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Equipment Serial Registry with Genealogy

Centralised registry of all equipment serial numbers with installation dates, location history, and maintenance genealogy.

Solution Overview

Centralised registry of all equipment serial numbers with installation dates, location history, and maintenance genealogy. This solution is part of our Assets category and can be deployed in 2-4 weeks using our proven tech stack.

Industries

This solution is particularly suited for:

Manufacturing Healthcare Aerospace

The Need

Manufacturing, healthcare, aerospace, and heavy equipment industries face a critical challenge: equipment is not just a cost center—it is a regulated asset that must be tracked throughout its entire lifecycle, and regulatory auditors demand complete genealogy. When an X-ray machine arrives at a hospital, is serviced by a technician, transferred to another facility, and eventually retired, there must be a central record documenting every step—or auditors will cite non-compliance. A medical device manufacturer using an HPLC instrument for quality testing must prove that the equipment was calibrated on the correct date, by the correct lab, and that the calibration was current when products were tested. An aerospace supplier manufacturing a precision bearing must prove traceability from raw material supplier, through all manufacturing equipment, to final part shipment—without this documentation, export licenses are suspended.

Today's reality is fragmented disaster. Equipment information is scattered across systems: purchase orders list serial numbers in one format, maintenance systems use different identifiers, compliance records use yet another naming scheme. A hospital's MRI machine is registered in the procurement system as "MRI-2019-001", in the maintenance system as "MRI2019001", and in compliance records as "MRI-A-001"—are these the same machine or three different machines? Without systematic tracking, nobody knows. When regulatory auditors visit and ask "Can you prove this equipment was properly maintained and calibrated?"—the company must manually search multiple systems, match serial numbers by hand, compile evidence into spreadsheets, and hope nothing is missing. This process takes days and is highly error-prone.

The compliance consequences are severe and specific. In aerospace manufacturing, untracked equipment genealogy triggers audit findings under AS9100 and ITAR, potentially suspending export licenses and halting production ($100,000+ per day in losses). In medical device manufacturing under FDA regulations, if equipment maintenance records are incomplete or linked to the wrong equipment, the resulting products are considered contaminated and must be recalled ($500,000-5,000,000+ impact). In pharmaceutical manufacturing under 21 CFR Part 11, auditors require documented evidence that the correct equipment was used for batch testing—without a serial registry, compliance cannot be demonstrated. In manufacturing under ISO 9001, auditors identify non-compliance when equipment calibration records are scattered and unlinked to equipment serial numbers.

The operational impact is equally severe. When equipment breaks down unexpectedly, technicians cannot quickly determine maintenance history or warranty status—emergency repairs ($5,000-15,000) are paid out-of-pocket when scheduled maintenance ($1,500) could have prevented the failure. Manufacturing facilities lose production days when equipment failures occur that proper maintenance could have prevented. Service contracts and warranty coverage are unclear, leading to unnecessary costs. Most critically, auditor visits are high-stress events because the company cannot quickly demonstrate compliance, creating risk of audit findings, production holds, or license suspension. The root cause is organizational: there is no central equipment serial registry providing immutable, auditable proof of equipment identity, maintenance history, calibration status, and regulatory compliance.

The Idea

An Equipment Serial Registry System transforms fragmented equipment data into a unified asset lifecycle management platform that provides a single source of truth for every piece of equipment in the organization. The system creates a permanent, immutable record of each equipment's journey: manufacturing details, purchase information, installation location, maintenance history, calibration status, regulatory compliance status, upgrade history, and eventual retirement or transfer. When an auditor asks "Can you prove this equipment is properly maintained?"—the company opens the Equipment Serial Registry, searches by serial number, and displays a complete genealogy: "Equipment Serial MRI-2019-001 (GE SIGNA 3.0T MRI Scanner, Manufacturing Date 2019-03-15, Serial ABC-XYZ-789): Installed Hospital Unit 3 on 2019-04-22. Last full maintenance 2024-11-08. Calibration verification current until 2025-02-15. All required PM checkpoints completed. No open work orders. Compliant with FDA clearance and IEC 60601-2-33 safety standards."

The solution solves the fragmentation problem through unified equipment genealogy. Every piece of equipment has a single immutable record from acquisition through retirement, linked by manufacturer serial number. When auditors ask questions, the company shows one integrated record: equipment specifications, full maintenance history, all calibration certificates, warranty status, regulatory approvals, transfer documentation—all timestamped and audit-ready.

Equipment Registration creates the foundation: manufacturer name, model number, serial number (with format validation), manufacturing date, technical specifications, warranty period, and regulatory certifications. The system prevents the serial number confusion (MRI-2019-001 vs MRI2019001 vs MRI-A-001) by enforcing consistent naming across the entire organization—one serial number, one equipment record.

Location and Transfer Tracking captures equipment movement: where equipment was installed, when it was moved to different facilities, who authorized the transfer, and condition at time of transfer. This creates an immutable trail: "MRI-2019-001: Hospital Unit 3 (April 2019 - Dec 2023) → Hospital Unit 7 (Dec 2023 - Present)." Auditors can verify that equipment was always maintained and in compliance at each location.

Maintenance and Calibration History is the core value: every maintenance activity (PM, repair, calibration, upgrade) is linked to equipment serial number with date, technician, results, and supporting documentation (calibration certificates, test reports). The system automatically tracks maintenance schedules by equipment type and alerts when service is due. Crucially, the system preserves all evidence: calibration certificates from accredited labs, FDA-required documentation, and technician sign-offs. When an auditor asks "Was this equipment calibrated in June 2024?"—the company clicks one button and displays the signed calibration certificate.

Warranty and Service Contract Tracking is linked to serial numbers: coverage dates, covered components, response guarantees, and billing rules. When maintenance is performed, the system references warranty/contract status and flags whether work is covered or billable.

Regulatory Compliance Status is tracked and alerted. For medical devices: FDA clearance/approval status and equipment safety certifications. For aerospace: AS9100 certification and supplier traceability. For pharmaceutical: equipment qualification status (IQ/OQ/PQ for manufacturing systems) and regulatory certifications. The system generates automatic alerts when compliance certifications are approaching expiration, preventing the audit finding "Equipment certification expired."

Audit Trail and Evidence Management ensures all records are immutable and timestamped, meeting FDA 21 CFR Part 11 regulatory requirements. When auditors arrive, the company generates a compliance report on demand: "47 equipment registered. 45 currently compliant (maintenance and calibration current). 2 non-compliant (flagged for immediate attention). All evidence attached."

Equipment Retirement is documented: decommissioning date, reason, disposal method, and retention. Documentation is preserved per regulatory requirements (7-10 years medical devices, indefinitely aerospace) so auditors can verify that retired equipment is not still being used.

How It Works

flowchart TD A[Equipment Received/
Manufactured] -->|Create Record| B[Equipment Serial
Registry] B -->|Store Master Data| C[Manufacturer/Model/
Serial/Warranty] C -->|Print Barcode| D[Label Equipment &
Store Location] D -->|Trigger Alert| E[Maintenance Schedule
Alert: Due Date] E -->|Technician Scan
Barcode| F[Access Full Equipment
History] F -->|Perform Work| G[Record Maintenance:
Date/Technician/Parts] G -->|Attach Evidence| H[Upload Calibration
Certs & Reports] H -->|Update Status| I{Check
Warranty} I -->|Current| J[Bill Under
Warranty] I -->|Expired| K[Bill Customer
Directly] J --> L[Track Regulatory
Compliance Status] K --> L L -->|Verify Compliance| M{All
Requirements
Met?} M -->|Yes| N[Generate Audit
Report: Compliant] M -->|No| O[Flag Non-Compliant
Equipment] N -->|Auditor Reviews| P[Pass Regulatory
Inspection] O -->|Schedule Remediation| E E -->|Equipment EOL| Q[Document Retirement
& Archive Records]

Equipment serial registry workflow: registration → barcode labeling → maintenance alerting → work documentation with evidence → warranty tracking → compliance verification → audit-ready reporting.

The Technology

All solutions run on the IoTReady Operations Traceability Platform (OTP), designed to handle millions of data points per day with sub-second querying. The platform combines an integrated OLTP + OLAP database architecture for real-time transaction processing and powerful analytics.

Deployment options include on-premise installation, deployment on your cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP), or fully managed IoTReady-hosted solutions. All deployment models include identical enterprise features.

OTP includes built-in backup and restore, AI-powered assistance for data analysis and anomaly detection, integrated business intelligence dashboards, and spreadsheet-style data exploration. Role-based access control ensures appropriate information visibility across your organization.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an equipment serial registry and why do I need one? +
An equipment serial registry is a centralized system that tracks every piece of equipment in your organization throughout its entire lifecycle—from purchase through retirement. You need one because regulatory auditors (FDA, ISO, ITAR, 21 CFR Part 11) require documented proof that your equipment was properly maintained, calibrated, and compliant when used for critical processes. Without a registry, when auditors visit and ask 'Can you prove this equipment was correctly maintained when you used it for batch testing?', you'll spend days manually searching multiple systems, matching serial numbers by hand, and compiling evidence. A registry answers that question in minutes with auditor-ready documentation. Beyond compliance, it prevents costly mistakes like paying for emergency repairs ($5,000-15,000) that proper maintenance ($1,500) could have prevented, eliminates confusion from inconsistent serial number naming (is MRI-2019-001 the same as MRI2019001?), and tracks warranty coverage so you claim what you're entitled to. For regulated industries—pharmaceutical, medical device, aerospace, healthcare—an equipment serial registry is the difference between passing audits confidently and receiving compliance citations that can halt production or suspend export licenses.
How does an equipment serial registry solve the problem of inconsistent serial numbers? +
Many organizations have the same piece of equipment referenced by different identifiers in different systems: the procurement system calls it 'MRI-2019-001', the maintenance system calls it 'MRI2019001', and compliance records reference it as 'MRI-A-001'. This fragmentation creates audit risk (auditors can't verify that all records refer to the same equipment) and operational confusion (technicians don't know if they're servicing the same machine or three different machines). An equipment serial registry solves this by creating a single source of truth: the manufacturer's serial number becomes the authoritative identifier across your entire organization. The system enforces consistent serial number formats (validating against manufacturer standards like GE patterns or ISO bearing formats) and prevents duplicate entries. For equipment without manufacturer serial numbers (older used equipment, in-house modifications), the system assigns standardized internal serial numbers following your organization's naming conventions. Once unified, all maintenance history, calibration records, warranty information, and compliance status are linked to that single serial number. When auditors ask 'Is this the same equipment?' or 'What's the maintenance history?', you show one integrated record with complete genealogy. This single-source-of-truth approach also integrates with your CMMS and ERP systems, so maintenance work orders in SAP are automatically linked back to the registry, eliminating manual matching.
How do I prove equipment compliance during an audit? +
Without an equipment registry, audit preparation is a stressful, time-consuming process: manually search multiple systems, hand-match serial numbers, compile spreadsheets, hope nothing is missing. With a registry, you generate audit-ready compliance reports on demand. Here's what the process looks like: When the auditor visits and asks 'Can you prove this medical device was properly maintained?', you open the Equipment Serial Registry, search by serial number, and instantly display a complete genealogy including equipment specifications, full maintenance history with dates and technician sign-offs, all calibration certificates (PDF, digitally signed), warranty status showing it was under service contract at the time of use, regulatory compliance status (FDA approval numbers, certification dates), and any flagged non-compliance items. The system maintains an immutable audit trail where records cannot be edited—only annotated—meeting FDA 21 CFR Part 11 regulatory requirements. All supporting documents (calibration certificates, test reports, inspection photos, warranty documents) are stored with the equipment record with version control, so if a document is revised, the previous version is retained with timestamp. For pharmaceutical manufacturers, you generate compliance scorecards showing 'Total equipment: 47. IQ/OQ/PQ current: 46/47 (97.9%). Calibration current: 45/47 (95.7%). Last FDA inspection: 2024-10-15, zero findings.' The registry essentially takes the manual audit-prep process you do now and automates it into a single-click report that inspectors recognize as professional and compliant.
What maintenance information should I track in an equipment registry? +
An equipment registry should track six maintenance categories: Preventive Maintenance (scheduled, routine maintenance to prevent failures), Corrective Maintenance (repairs responding to actual failures), Inspection (verification that equipment meets specifications), Calibration (verification that measurement equipment meets accuracy standards), Upgrade (hardware or software modifications), and Compliance Verification (regulatory audits, FDA inspections). For each maintenance activity, you record: the exact date and time performed, the equipment serial number, the type of maintenance and description of what was done, the technician's name and credentials, all parts used including part numbers and serial numbers for major components, hours spent on the job, results and findings (equipment now meets specifications, or findings like 'bearing wear at 80% of limit—recommend inspection in 6 months'), and all supporting documentation—calibration certificates, test reports, photos of the work, and technician notes. The system maintains a preventive maintenance schedule database by equipment type. For example, a GE SIGNA 3.0T MRI gets a full PM every 12 months or 2,000 hours, in-service calibration every 6 months, safety inspection annually, and cryogen refill every 8 weeks. The registry automatically generates alerts with lead time—alert 30 days before PM is due, escalate to management if 4 weeks overdue. When a technician scans an equipment barcode with a mobile device, they instantly access the full maintenance history, upcoming scheduled maintenance, any flagged issues from previous services, and warranty/service contract status. This complete maintenance tracking creates compliance evidence (proving maintenance was performed) and operational intelligence (identifying which equipment types have highest failure rates, which technicians have best repair outcomes, equipment approaching reliability problems).
Can an equipment serial registry integrate with my CMMS or ERP system? +
Yes. An equipment registry is designed to integrate bidirectionally with Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS) like SAP PM, Oracle EAM, Dude Solutions, Medforce, or MaintSmart, and with ERP systems like SAP, Oracle, or NetSuite. Here's how the integration eliminates manual work: Equipment master data from the registry is automatically exported to your CMMS for maintenance scheduling—the system knows that a GE SIGNA 3.0T MRI needs PM every 12 months, so it generates maintenance work orders in SAP. When technicians complete work orders in your CMMS (recording parts used, hours spent, work performed, technician sign-off), that information is automatically imported back into the registry with the same equipment serial number linking. This eliminates duplicate data entry and ensures maintenance history in your registry reflects actual work completed in SAP. Similarly, equipment lifecycle cost tracking integrates with ERP systems so that purchase orders, acquisition costs, and depreciation schedules in SAP connect to the registry's equipment records. For Quality Management Systems (QMS), compliance documentation is shared so that batch records can reference which equipment performed the testing with proof of current calibration. The integration approach respects data ownership—your data stays in your systems, with the registry serving as the authoritative equipment master. Integration APIs are documented and use industry-standard formats (REST, JSON) so that custom integrations can be built if needed. This interoperability approach means you don't replace your existing CMMS or ERP; instead, the registry enhances them with equipment-centric compliance tracking and reporting that neither system alone provides.
How does warranty and service contract tracking work in an equipment registry? +
When you acquire equipment, you register warranty information: coverage start date, expiration date, which components are covered, labor coverage, any deductible, and the warranty claim process. Service contracts are similarly registered: contract number, provider name, coverage dates, response time guarantees (e.g., '4-hour response', '24-hour response'), which services are covered (preventive maintenance, repairs, parts), annual cost, and payment terms. This information is linked to your equipment's serial number. When maintenance is performed, the registry automatically checks warranty and service contract status. If a drive motor fails on equipment, the system asks: Is this failure within the warranty period? Is the failed component covered under warranty? Does a service contract apply? Is the repair method covered? The system then generates a billing recommendation: 'Part failure: Drive motor. Failure date: 2024-12-10. Warranty expired: 2023-04-22. Service contract status: Active (expires 2025-04-22, covers parts and labor). Billing: Covered under service contract, zero cost to customer.' This automation prevents costly mistakes like paying out-of-pocket for repairs that are actually covered by an active warranty or service contract. The registry also alerts you when warranties or service contracts are approaching expiration, giving you advance notice to renew, renegotiate, or adjust coverage. For organizations with dozens or hundreds of pieces of equipment, warranty management becomes incredibly complex—the registry provides complete visibility into coverage and automates the billing decision, protecting your cash flow and ensuring customers don't pay twice for the same repair.
How does an equipment registry handle equipment transfers between facilities? +
Equipment transfers—whether moving an MRI between hospital units, relocating manufacturing equipment to a new plant, or transferring assets to a branch office—create compliance risk when not properly documented. An equipment registry captures every transfer with complete documentation. When equipment moves, you record: the previous location (building, floor, room, GPS coordinates for mobile equipment), the transferring party (name, department, date authorized), the receiving party (name, department, date received), the authorization (purchase order, transfer request form, shipping documentation), condition assessment at time of transfer (photos, functional test results, inspection reports), and any associated shipping documents. The location history is immutable—when equipment moves, the previous location is marked with an end timestamp and the new location recorded with a start timestamp. This creates an unbroken chain of custody that auditors can verify. For distributed organizations (multi-facility hospitals, manufacturing companies with plants in multiple locations), the system maintains your organizational hierarchy and location mappings so that queries like 'Which equipment are in Hospital Unit 3?' or 'List all equipment at our Texas plant' return accurate, up-to-date results. Beyond audit compliance, transfer tracking prevents the nightmare scenario where a facility thinks equipment is installed and working when it's actually been moved elsewhere, or the opposite—equipment has been moved but nobody updated the CMMS, so maintenance is scheduled for equipment that no longer exists at that location. The registry becomes the authoritative location source, feeding accurate data to your CMMS and facility management systems.

Deployment Model

Rapid Implementation

2-4 week implementation with our proven tech stack. Get up and running quickly with minimal disruption.

Your Infrastructure

Deploy on your servers with Docker containers. You own all your data with perpetual license - no vendor lock-in.

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Let's discuss how Equipment Serial Registry with Genealogy can transform your operations.

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