What problem does NFC asset tracking solve?

Organizations lose track of physical assets. Spreadsheets go out of date. Barcode scanners require dedicated hardware. Manual check-in/check-out processes are slow and often skipped.

NFC tags let anyone with a smartphone log an asset interaction in one tap. The data flows directly to your system, creating an automatic audit trail.

How does the Kitetags solution work?

You attach a Kitetag to each asset — a laptop, a tool, a piece of medical equipment, or a shipping container. The tag’s interaction uses the Webhooks app to send a POST request to your backend every time someone taps it. Your backend logs the event and can trigger follow-up actions.

flowchart LR
    A[Staff member taps asset tag] --> B[Kitetags Platform]
    B --> C[Webhook POST to your server]
    C --> D[Log: asset ID + user + timestamp]
    C --> E[Optional: trigger alert or update dashboard]

How do you set it up?

Step 1 — Create a group for your assets

  1. Log in to your Kitetags dashboard.
  2. Create a new Kitetag Group called “Equipment” (or a name that fits your asset type).
  3. Define a KDS (data structure) with fields like:
    • asset_name (text)
    • asset_id (text)
    • location (text)
    • department (text)

Step 2 — Add tags and populate asset data

  1. Add Kitetags to the group — one per asset.
  2. Fill in the KDS fields for each tag with the corresponding asset details.
  3. Physically attach the tags to the assets. NFC stickers and cards both work well.

Step 3 — Set up your webhook endpoint

  1. Build an HTTP endpoint on your server that accepts POST requests. The endpoint will receive the JSON payload described in the webhook reference.
  2. Parse the tag.uid, tag.callsign, kds_fields, and tapper data from the payload.
  3. Store the tap record in your database.

If you want to test before building your endpoint, use webhook.site to capture and inspect payloads.

Step 4 — Configure the webhook interaction

  1. Create an interaction on the group.
  2. Select the Webhooks app as the action.
  3. Enter your endpoint URL.
  4. Save the interaction.

Step 5 — Test the flow

  1. Tap one of the asset tags with your phone.
  2. Check your server logs (or webhook.site) to confirm the payload arrived.
  3. Verify the kds_fields contain the correct asset data.

See the troubleshooting guide if the webhook does not fire.

How does it work in practice?

Here is a typical day with NFC asset tracking:

  1. A technician picks up a drill from the equipment room. They tap the Kitetag on the drill with their phone.
  2. The Kitetags platform sends a webhook to your server with the drill’s asset ID, the technician’s IP, and a timestamp.
  3. Your system logs that the drill was checked out and updates the asset dashboard.
  4. At the end of the day, the technician returns the drill and taps the tag again. Another event is logged.
  5. Your system now has a complete check-out/check-in record for the asset.

How do you integrate with your backend?

The webhook payload gives you everything you need to build a custom integration:

  • Asset identification: Use tag.uid or kds_fields.asset_id to look up the asset in your database.
  • User tracking: The tapper.ip and tapper.user_agent fields identify the device that tapped. For named user tracking, pair this with an authentication step on your endpoint.
  • Timestamping: The timestamp field provides an ISO 8601 time for each tap.
  • Alerting: Your backend can trigger alerts when a high-value asset is tapped, when a tap occurs outside business hours, or when an asset has not been tapped in a set number of days.

No-code alternative

If you do not want to build a custom backend, use Zapier instead of webhooks. A simple zap can log each tap to Google Sheets, giving you a lightweight asset tracking spreadsheet without any server-side code.

Next steps

Last updated 27 Mar 2026, 06:51 +0900 . history