As anyone who has ever dealt with the process knows, facility closures tend to create a huge pool of surplus assets. Dealing with these assets can be nearly as onerous as the closure itself, as businesses create teams and fill roles dedicated to inventory counting, valuation, sales, removal, shipping, and dozens of other tasks. When these processes are not streamlined or efficient, organizations will fail to get the return on investment their companies need to stay competitive.
How, then, do you best manage these processes? For many businesses, the answer is to turn to an expert asset management partner, as they know from experience that a best-in-class partner not only maximizes returns from the surplus generated during the closure process, but also makes the entire closure process easier and—in most cases—faster.
Here are eight advantages you could enjoy by procuring the services of the right asset management partner to assist with your facility closure.
1. Maximum return
Asset disposition should be the core of your partner’s business model, with dedicated professionals focused on maximizing recovery for your surplus assets. An expert provider will advise you what the best options for selling or redeploying assets and equipment are, helping you recover what your assets are worth.
2. Speed and efficiency
Your asset management partner should be able to leverage proven best practices to increase the speed of disposition. This is a necessity for many organizations, as many facility closures are challenged by tight timelines. Be sure to find out beforehand whether your partner can guarantee they will meet your deadline, and ask about their experience with rapid turnarounds, dispositions, and valuations.
3. Asset redeployment
It’s sometimes the case that surplus assets created during the facility closure process could be put to use at another one of your company’s facilities. By redeploying useful equipment to sites that need it, you could save millions in costs versus buying new. Your partner should have a demonstrable, proven redeployment process, including asset management software and training, which communicates redeployable assets globally to ensure your equipment ends up where you need it most.
4. Expertise
Experienced asset management partners combine market research with industry and asset knowledge, allowing assets to be valued accurately, best practices customized, and working capital maximized. With years of experience and hundreds of success stories in hand, your partner should be able to give you examples of recent successes in your industry, highlighting their knowledge of your industry marketplace and demonstrating their ability to help you capitalize on it.
5. Customized approaches
No two facility closures are alike, and your partner’s approach to dealing with them shouldn’t be, either. Your business likely has unique processes and needs, and respecting those are critical to your partner’s ability to help you achieve a successful closure. We cannot stress this enough: do not settle for a cookie-cutter solution. Ensure your partner will tailor its processes to match your own.
6. Sustainability and compliance
Asset disposition and redeployment processes must strictly adhere to government regulations and comply with industry standards, oftentimes in addition to internal sustainability metrics. An expert asset management partner will have multiple solutions in place to help your business deal with e-waste, data wiping, recycling, and other compliance issues.
7. Global approaches and online marketplaces
The best market for your surplus usually isn’t the local one, meaning it is critical that your surplus asset management partner operates with a global approach to asset disposition if it means to get the maximum return for your surplus assets. Make sure your partner operates with sensitivity to local and foreign laws, has expertise in import/export compliance, and reach into strategic regions worldwide.
8. Inventory tracking
Whether your facility is closing or merging with another, tracking capital assets is vital. Many businesses who partner with Liquidity Services choose to use AssetZone®, our proprietary software-as-a-service solution that allows managers and employees to enter complete asset information into a cloud platform viewable by employees across the enterprise. While many organizations might already have inventory tracking tools, AssetZone’s cloud-based functionality guarantees complete visibility across an organization, ensuring redeployment opportunities can be recognized and met.
Facing the challenge of a facility closure? Contact Liquidity Services and find out how we can put our expertise to work for you.
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