Equipmentmanagementboostingsustainability

Sustainable equipment management in Göteborgs Operan

”The benefits of equipment sharing are so obvious for the environment and for the economy. Now, the users have the possibility to borrow, rent, and share equipment that they can’t afford or do not have by themselves.” Håkan Jönsson, Facility Manager and Member of the Board, Göteborgs Operan

Håkan Jönsson, the Facility Manager at Göteborgs Operan, plays a crucial role in ensuring the smooth operation of this renowned Swedish opera house. His responsibilities include overseeing maintenance and services, logistics, and warehousing, as well as managing the complex stage machinery. In his role, he leads a team of around 30 professionals, from electronic engineers to cleaners.

The biggest challenge was the lack of control over the equipment

Before implementing Trail as their equipment management solution, Göteborgs Operan faced numerous challenges in managing their equipment. Håkan's team struggled with locating equipment, determining its usability, monitoring status, and tracking quantities. These challenges not only hampered operational efficiency but also made it difficult to deliver seamless services to their audience.

Trail Equipment Management provided an effective solution to these challenges. The decision to adopt Trail was strongly influenced by positive feedback from the Finnish National Opera and Ballet, which had already experienced significant benefits from the platform.

At Göteborgs Operan, Trail is central to their equipment management strategy. It helps maintain order across a vast inventory, simplifying the process of ordering and placing equipment both on-site and in storage. Additionally, Trail enables efficient equipment sharing among multiple theaters, including Göteborgs Operan, Göteborgs Stadsteater, and Folkteatern Göteborg. This collaboration not only streamlines logistics but also promotes sustainability and cost-effectiveness.

Sharing equipment boosts both the environment and the economy

The Trail Sharing functionality is highly valuable to Håkan and his team. They believe that equipment sharing offers numerous benefits, not only for their organisation but also for the environment, local economy, and broader community. By sharing resources, theaters can reduce their carbon footprint and ease the financial burden of purchasing expensive equipment. It also democratises access to high-quality equipment, ensuring that even smaller theaters and groups have the tools they need to deliver exceptional performances.

In addition to the tangible benefits of Trail's equipment management capabilities, Håkan highlights the exceptional customer-supplier relationship they've built with the Trail team. They have found Trail to be receptive to their ideas and responsive to their needs, making the system’s implementation and ongoing improvements a collaborative and rewarding experience.

In summary, Trail Equipment Management has elevated equipment management at Göteborgs Operan, providing a streamlined solution that enhances efficiency, promotes equipment sharing, and supports sustainability. With Trail, Håkan and his team can focus on what truly matters — delivering outstanding performances while ensuring that equipment is in the right place when needed.

Achieved benefits:

• Ability to maintain order and control over a vast array of items

• Simplified process of ordering and placing equipment in the correct locations on-site or in storage

• Improved logistics between venues

• Facilitate efficient sharing of equipment among partners

Trail boosts equipment reporting at Oulu University of Applied Sciences

Oulu University of Applied Sciences (Oamk) creates vitality and well-being in northern Finland. It provides education to over 9,000 students and annually produces more than 1,420 new degrees from six different fields of study.

A wide range of modern equipment is used in teaching and research, with annual investments reaching hundreds of thousands of euros. Effective equipment management ensures that the equipment meets teaching needs and performs optimally throughout its lifespan. Oamk has relied on Trail for its equipment management since 2015.

Status before implementing Trail

Managing Oamk's equipment, spread across several campuses, had become challenging. The existing equipment management software, due to discontinued development, no longer met Oamk's needs. For instance, the old system did not provide the comprehensive reports that Oamk required. Positive feedback from the Sibelius Academy also made Oamk more aware of the benefits of Trail Equipment Management.

Status after implementing Trail

Oamk introduced Trail in 2015. The user-friendly interface and support provided by Trail ensured a quick onboarding process. Now, Oamk stores equipment data in a modern system, significantly improving reporting efficiency. Additionally, Oamk uses the data gathered by Trail to accurately insure all necessary equipment.

Inventory processes have also been streamlined, thanks to Trail’s asset labels and mobile app. Currently, each department spends only about 1-2 hours per year on inventories.

Thanks to Trail's booking feature, it is also easy for students to book equipment for educational use. Students have a better view of what equipment they have at their disposal and are able to book the equipment they need for their projects directly from the Trail interface.

Oamk also utilises Trail for more efficient investment planning. The system provides data on purchase prices, service life, and utilisation rates, ensuring that investment decisions are based on accurate information rather than assumptions.

“I have been very pleased with the use of Trail. From there, we get Excel reports for a variety of uses, inventories have been speeded up, and the booking system keeps asset reservations better tracked. Trail's staff has also been a great support and help!” states Heli Malmström, System Administrator, Oamk

Achieved benefits:

• Efficient reporting

• Production of more accurate inventory reports

• Ease of borrowing and reserving equipment

• Improved accuracy in equipment information for insurance

Equipment management system successfully implemented

"The introduction of Trail has clarified our own processes and operating models." Pia Jänkälä, IT Support, Lappia

Lappia Vocational College operates across five locations in Northern Finland, providing education to approximately 4,500 students, supported by a staff of 340. Its operations span 30% of Finland's geographical area.

In addition to offering basic and professional degrees, Lappia provides a wide range of training and services for young people, adults, and businesses.

The school's IT department manages thousands of critical pieces of IT equipment. To maintain a clear overview and simplify equipment loans, Lappia adopted Trail Asset Management.

What changed after the introduction of Trail?

Before the implementation of Trail, item data was very scattered. "There were several different tables, purchase orders, and systems in use. Gathering the overall view of all IT equipment from various sources was a huge challenge" states Pia Jänkälä from Lappia’s IT support.

With Trail, all IT equipment was consolidated into a single register. Now, asset information is easily accessible and can be kept up to date.

"The introduction of Trail Asset Management has streamlined our processes and clarified our operating models. Today, Trail also helps us manage equipment loans, create budgets for future purchases, and maintain inventories," Jänkälä continues.

An intuitive system and proper preparation streamlined the implementation

Lappia's IT team thoroughly prepared for the implementation of Trail, carefully considering the users, items, and categories to be added to the system.

"We limited the item categories in Trail to keep the content more manageable. Additionally, we decided that access rights would be granted only to IT personnel and those managing loans, ensuring that the information in the system remains well-controlled."

Jänkälä emphasized that easy data input was crucial for a smooth implementation. Inventory data can be imported into Trail in Excel format, avoiding time-consuming manual entry.

Trail's user-friendly design further supported the implementation. "As a product, Trail is clear and easy to adopt. We also found the mobile app to be relatively intuitive."

Achieved benefits:

• All IT equipment information is centralised in one system

• Tracking equipment reservations and loans is simple

• Easy way to get a comprehensive view of equipment and its lifecycle

TV2 operations supported by Trail

Trail was introduced at TV2 to manage the production technology and camera equipment. The goal was to efficiently oversee the entire life cycle of assets, from acquisition to disposal.

“We were in need of a tool to support us in managing production technology assets more efficiently,” says Jon Eirik Olsen, production manager, TV2 Oslo.

Efficient equipment management

One of the reasons for implementing Trail at TV2 was to increase efficiency in equipment management. Trail was seen as means to reduce manual administration and improve control over the condition and usage of assets. An additional expected outcome was the reduction in the risk of asset misuse.

“Even though lost or stolen items was not a significant problem, Trail was introduced also to reduce that risk going forward,” comments Olsen.

Documentation and planning support

TV2 recognized the importance of storing equipment documentation and manuals in Trail for future reference. Trail also offered a flexible planning tool for systematic maintenance and repairs. Equipment usage reports were seen as essential for evaluating TV2’s future investment needs.

Self-service storage capability

One of the more important features Trail provided to TV2 was its self-service storage capability. This feature was designed to allow photographers to take responsibility for booking, collecting, and returning camera equipment themselves. For this self-service functionality to succeed, a simple user interface was required for both mobile and browser users.

“We wanted our staff to operate the equipment independently, and Trail provided us with the right tools. Our photojournalists are in and out of the office all day, so we introduced the Trail mobile app as their primary tool for self-service operations. They can now organise their camera equipment needs for their next assignment from anywhere, and they have an easy workflow for reporting damages or maintenance needs using the Trail QR code,” says Olsen.

Implementation

Trail and TV2 collaborated on a six-month implementation project to ensure TV2 could develop and roll out internal processes for better asset management alongside the system's deployment. During this time, the Trail team further refined the Trail Asset Management system to meet TV2’s specific needs.

“The implementation was a joint effort and included several training sessions, resulting in a lot of learning—not just about the system, but also about our processes,” states Olsen.

Achieved benefits:

• Improved transparency to all equipment information

• Self-service enabled for equipment bookings

• Improved control over equipment usage

• Ability to collect and return equipment through the mobile interface

• Reduced number of lost items

• Time saved in managing equipment more efficiently

• More control over equipment maintenance

• Improved visibility to equipment in personal use

Martela & Trail Systems: Partnership of two Finnish companies with responsible values

Martela is a Finnish family business founded in 1945. Martela designs and manufactures user-driven workplaces and learning environments. Martela’s design and specialist services cover the entire lifecycle of a workplace.

Trail Systems supports the management of acquired equipment through a cloud-based asset management service. The data in Trail system is built on identifier labels attached to the equipment. Through labels, Trail digitalizes all fixed assets and centralizes all asset information throughout the lifecycle.

Martela and Trail Systems signed a partnership in 2018 to respond to the demand of equipment management services from the equipment supplier. Work is going through a transformation and so are working environments, and with that, the importance of equipment management is rising. Both Martela and Trail Systems are highly user-oriented and customer-centric service providers. Sustainability is also a common factor for both parties in this partnership.

Sustainable and cost-effective asset management

Together as partners, Trail and Martela, offer customers comprehensive equipment management service for work environments. Customers gain the ability to utilize equipment data in planning and decision-making. Most importantly customers gain the ability to make sustainable equipment investments based on proven need, and with that also the ability to control costs. A sustainable asset management culture can be built only when data-based decisions can be made regarding combinations of new and reused equipment.

Working well together

The partnership between Martela and Trail Systems is based on mutual appreciation, open communication, and added value for the end customer. There is a solid base to build the partnership on.