What are the 5 most commonly used software packages to track and
maintain inventory assets, such as computers, hand tools, and
vehicles, for medium sized companies (500-1000 employees)?

I am most interested in packages with costs under $20,000 for 10 concurrent users.

Dear netshane,

The most common solution for inventory asset management in a medium-sized
company is to use a custom database application running on a relational
database server. If a company lacks the expertise to do the custom
development in-house, this work is contracted to a consulting database
programmer. One consultant will suffice in most cases to develop
an interface for inventory asset management on a full relational
database. The database server itself takes care of transaction journaling,
querying, and concurrency support.

The choice of database server comes down to one of two categories:
commercial software or open-source. Open-source relational databases
today are as feature-filled and robust as their commercial counterparts,
with comparable levels of third-party support, but they do not yet scale
well to the massive multiway demands of corporations and government
institutions. For this reason, the largest enterprises still rely
on commercial products such as the Oracle database server and IBM's
DB2. While the complexity of licensing structures makes it impossible
for me to give you a quote for a specific company without knowing the
exact parameters of usage, a 10-user license will run into thousands of
dollars but likely not tens of thousands.


IBM: DB2 Universal Database
http://www-306.ibm.com/software/data/db2/udb/v82/


Oracle: Oracle Database
http://www.oracle.com/database/index.html


Like DB2 and Oracle, the open-source relational databases MySQL and
PostgreSQL use Structured Query Language (SQL) to insert and access
data. They also have hooks into all major scripting languages, making
it easy to incorporate database functionality into web pages and remote
applications. MySQL and PostgreSQL are very popular and reputable software
products. Although they are open-source, both are available in commercial
versions with long-term support contracts. Either one would make a good
choice for developing a custom inventory-management solution.


MySQL: Products
http://www.mysql.com/products/

MySQL: MySQL Database Server
http://www.mysql.com/products/mysql/


PostgreSQL: Professional Support Services
http://www.pgsql.com/


The second most common way of addressing inventory management is to use
the enterprise's existing accounting software. A leading accounting
package for small- and medium-sized firms is PeachTree Accounting,
which includes an inventory management component. The cost of PeachTree
licensing for ten people will, again, run into thousands but not tens
of thousands of dollars.


PeachTree: Peachtree Premium Accounting 2005: Inventory
http://www.peachtree.com/PeachtreeAccountingLine/Premium/Exclusive_features.cfm


Finally, I know of three software packages that are devoted to inventory
management exclusively.


IntelliTracks runs on top of an MS Access 2000 database.


IntelliTrack: IntelliTrack DMS: Fixed Assets
http://www.intellitrack.net/fixed_assets_software.asp

IntelliTrack: IntelliTrack DMS: Inventory
http://www.intellitrack.net/inventory.asp


Fishbowl Inventory runs on Intuit's Quickbooks software.


FishBowl Inventory: Solutions
http://www.fishbowlinventory.com/solutions.html

Intuit: QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions
http://quickbooks.intuit.com/commerce/catalog/product.jhtml?sellLocation=CATALOG%2FCATEGORY.cat0000000000006332134.overview.m0000000000002262605%2FfamilyIntro.0%2F0000000000003408511&priorityCode=0273400000&prodId=prod0000000000007974803
[if that long URL got broken up, use http://tinyurl.com/5mjfp instead]


Finally, Data Harvest is standalone inventory-management software from
TechTrack Solutions, a firm specializing in asset management.


TechTrack: Asset Inventory
http://www.techtrack.com/Services/assetinventory.html


You can expect that these products will be easier to use out of the box
than a full relational database or an accounting package's inventory
component, but they are are also much less customizable. Instead of
making the software work around your needs, often you will have to work
around the software. With the specialization of the software, you gain
some short-term ease of use at the expense of long-term flexibility.

For this reason, I personally would choose to employ a relational database
with temporary in-house development. The complexity demands of inventory
management are relatively modest, so it may not even be necessary to hire
a dedicated database programmer. Using a ready-made graphical interface
such as MySQL's Control Center, it is possible for a computer-literate
professional without database programming skills to design, populate,
and query a database to suit a firm's unique circumstances.


MySQL: MySQL Control Center
http://www.mysql.com/products/mysqlcc/


I have enjoyed addressing this question on your behalf. If you feel
that any part of my answer is unclear or incorrect, don't hesitate to
let me know through a Clarification Request so that I can work with you
to fully meet your needs.


Regards,

leapinglizard

HI, 

We are a software development company and wish to undertake this work
for you. Please drop me an email if you have not yet found the
software or a good consultant to do your work.

Tracking items used in a business such as tools, computers, etc is a
common issue with many businesses. There are a number of software
developers who have addressed this issue with what is commonly called
Fixed Asset software. Visit
http://www.findaccountingsoftware.com/software/browse/application/12
and you'll find nearly 170 different Fixed Asset applications. Nearly
all of the applications will cost less than $20,000.

To narrow down the list to the number you wish to review, fill out the
software search form listed on the left side of the Fixed Asset
software list.