The room is an online tool for the registration of assets and equipment, with the possibility of companies and organizations tracking and monitoring their usage. Some of these include an equipment booking calendar, maintenance log, QR code scan, and others, making Cheqroom a tool for managing assets.
However, like all the applications, Cheqroom has rich features balanced with its offered pricing plans, which might not be very friendly for young startups or teams that are not very large. This is where Shelf, an open-source alternative, comes in, and since it is open-source, it can be downloaded from the Shelf website.
What is a Shelf?
Shelf is an open-source tool for the management of organizational equipment that aims to facilitate tasks related to the tracking and maintenance of assets. Founded in 2018 by Timo Stollenwerk, Shelf comes equipped with features that, despite having a simplistic design, allow businesses to monitor the usage of tools, rentals, and maintenance details for equipment.
Sharing Shelf is an open-source solution; the software code is provided for free, enabling different developers to tweak and build it according to the demands of infrastructure. The Shelf licenses allow businesses to test the software before deciding to buy it because the developers have made it very flexible.
Here are some ways in which Shelf is similar to or different from Cheqroom:
Shelf comes with capabilities matching Cheqroom's core features, including Shelf comes with capabilities matching Cheqroom's core features, including:
- To complete the above example of asset registration, it includes all the details like serial numbers, purchase dates, etc.
- Schedules indicating when they are free and when they are already booked
- Record of maintenance work and schedule
- A check-in/out process of the personnel along with the usage of the QR code.
- A dynamic display of the assets, the states, and the usage to which they are being put.
Indeed, Shelf is more powerful because it has elements such as advanced filtering, custom fields, and APIs to provide more functionality. Users can also define multiple custom asset types, each of which can be configured with these settings.
However, it has mobile apps, Zapier and Slack integrations, as well as shared asset management across offices. The Shelf does not have all these extras, but it lets you connect with business software with APIs.
For small to medium-sized business concerns, Shelf's completely downloadable open-source can meet most of its asset management requirements at no cost. However, larger enterprises may find more value in using Cheqroom's paid plans, thanks to their extended functionality.
Getting Started with Shelf
Shelf is a Node.js app using JavaScript, which is to be installed on MacOS, Windows, and Linux computers and requires MongoDB. Shelf is coded in React and can be modified by users with coding experience in the Reac and Express programming languages.
For non-technical teams, there are also hosted versions that can be easily implemented by third-party suppliers such as Uptilab. Once the system is created, the admins are able to add asset categories, assets, bookings, etc, within a few minutes.
Shelf has its code compiled and modified by the open-source community quite often. Organizations are also able to extend features or provide fixes that will benefit all the users of the said platform.
Conclusion
Altogether, Shelf is a great example of a free app for startups and SMBs to employ lean asset management processes without the additional charges compared to Cheqroom. It is an open-source tool that allows incredibly unique and tailored adjustments that align perfectly with various business requirements.
As for the inconveniences, I can note that Shelf is self-hosted, which might be inconvenient for non-technical teams. Mobile applications and third-party services integration also enhanced some use cases at Cheqroom at the same level. However, Shelf continues to be a wonderful, free app that optimizes asset utility for the majority of SMEs.
