Assets

Whether a truck, a car, a trailer, a display booth, or a fighter jet, if you have a tour traveling from stop to stop, MainEvent can help you track, schedule and report on them. Stay DOT compliant, view your tours on a map, allow off days and route planning all in one place. Assets (the vehicle(s) or items that are travelling) can run locally or nationally, with requests or on fully scheduled tours. You have the flexibility to run the tour your way, but track the results with MainEvent.

Let’s get started.

Admin Setup

As with many things on MainEvent, to get Assets started, we need to look at the Admin section. Assets exist on the client level of the admin. Begin by clicking Admin in the navigation menu and then select View.

From the Global Admin page, look at the Global Configuration Menu and select Clients from under the Global header.

This will bring you to the Clients menu. Find the client you need to activate assets for and click Edit next to their name.

This will load the Client Admin page, and this is where the magic happens. In the Configuration Menu on the left of the page, you’ll see Assets as the first entry. You’ll also be able to view Asset Activity Types as the first section on this page. If you are not seeing Assets in the configuration menu or on the admin page, please contact your account manager to adjust your site configuration.

Add Asset Activity Types

Asset Activity Types are the types of activities your assets can be scheduled for. This could be a drive day, an open day (one that can be booked to an event), an off day, maintenance day, setup, tear down, etc. If your asset needs to be scheduled for it, you can add it here. To begin adding Asset Activity Types, click Add Asset Activity Type.

This will load the Edit Asset Activity Type page, which is where you’ll be able to enter all the details about each of your Asset Activity Types. Begin with adding the name. For our example here, we’re going to call it Open Day.

Next, select the Active status. Choose Yes if you want the Activity Type to be active right now. No if you want to wait to make it active.

The next field is more tricky, Allow this Asset Activity to be converted into an event with the associated Asset? This Yes/No field will allow you to decide which asset activities you want to be able to convert into events in the system. A drive day is necessary to get from one place to another, but you aren’t likely to create an event out of it. BUT you may want to create a series of open days that would allow your users to request and book the asset, so for that activity type you would select Yes.

Next you get to decide if you want this activity type to be displayed in the Asset Overview (more on that later). If yes, choose Yes. If no, select No.

Now you get to set whether to Display Activity Market in Dashboard Asset Calendar. You’ll assign one or many markets to the asset. This is where you can decide if you want to display that assignment in the asset calendar. Yes if you do, No if you don’t.

The next field is Require Market Assignment to Activity. If you select Yes, when an Asset Activity is created, users will be required to also assign a market to the activity. If you select No, the market field will be optional when creating asset activities.

The final field in the Asset Activity Type setup is Assign activity geolocation coordinates. This will allow you to assign an address and a range for the asset activity.

Once you have made your selections and everything is set to how you want it, click Save. You will now be able to see the new Asset Activity Type in the Asset Activity Type menu on the admin page. If you need to make any further changes, click Edit next to any Asset Activity Type to re-enter the Edit Asset Activity Type page.

Add Asset Types

Asset Types allow you to distinguish between sorts of assets. You may have a vehicle tour with trucks and trailers going across the country and be scheduling those items separately. Or maybe you have a booth setup but also an 18 wheeler to get the booth around. To begin adding Asset Types, click Add Asset Type.

Now you’ll be looking at the Edit Asset Type page. The first field to complete is Name. Enter the name of the Asset Type.

Next, select the Active Status of the Asset Type. Yes to make it active, No to wait.

The following section is Allow users of any role to unassign Assets of this type from events. This selection allows you to determine if this is the type of asset you want to have assigned to actual events in the system. If it’s a transport only asset, maybe you want to say No. If it’s the actual display booth or a tour vehicle, you’ll probably want to say Yes here. Also, keep in mind that we have the power to control who can add an asset activity, who can add an event, who can view asset functionality overall so if there’s a user role that you don’t want to be able to complete these actions, we can keep those things in check.

The final section is Include on Dashboard Asset Calendar. Do you want to see the Assets added under this Asset Type in the Asset Calendar? Then you’ll want to select Yes. Very specifically don’t want to see this Asset Type represented on the Asset Calendar? You’ll want to choose No.

Once you’ve got things setup the way you want them to be, click Save.

The new Asset Type will now be visible in the Asset Types section on the Client Admin page. To make any changes to this Asset Type, click Edit.

Asset Categories (optional)

Asset Categories allow you to group assets that need to be tracked individually, but are identical to other assets. Some examples would be Chairs, Ottomans, Kiosks, or Banners. Rather than have each Banner appear separately on the Asset Request page, you can group them into a Category Stack (described in more detail below). When in a stack, the assets will appear with one image, and you can select one or multiple assets at a time.

To create an Asset Stack click on the “Add Asset Category” button.

What’s in a name? Well, it’s the first step you need to complete to add your Asset Category.

Next, choose the Active Status of the Category. Yes to make the Category active right away, No if you need to wait a while.

Last step is to add a photo. Upload a photo for the category if you want to. This field is optional.

Once you have all the fields filled out as you want them, click Save.

The new Asset Category will now be visible in the Asset Categories section on the admin page. To make any changes to the category, click Edit.

Asset Availability Conditions

Asset Availability Conditions are parameters that may impact the availability of an asset. For example, if an asset requires a certain amount of floor space, or a certain type of egress to access a site. If there are conditions that must be met to schedule an asset, you may want to have that information available when scheduling. To begin setting Asset Availability Conditions, click Add Asset Availability Condition.

You’ll now be looking at the Edit Asset Availability Condition page. The first field to address here will be the name of the availability condition.

Next, you want to choose the Active Status of the condition. Yes to make it active now, No to wait.

The next field allows you to choose between a Select or Multiselect field. Select will allow users to choose a single option from the list, Multi-select will allow them to choose as many as they want/need to.

Now you can add in any Help Text that you think might aid users in making the correct choices when using Availability Conditions.

Next, you’ll want to decide if you want your options to display in alphabetical order. If yes, choose Yes. If not, choose No.

The final step is going to be setting up the options your users will select from when requesting an asset. Begin by clicking Add Another Option.

A new field will display that will allow you to input the Active Status (check for Yes, uncheck for No), Order (the order in which the field will display in the list), and Name (the text that will display). Enter the information needed.

To add any additional fields, click Add Another Option.

Add as many fields as needed.

Once you have added all necessary options, click Save.

The new Asset Availability Condition will now be visible in the Asset Availability Condition menu in the admin page. To make any changes to the condition, click Edit.

Asset Decline Reasons

You may find that there are situations where an asset is requested but cannot be scheduled. In those situations, you may also find yourself wanting to explain why to the disappointed person. Enter Asset Decline Reasons. Begin adding Asset Decline Reasons, click Add Asset Decline Reasons.

This will navigate you to the Edit Asset Decline Reason page. The first step is to name your decline reason. This is going to be the full text of the reason why you are declining the asset request. It might be that the asset isn’t available, in which case you could say “Asset Unavailable”. It might be outside the travel radius of the asset, it could be that the asset is mandated rest time on that date, or any other myriad of reasons. Enter one here.

The only other section is determining the active status of the decline reason. If you want to be able to start assigning this decline reason right away, choose Yes. If you want to wait awhile and activate it later, choose No.

Once you’ve completed those two fields, click Save.

Your new decline reason will now be visible in the Asset Decline Reasons menu on the Admin page. If you need to edit this or any other decline reason, click Edit.

Asset Fields

Asset Fields are customizable questions, in addition to the standard asset fields, that can be assigned to assets based on the Asset Type selected. To create custom Asset Fields, click on the Asset Fields button on the left hand side of the Client Admin page.

This will take you to an Asset Custom Field index page. All custom asset fields will be located on the page and can be edited or re-ordered, and new fields can be created.

To create a new field click the Add New Field button. You will be taken to a new page where you can enter in details for the new question you would like to add. You must first enter a name for the field, and select what type of response you would like to receive. (text, integer, date, etc.) The new question should be active by default and you can choose if it should be required or not. Lastly, you will want to assign the field to one or multiple Asset Types. The new question will only appear on assets of the corresponding Asset Type.

Click submit to be taken back to in the Asset Custom Field index, or Submit & Add Another if you would like to add additional fields.

Once added, you can drag and drop the questions on the index page into the order you would like them to appear in on the Add/Edit Asset pages.

Asset Activity Custom Fields

Asset Activity Custom Fields are questions that can be added in addition to the standard Asset Activity Fields. These fields will display when adding a new Asset Activity.

To begin adding new Asset Activity Custom Fields, click Asset Activity Fields in the Configuration menu on the Client Admin.

This will open Asset Activity Custom Fields Index, which will list all existing Asset Activity Custom Fields. Click Add New Field.

Now you’ll be looking at the Asset Activity Custom Field Details page. First thing you’ll need to do is enter the Name of the field you want to add.

Then select the field type you want to use. Options are: Integer, Float (1 decimal), Float (2 decimal), Money, Text, Text Area, Select, Yes/No Select, Multiselect, Date, Time, and Subsection Label.

Now you’ll move on to the Options section. Here you can decide if the field is Active, Required, and - if a select field- if the options should be sorted alphabetically. Select the checkbox to enable the option, deselect to disable.

For Text and Textarea fields, you can also add a minimum and/or maximum length for the response. This is an optional field.

Finally, you can add Help Text. If you want to add a small blurb to indicate what type of response you’re looking for to the end-user, you may do so here and it will display below the field on the Add Asset Activity page.

Once you’ve completed all the fields you want, click Submit if this is the only field you’re adding or Submit & Add Another if you have more.

Your new Asset Activity Custom Field will now be visible in the index and on any new Asset Activities.

Assets

Add New Asset

So, now that the admin setup is done, we get to move on to...more setup. But more tangible setup, so progress? First, let’s add the Assets themselves. Start by clicking Assets in the navigation menu and selecting View Assets.

This will open the Assets Index page which will list all previously created assets. To begin adding a new asset, click Add New Asset.

Now you’re looking at the Add Asset page. We’re going to start out easy, the first field we need to fill in is the Name. This will be the title of the asset that users will see on the Asset Calendar, if they are requesting the asset, when they assign it to an event, so you want to be as clear as possible when naming your assets.

Next, you get to choose the color you want to associate with the asset. This color will display in the pins on the Asset Map, the color the activities will display in on the Asset Activity Calendar. Click on the color field to open the color wheel. Use the sliders, palettes, pencils, or color wheel to select the color you want to represent this asset. The selected color will then display in the field.

So, we’ve made things pretty, but now you need to decide where in the list of assets you want this particular asset to display. So, if you have a preference, enter a number in the Display Order section.

Now you need to decide the Asset Status. Options are Create Asset in Active Status or Create Asset in Requested Status. If created in a Requested status, a system administrator will need to approve the Asset to Active status before it can be added to events.

Next, select the Asset Category (optional) from the drop down list if you would like this asset to be part of a stack of similar assets. For example, if you were adding multiple Kiosks which are identical, you could add them to a category together so that they appear as a stack on the Asset Request page rather than as individual assets. Assets in a Category Stack and have one or multiple assets selected.

Next, select the Asset Availability Conditions that apply to your event. You will only see assets on the request page that are assigned to those Availability Conditions.

Next, add a photo(s) of the asset. This photo will appear on the Asset Request page and will help users determine what the asset they are requesting looks like.

Then, assign the asset to the appropriate Programs and Markets that it should be available. It is important to note that assets will only appear for requests on events where the asset’s market/program match the event’s market/program.

If you would like the asset to bypass the request process and be eligible for assigning directly to events with no approval, then select No for the “Allow Asset to bypass request process?” question. If not, then leave it at the default Yes setting.

Lastly, you can select the Asset Vehicle Type that best applies for this asset. This field can either be used to describe the asset itself (is it a car or a trailer) or can be used to describe how the asset would be transported.

Last, but certainly not least, any additional Asset Custom Fields assigned to the Asset Type you selected will appear at the bottom of the page. If any of those fields are required, you will need to enter them before being able to save the new asset.

Now that your asset has been created you can choose to set up Asset Activities to indicate when an asset should be available for request. Note: This process is optional and can be bypassed if Assets do not need to have availability windows.

Add Asset Activity

To add an Asset Activity first go to the Assets tab on the navigation bar and go to Asset Activities. This will take you to the Asset Activity index which will display all the currently assigned availability dates for assets. In the top right corner you will notice an Add New Activity button which will allow you to create new asset activities.

You will be taken to a new page where you can enter details for when and where the asset should be available for requesting. You will select an Asset Activity Type, date, program, and Assigned Territory(s), as well as which asset the activity should apply to.

You also have the option to specify a specific address where the asset should be available for request and a what mile radius around that location it should apply to.

Asset Requests can be created for events in the system so that an asset becomes assigned to a specific event. Assets can we requested to events when the event is being created. On the Add Event page, there is a question that appears in the top half of the page that asks if you would like to requests asset.

If you select “Yes”, then you will be able to select from a list of assets available for that event based on the event’s Program, Market, User asset assignment, and Asset Availability Condition. At the bottom of the Add Event page you will find the Asset Availability Conditions filter which will allow you to narrow down assets even more based on the filter options.

You will then click “Save and Request Assets” which will take you to the asset request page. You will see a full list of assets that can be assigned to the event. If an asset is already in use or does not have an asset activity scheduled for the day of the event, then it will appear but be unavailable for request.

If the asset(s) is available, then a request button will appear. You can request multiple assets for a single event.

Once assets are requested for an event a management user will be notified of the request and can choose to approve or reject the requested asset(s).

Asset Warehouses (optional) are locations where assets may be stored in between events. To create a new warehouse, go to the Asset Warehouse button located under the Asset dropdown menu.

The Asset Warehouse index will store all warehouses that have been added to the system. You can have one or multiple different warehouses around the country that assets can be stored in.

To add a new warehouse, click the Add New Warehouse button located in the top right corner of the page. This will take you to a new page where you can enter the name and address of the warehouse.

To assign an asset to be at a warehouse, you will want to use the Warehouse Rests feature. We use the term “Rest” to refer to when an asset is not in use, and not in transit between events. Click the Add Warehouse Rest button located in the top right corner of the Asset Rest index page. Then select which asset and warehouse you would like to create a rest for. The Asset will remain at the warehouse until it is assigned to an event.

In the example below, the Asset when from an event at Ryan’s Rockin June Gloom Celeration to the Pinnacle Exhibits OR Warehouse where it remained for 10 days before being requested at a new event on July 10th. When an asset is in transit between an event and the warehouse, you can enter in USPS, UPS, or Fedex tracking ids to see when the asset will be delivered.

Asset Statuses can be used in the system to show the many different stages of an asset’s life. The following statuses are available:

• Active
• Requested
• Rejected
• In Production
• Inactive

Management users can control the Asset’s status and move them from status to status. To do so, simply click on an asset profile from the Asset Index. In the top right corner of the screen you will notice an “Adjust Current Status” button that can be used to move an asset from one status to another.

Each change in an Asset’s status will then appear in the Asset Status History index. This index page will indicate the asset’s current status as well as what it’s previous status was and who made the most recent change to it.

If you would like to see an overview of recent asset activity, you can head to the Asset Overview page. Located under the Assets dropdown on the navigation bar, the Asset Overview page will display recently used assets and map where they went on the map.

You can utilize filters located at the top of the page to view specific assets, date ranges, etc.

Last but certainly not least, there is the Asset Calendar. The Asset Calendar will display all asset events, available days, and days where the asset is not requestable. You can use the filters located on the left side of the page to filter to specific asset(s) markets, programs, etc.