Track every IT asset from the loading dock to the rack.
Data centers run on accountability. Every server, switch, and spare needs a verifiable location, owner, and lifecycle status—for audits, capacity planning, and secure decommissioning. Arrowhead builds RFID and barcode asset-tracking systems that give your DCIM and ITAM teams real-time, rack-level visibility without manual spreadsheets. We design the read points, supply on-metal tags that survive the environment, and integrate the data into the systems your operators already use.
Where the record gets created in data centers
The asset record lives in DCIM or ITAM, but the rack is the truth. An audit, a customer request, or a decommission needs a physical count that matches the record, and today that means someone walking the rows with a spreadsheet.
Dock to rack receiving
- What physically happens
- A pallet of servers or switches arrives and is broken down at the dock.
- What is captured
- Each chassis is tagged and read as it is received, so the asset exists in the record before it reaches the cage.
- What Mobi does with it
- Mobi Inventory creates the asset record with its serial, model, and receiving location inside the approved deployment.
- Where the result lands
- The DCIM or ITAM system receives the asset and its intended rack assignment.
Rack and rack-unit audit sweep
- What physically happens
- A technician walks a row with a handheld reader instead of reading labels one at a time.
- What is captured
- On-metal tags are read at rack and rack-unit resolution, and the sweep result is compared to the expected list.
- What Mobi does with it
- Mobi Inventory produces the count, the exceptions, and the audit record for the sweep.
- Where the result lands
- Discrepancies are reconciled back into DCIM, ITAM, or the CMDB.
Decommission and chain of custody
- What physically happens
- A drive or chassis leaves the floor for wipe, return, or destruction.
- What is captured
- The asset is read at the cage door or exit so the last known custody event is recorded automatically.
- What Mobi does with it
- Mobi Inventory holds the custody events that make up the defensible trail.
- Where the result lands
- ITAM and the compliance evidence store receive the disposal record.
Move, add, and change planning
- What physically happens
- A rack is re-populated or capacity is reassigned between cages.
- What is captured
- A sweep before and after the change confirms what actually moved rather than what was planned.
- What Mobi does with it
- Mobi Inventory reports the before-and-after state for the affected racks.
- Where the result lands
- DCIM capacity planning is updated from the confirmed state.
What the equipment has to survive here
- Metal-dense racking reflects and shields RF, so antenna placement and on-metal tags are not optional
- Production hardware cannot be disturbed and cannot tolerate interference
- Access is escorted and time-boxed, so a sweep has to be quick and repeatable
- Tags have to survive airflow, heat, and years in place without re-tagging
- Security policy may restrict wireless, photography, and where data can go
The system behind those workflows
- Physical capture
A tagged asset is read where it physically is, or as it crosses a cage or exit boundary.
Read performance in a data hall is decided by the tag, the mounting position on metal, and the antenna geometry in the aisle. Arrowhead tests this on your actual chassis before a rollout is scoped.
- How it is captured
- On-metal passive UHF RFID with handheld sweeps and fixed read points
- Hardware at the capture point
- Handheld RFID readers — Sweep a row or a cage at rack and rack-unit resolution (opens the Arrowhead store in a new tab)
- On-metal asset tags — Stay readable when mounted directly on server and network chassis (opens the Arrowhead store in a new tab)
- Fixed readers at cage and exit doors — Record custody automatically when an asset leaves a controlled area (opens the Arrowhead store in a new tab)
- Industrial and desktop printers — Print and encode durable rack, asset, and port labels on site (opens the Arrowhead store in a new tab)
- Mobi software
What Mobi does with what was captured
Mobi Inventory holds the asset records, sweep results, and custody events. RFID Lab is used to tune reads against metal during implementation.
- Current limits
- Mobi Inventory is available today and is scoped to the sites and asset records the deployment approves. It does not replace DCIM, ITAM, or a CMDB and does not provide generally available multi-facility balances.
- System of record
Where the result has to land
Sweep results, receipts, and custody events are sent to the asset system of record over an approved interface, with exceptions raised rather than silently overwritten.
- Systems this connects to
- DCIM · ITAM · CMDB · ERP · Compliance evidence store
- What you provide
- The DCIM, ITAM, or CMDB interface and owner, the expected asset list to reconcile against, and the rule for resolving a discrepancy.
- Delivery and lifecycle
Who builds it, who runs it, and who answers when it breaks
- Discovery with the asset and facilities owners
- On-metal tag testing in a live hall
- Read-point and sweep route design
- Tagging program and label production
- Deployment and integration
- Training and support
What Arrowhead supplies and configures
- On-metal tag testing on your chassis in your hall
- Sweep route and fixed read-point design
- Pre-printed and pre-encoded asset and rack labels
- Handheld and fixed hardware, staged and configured
- Integration to the asset system of record
- Training for the audit team and ongoing support
What you provide
- Escorted access to representative halls and cages
- Sample chassis for on-metal tag testing
- The asset system of record, its owner, and a test environment
- The tagging policy for new and existing equipment
- Security approval for devices and data leaving the floor
When something stops working
Arrowhead supports the readers, the tags, the printers, and the Mobi side. Hardware is repaired in-house in Chandler, Arizona. The customer's asset system remains with its own owner.
What we deliver for data centers
The work Arrowhead scopes, supplies, installs, integrates, and supports for data centers operations.
Rack- and U-level asset tracking
Tag servers and network gear with on-metal RFID for instant, accurate inventory by rack and rack unit.
Audit & compliance reporting
Automate physical inventory and chain-of-custody records for your own SOC 2, ISO, and customer audits.
Secure decommissioning
Track drives and assets through wipe, removal, and disposal with a defensible audit trail.
Capacity & move/add/change
Know what's deployed, where, and what's available before you plan the next install.
Recommended hardware
The gear we deploy for data centers—buy it direct from our online store, ArrowheadPHX.
RFID Systems
Fixed readers, antennas, and handhelds for rack-level reads.
Shop RFID SystemsRFID Tags & Inlays
On-metal asset tags built for server and network hardware.
Shop RFID Tags & InlaysMobile Computers
Handheld readers and scanners for inventory and audits.
Shop Mobile ComputersBarcode Scanners
Capture serial numbers and asset barcodes at the rack.
Shop Barcode ScannersIndustrial Printers
Print durable asset and rack labels on demand.
Shop Industrial PrintersChallenges we solve
- Rack- and unit-level IT asset visibility
- Audit, compliance, and chain-of-custody reporting
- Fast, accurate physical inventory and reconciliation
- Secure asset decommissioning and disposal tracking
Recommended solutions
What the proof actually shows
Every claim below is labeled with who produced it. Arrowhead delivering a system, a vendor publishing a result from another partner's deployment, a credential a third party issued us, software we run ourselves, a capability we offer, and a direction we have not shipped are different things, and they are labeled differently.
- General capability
Arrowhead designs and deploys on-metal RFID asset tracking for IT equipment.
No Arrowhead data-center customer result is published. Ask for a reference during discovery rather than treating this as a delivered outcome.
See the detail - Accredited capability
Zebra printers, mobile computers, scanners, and RFID readers are repaired in-house in Chandler, Arizona.
Arrowhead is an authorized Zebra Elite Service Center with Zebra-certified repair technicians. Turnaround depends on model, failure, parts, and coverage.
See the detail - Future direction
Continuous, hall-wide real-time location of every asset without a sweep.
Not offered as current capability. Zone and boundary reads plus scheduled sweeps are what the current system supports.
See the detail
Frequently Asked Questions
What to do next
We test tags on your actual chassis in your hall and report measured read behaviour before any tagging program is scoped.
Request an on-metal tag testPlanning data centers data capture?