspects of asset management.

Asset Insurance Management

PeopleSoft Asset Management enables you to enter asset-specific insurance coverage information, including key insured information, such as insured amount and insurer details. This provides immediate online access to asset insurance information associated with a specific asset ID, rather than maintaining this information in a separate database.