Fixed Asset Inventory System

We have been doing physical asset inventory for a New England based aerospace company for a number of years and their corporate headquarters wanted to use the application across other divisions, worldwide. They use Honeywell CK3X computers to collect data.

This customer uses SAP to store all of their inventory data, so the first thing that they do to prepare a site is to export all of the fixed asset data to a CSV file. Each asset in this file is then printed on high strength polyester labels (if it’s a new site) using Bartender and some Intermec PM43 thermal transfer printers. Descriptive data is printed in the local language.

Before the inventory begins the SAP is again exported and transferred to each CK3, which imports the data into an SQL CE database. The scanners use this file to validate scanned data. Items can be marked with brass tag number, a government issues unique ID, or an SAP asset number. Brass tag numbers are unique, but SAP number are sequentially assigned, and can be duplicated across different companies. Some of the sites house multiple companies, so if the program detects more than one SAP number for a scanned item, the user is presented with a scrolling screen so that they can select the correct asset being counted.

When the program first starts, the main menu displays:

If they select Take Inventory, they are asked for the SAP company code and location:

Once entered, the data collection screen appears:

The user can scan either the brass tag number or the SAP asset number and the program will search its SQL database for a match. If the scanned item is found in the file, it is marked as counted. If the item is not found, an error message is displayed:

The user presses any key to acknowledge the error. Sometimes the user comes across an item that is not in the inventory, so they are asked if they want to add an item:

If they answer yes, a data entry screen is displayed and the record is marked, so that a new asset label can be printed. If the user is taking inventory at a site that has multiple companies it may have duplicate SAP asset numbers. When the program first starts it queries the SQL table to determine if more than one company is being counted. If true, the program looks for duplicate SAP numbers on each scan and allows the user to scroll through the descriptions to select the correct asset. Brass tag numbers are unique, so they are searched differently.

A program designed for a local company was successfully redesigned to work across divisions.