Equipmentmanagementboostingsustainability

The British Museum relies on Trail in AV equipment management

The British Museum in London is perhaps the most famous museum in the world. Its permanent collection is one of the largest, and it was the first public national museum in history.

It is also one of the largest museums in the world, covering over 92,000 m² of area, including 21,600 m² of on-site storage space and 9,400 m² of off-site storage space.

Since 1753, the British Museum has educated and fascinated countless people worldwide. In recent years, presentation technology and AV equipment have become increasingly important in creating unforgettable exhibitions. Managing the AV technology in such an enormous facility requires strict processes and a reliable equipment management system.

The British Museum implemented Trail in 2021 to manage its AV and presentation technology. We interviewed the museum’s A/V Team Lead, Clark Henry-Brown, who was kind enough to share his experiences.

Mr. Henry-Brown, could you tell us what you do at the British Museum?

"The AV team manages multiple exhibitions, conferences and building systems across the British Museum. I manage the team and resources to ensure we consistently meet the highest standards for AV excellence throughout the museum."

What were your main equipment management challenges before you implemented Trail?

"The AV department at the museum is responsible for a vast inventory of AV resources, ranging from projectors and screens to portable sound systems across various store rooms in the museum.

With the AV team managing multiple exhibitions, conferences, and building systems simultaneously, keeping track of these resources museum-wide was a challenging task on a day-to-day basis. Often losing track of where AV equipment was, and not having a notable inventory or what equipment was available for future events and exhibitions was a common occurrence.

Moreover, having AV in multiple galleries across the museum, there was no way in noting maintenance schedules or logging technical faults - meaning that any reported issues were easily forgotten."

What is the main use of Trail at the British Museum?

"Trail works fantastically as a multi-faceted asset management system for the AV team at the museum. From a management perspective, it allows us to budget appropriately when a piece of kit is approach it’s expected lifetime - with such a vast inventory it was previously very hard to keep track of everything. Within the team, AV techs can use the system to reserve equipment for upcoming events and exhibitions they may be working on."

What made you choose Trail as your equipment management solution?

"Having previously used various asset management systems, Trail had stood out as an intuitive and easy to use interface. Most importantly, the Trail team were very helpful and eager to customise our Trail site to suit our fairly diverse needs specifically."

What are the most important benefits Trail brings you?

"As a project management tool, Trail makes my job much easier. The exhibitions calendar is planned years in advance, with earmarking of equipment for multiple exhibitions starting as early as a year before. Keeping track of what equipment is available, becomes hugely laborious within a spreadsheet and the hours of work it has saved using Trail to do this is priceless."

What best practices of equipment management in your field you would like to share?

"Being web-based means you can run Trail from virtually any device. We plan to use Raspberry Pi as an inexpensive way to have scanning stations across our multiple stock rooms."

Anything else you would like to add?

"The team at Trail are one of the happiest support teams I’ve had the pleasure of working with!"

Achieved benefits:

• Improved visibility in equipment and its locations

• Budget equipment purchases better than before by utilizing the life-cycle data in Trail

• Plan equipment usage better in the upcoming exhibitions and events with Trail’s equipment reservations

• An intuitive and user-friendly user interface makes day-to-day work easier

Broadcasting operations supported by Trail

Yle's broadcasting equipment is efficiently managed using Trail. Trail offers comprehensive visibility into the location, reservations, upcoming productions, and maintenance status of the equipment, ensuring those responsible can maintain availability.

"After we implemented Trail, the equipment reservation process started to work," says Ville Venell, Head of YLE's Production and Design Department.

Trail plays a central role in managing Yle's broadcasting equipment. Behind every media production is a vast team of professionals, each responsible for a specific aspect of the project. The technical component is critical, and with Trail, those responsible for equipment availability can ensure all necessary equipment is ready and well-maintained for production.

Trail also facilitates smooth information flow within Yle's operations, especially concerning equipment management. Accurate location tracking is vital for coordinating logistics around productions.

"When we discovered Trail, it set a high standard for asset management. The production planning software couldn't match Trail's capabilities, so we decided to use different modules. As a result, equipment management and planning are handled in Trail, while production planning is managed in separate software," adds Ville Venell.

Yle's Trail users have always praised its usability. Juha Rinne, head of equipment pool in Yle Productions states "Our experience of Trail has been very positive and our employees give constant feedback of its intuitiveness" According to Juha, ease of use also cuts costs because now the warehouse workers' time is not wasted in searching for equipment and equipment information. "It has been a great relief that now all users can easily see who is using the equipment and what equipment is currently booked. It has never been easier to see where the so-called 'Lost' items are.", mentions Rinne.

The equipment used in Yle productions has to be serviceable and therefore continuous maintenance is required. Trail supports the maintenance activities and logging of maintenance for the equipment.

Achieved benefits:

• All required broadcasting equipment is right where they are needed at the right time and in good condition.

• Transparency and accountability through an easy-to-use system

• Integrations to key financial and production management systems

• Single sign-on for login

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

Up-to-date equipment data supporting the technical operations of Helsinki City Theatre

"Trail’s functionalities were superior compared to the competition" says Henri Sneck, Technical Manager at Helsinki City Theatre.

The largest professional theater in Finland, the Helsinki City Theater creates unforgettable theater productions on five different stages around Helsinki. Approximately 240 theater professionals create approximately 1,000 performances every year.

The technical operations of large-scale theatre productions and simultaneous shows require precise planning and process know-how. Up-to-date and reliable equipment information is an essential factor in the theatre’s technical production.

What does the Helsinki City Theater use Trail for?

Technical Manager Henri Sneck notes that before the introduction of Trail, information about existing equipment was fragmented and unreliable. Now, equipment details, including purchase information, are easily accessible. For example, vendor details, purchase dates, prices, and warranty periods can be retrieved in seconds. Trail’s investment planning feature has significantly improved the process of planning future equipment purchases.

With Trail, equipment status is always up-to-date, providing reliable information on location, condition, maintenance status, and availability—all crucial for planning technical production for upcoming shows. Sneck also highlights the "device audited" functionality, calling it a "handy feature that conveniently confirms the device's location information."

Trail’s maintenance management module is essential for overseeing and ensuring equipment compliance. User manuals for lifting aids and devices, inspection protocols, and other device-specific information are readily available in the item cards. The asset reservation feature in Trail further ensures equipment availability at the specified time.

Achieved benefits:

• Up-to-date information on equipment condition, availability, and location is readily accessible

• Enhanced visibility into equipment purchase details

• More informed investment planning with detailed equipment data

• Equipment compliance guaranteed through Trail’s maintenance management

Improved control over the gear used in crisis management

The Crisis Management Centre Finland (CMC Finland) is a centre of excellence for civilian crisis management established in 2007 and operates as an independent centre under the Ministry of the Interior. CMC Finland is responsible for training, recruiting and equipping Finnish civilian crisis management and international rescue experts for global missions.

Operating internationally, CMC Finland has around 120 civilian crisis management experts permanently deployed worldwide. This has led to the need for better management of the various types of equipment distributed to experts in the field. Ville Mertamo, responsible for planning the Centre's logistics, sought an effective solution for managing stock balances. He's responsibilities include the storage, procurement, delivery and return of equipment for the experts.

Why Trail?

The challenge was to get the warehouse in order, maintain a clear overview of who had been issued what equipment, and ensure that everything was in working order. Mertamo noted that some equipment abroad was labelled with "best before" dates, and there was insufficient data to plan purchases effectively. After comparing several equipment management systems, Trail was selected as the most suitable, particularly due to its user-friendly lending feature.

"The possibility to use barcodes, QR codes and a mobile app were important for us. Pricing was made easy."

Smooth implementation

The implementation of Trail in 2021 went well, with a few colleagues trained to use the system alongside Mertamo. They managed the distribution of equipment to staff, responded to stock changes with reminders from Trail, and knew when to purchase new equipment. Taking the time to categorise warehouse items facilitated rapid deployment.

The biggest benefits

Mertamo cites the ability to view stock balances remotely as one of the biggest everyday benefits, freeing up time for other tasks. Information on the maintenance history of satellite phones, for example, or the availability of different equipment, is easily accessible from anywhere. This, in turn, aids in budgeting for future purchases and reducing unnecessary investments. By using Trail, wastage is minimised, as it is clear what equipment each person has on loan. Mertamo particularly values having all information centralised in one system rather than scattered across separate Word or Excel files.

Given Trail's effectiveness in managing various types of equipment, an expansion to other activities may be on the horizon. "Trail is a good basis for a wider roll-out for managing office furniture and equipment, for now, Trail is being used with gear," says Mertamo.

Mertamo also offers a tip for other Trail users: "Trail allows you to add other devices within your devices. I used this feature to create separate satellite phones and connections. The connection is listed under the phone's name and can be transferred to another phone if necessary, such as if the device breaks."