Asset Management To Grow: StudyAsset Management To Grow: Study

Managing a company's assets continues to remain a challenge for many enterprises, even as more companies turn to software and adopt "best practices" to help, according to an industry report released Tuesday.

Still, the Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) market is growing. In fact, EAM is forecast to reach $2.8 billion in 2010, up from $2.2 billion this year, according to the ARC Advisory Group. The research firm said aging assets, tougher regulatory compliance, and increasing security requirements are driving up costs, while budgets to manage those assets are continuously being cut.

The trend toward asset management is being prompted by companies relying more on the Internet and mobile wireless devices. Companies also are starting to deploy radio frequency identification (RFID) technology strategies and new monitoring devices.

A maturing technology market in North America and Europe to emerging markets in Asia-Pacific and Eastern Europe are also contributing to growth factors. The ARC Advisory Group research report also said companies today expect higher customer support and services and require more consulting and continuous improvement.

The EAM software vendors expected to benefit most from increased interest by companies trying to organize inventory are those with a strong presence in global markets and a focus on Collaborative Asset Lifecycle Management (CALM), said the research firm.

The ARC Advisory Group also said other trends prompting the shift toward tighter asset management for companies are the adoption of performance measurement and analysis tools to drive continuous improvement, new technologies that can enable improved productivity, and embedding compliance requirements directly within work processes.