Bill Jacobs of HID argues the merits of RFID tagging for valuable office assets, such as PCs, laptops and file servers

One strategic issue that has fallen under intense scrutiny in many forward-looking corporations is the management of IT assets, especially computers. With the explosive growth of the mobile working class, the need to track the movement of computers has escalated from desirable to essential.

Various studies rate the ability to locate 75% of IT assets as “good performance.” But if even 5% or 10% of a company’s PC base is misplaced, the cost is enormous. On average a notebook PC costs £8000 per annum to own and operate. Some studies indicate that 2.5% of laptop PCs were stolen in the United States last year - replacement costs average out to $165 for every PC in an organisation.

Until recently, tracking the movement of mobile computers into and out of a facility was the responsibility of a security guard or receptionist. Some companies require employees and visitors to surrender their briefcases for inspection when entering or leaving. The guard or receptionist completes a property pass to record the transaction, as part of a log which could, in theory, be reviewed to identify missing assets.

This system often fails to stem the flow of lost computers. First, employees object to the intrusion into their possessions, so they find ways to bypass security. Second, front-desk attendants using paper-based systems can’t keep up with the number of mobile computers pass through — so many computers exit without ever being accounted for. Third, paper-based systems assume that they will be reviewed regularly and that someone will take appropriate retrieval measures.

The IT department is either unaware that the property pass log exists or is unwilling to pore over volumes of cryptic entries. As employees become aware that the company cannot monitor mobile assets, otherwise honest staff are inclined to accept de facto ownership even after their employment is terminated.

Based on what was learned from the failure of paper-based systems, we have determined that a workable solution must:

1) be non-intrusive

2) be fast

3) track movements

4) create knowledge of asset status

5) alert managers of inappropriate asset movement.

HID Corporation has developed asset tracking technology, called ProxTrak. It uses the same radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology used in HID access cards and readers worldwide, enabling the rapid identification of assets just as HID has done for people.

In partnership with software application developers like Lenel Systems, Honeywell, QueTel, Janus, TVL and Versus Technologies, HID now is able to provide corporate security executives with turnkey asset tracking solutions ranging from basic electronic check-in/check-out functionality to more complex enterprise asset management systems.

Today, ProxTrak technology is embedded in over 5 million IBM PCs and servers and enables security executives to provide solutions to many operational challenges.