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Importing Equipment into HireTrack NX |
  
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Importing Equipment into HireTrack NX |
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File Format
HireTrack NX expects data to be imported from CSV (Comma Separated Values) files, which are universally used for such purposes. CSV files are just text files that contain lines (rows) of data with each field (column) being separated by a comma. If Microsoft Excel is installed it will be usually be considered the default editor for a CSV file, but other spreadsheet applications like Open Office Calc will also work well as editors. Alternatively a CSV file can be opened with Notepad, although this is not an easy way to work them. The HTNX_StockImport.csv file is available for download or it can be generated directly from the Import page in HireTrack NX itself (go to the Software Configuration tab, General, then select Importing from the drop down list).
Note: when editing the CSV file please observe the following rules:
do NOT delete the column headings row (i.e. the first row).
do NOT change the text of the column headings.
do NOT put commas in any of your data if you can avoid it. If you must use a comma then surround your entire text in double speech marks, e.g. "Shure SM57, Dynamic Instrument Microphone".
do NOT include the currency symbol (e.g. $) or unit identifier (e.g. KG) for number fields that refer to currencies or weights or measures.
do NOT save the file in your spreadsheet editor's default file format, e.g. an Excel file. When saving, if prompted that saving in CSV format will "leave out incompatible features", agree to this and click YES.
How to fill in the Inventory CSV sheet
The table below lists all the data that can be imported into the Inventory Book in HireTrack NX. Although 30+ fields are available, only 4 of these are mandatory. Please read through the information column for each field to understand its function and to ensure that you use the correct format. For text fields the maximum size allowed is given in brackets.
For each product ("Type Description") you must enter a row for each unique piece of information that you want to be recorded in the database.
This will depend on:
whether or not you need to include specific items of equipment, i.e. uniquely identified by a barcode (actual or just an identity marker)
whether or not you want to record specific purchasing details for the stock in audit trail that HireTrack NX maintains
whether or not you want to use the multi-warehouse facilities in HireTrack NX, in which case you will need to enter stock levels for each Warehouse.
Taking this into account there are four possible scenarios that will determine how many rows per product type you will need to include:
For many products you will only need a single row because you don't individualize the equipment (e.g. XLR cables) or because you don't have any information on when they were all purchased or because you only have them at one warehouse.
If you knew that you bought 200 XLR cables in 2010 and another 100 in 2011 you might want to have two rows, each with the "purchasing fields" showing different values (Quantity, Price, Reference etc).
If you have 50 unique identified microphone (maybe with an actual barcode, maybe with ID marking) then you will need 50 rows to capture this information. When entering rows at this level of specificity the purchasing details can also be included.
You want to specify stock levels at different warehouses for non-individualized (barcoded) stock.
Note: repeated rows for the same product need to contain the same values for all the data that is not unique (e.g. Master Category, etc). Do NOT leave empty cells, but copy and paste repeated data.
Importing the Data
HireTrack NX can import the file directly. Go to the Software Configuration tab, General, then select Importing from the drop down list. Any errors in the file format or with the data in the file will be checked for before any data is imported and feedback for correction given to the user.
FIELD |
Required |
Value & Max Size |
INFORMATION (important, please read) |
|---|---|---|---|
MASTER CATEGORY |
Yes |
Text (100) |
For the most generalized, department level, equipment grouping, e.g Video, Sound, Staging, etc |
CATEGORY |
Yes |
Text (100) |
More specific classification, and falling within a Master Category, e.g. Microphones, Amplifiers, etc |
TYPE DESCRIPTION |
Yes |
Text (255) |
The actual products that you supply. They are what you will be booking, quoting for, invoicing for. e.g. Shure SM57 Dynamic Instrument Microphone. |
GENERIC DESCRIPTION |
No |
Text (100) |
This has two roles in HireTrack NX: similar products can be linked together via a Generic Description so that if you are short of Product A, you can quickly check for the availability of other similar products. you might like to show simplified descriptions of products on your quote for customers, so instead of "Hewlett Packard 4000TN Laser Jet Printer", you could associate this product with the Generic Description, "Laser Printer". |
STOCK CLASS (R or C or S) |
Yes |
R, C or S |
R= Rental, C = Consumables (for rental lists), S = Sales (for sales lists).
This important column determines how equipment is managed and priced. Consumables and Sales are not expected to come back (so are never reported as "overdue"), and their stock levels are adjusted according to dispatches and returns. They are also only priced per unit, rather than for a period.
Important: consumables belong to "categories" that get marked as consumables, so do NOT use the same category name for rental stock as consumable stock. |
TYPE CODE |
No |
Text (15) |
This is an "identifier" for a product, unlike a barcode which is an identifier for individual items. Typecodes can be used in the warehouse dispatching process or for importing pick lists for rentals that may have been generated by an external program and saved to a file. |
ROAD CASE |
No |
True/False |
Road Case types are only useful when Prepping equipment for dispatch. Prepping a Road Case automatically generates a Case ID on the Prep Note and allows you to associate equipment prepped thereafter with this Case ID, allowing this to be consolidated on paper work. Case ID's themselves can be scanned out, again speeding up the Dispatch process. |
DAILY RATE A |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency A (main currency). |
DAILY RATE B |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency B. |
DAILY RATE C |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency C. |
DAILY RATE D |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency D. |
VALUE A |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency A (main currency). |
VALUE B |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency B. |
VALUE C |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency C. |
VALUE D |
No |
Number |
Unit price (before rental multiplier is applied) that you charge per day for Currency D. |
MAXIMUM DISCOUNT |
No |
Number |
Users with restricted rights will only be able to discount product to the value specified here. |
WEIGHT |
No |
Number |
Value in KG only (U.S. users will still see the value in HireTrack NX expressed in imperial units). |
LENGTH |
No |
Number |
Value in CM only (U.S. users will still see the value in HireTrack NX expressed in imperial units). |
WIDTH |
No |
Number |
Value in CM only (U.S. users will still see the value in HireTrack NX expressed in imperial units). |
HEIGHT |
No |
Number |
Value in CM only (U.S. users will still see the value in HireTrack NX expressed in imperial units). |
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN |
No |
Text (10) |
Normally you would put the ISO country code in here. |
SITE (FOR OWNERSHIP) |
No |
Text (50) |
Only HireTrack NX customers that are licensed for Multi-Site need to fill in this column. Sites are "financial centres" that own Jobs in HireTrack NX. Users are associated with Sites and to this extent there is control over which Jobs users can access. Sites are considered to be "owners" of stock. They are distinct from Warehouses in that stock is located at Warehouses and to this extent the availability of stock is determined by Warehouse stock levels.
If you leave this column blank a single "default" site will be created in the database. |
WAREHOUSE (FOR STOCKLEVELS) |
No |
Text (50) |
Each Site has a minimum of one Warehouse, where the equipment is actually stored. Warehouses should not be confused with "locations" (e.g. bays) in a building, they are the stores (normally a building) where your equipment is kept and where you book jobs to be sourced from. Most rental companies only have one warehouse, but if you had a store in London and a store in Edinburgh then logistically you would normally book from one or the other and so you would enter a stock level (see PURCHASE QUANTITY) for each of them. |
PURCHASE QUANTITY
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No |
Number |
This figure will be used to calculate the stock level for each warehouse and ownership level. This figure will be "1" if you are import individualized equipment. |
PURCHASE DATE |
No |
Date |
If you leave this column blank then the import date will be used in the audit trail. Use your Windows short date format, e.g. dd/mm/yyy or mm/dd/yyyy |
PURCHASE UNIT PRICE |
No |
Number |
How much was paid for a single unit of this type. Do not enter the currency symbol. |
PURCHASE REFERENCE |
No |
Text (50) |
To help you identify the audit trail entry when you need to refer to it. |
PURCHASE NOTES |
No |
Text (65535) |
Free text that will be included with each audit trail entry. |
BARCODE |
No |
Text (20) |
If you want to individualized information on stock items then this field MUST be filled in. If you don't have an actual barcode on items but will be applying them at some point, create your own sequence of barcodes (e.g. NAV000001,NAV000002) etc so that you can have then printed. The barcode # is the key identifier in HireTrack NX, not the serial # or stock #. |
SERIAL NUMBER |
No |
Text (50) |
Manufacturer's ID. |
STOCK NUMBER |
No |
Text (20) |
Internal stock ID, maybe already inscribed or painted onto item. |
DEPRECIATION DESCRIPTION |
No |
Text (50) |
HireTrack NX allows you to define Depreciation Schemes that get associated with product types |
DEPRECIATION DAYS |
No |
Number |
Enter the number of days it takes for a Depreciation Scheme to reach zero value. |
NOMINAL CODE DESCRIPTION |
No |
Text (50) |
HireTrack NX allows you to define Nominal Codes that get associated with product types. This is the human friendly description of a Nominal Code. |
NOMINAL CODE |
No |
Number |
Enter the actual Nominal Code that will normally be defined by your accounts software. |
PREP COST A RENTAL |
No |
Number |
The internal cost to prepare equipment for hire. This is for Currency A |
PREP COST B RENTAL |
No |
Number |
The internal cost to prepare equipment for hire. This is for Currency B |
PREP COST C RENTAL |
No |
Number |
The internal cost to prepare equipment for hire. This is for Currency C |
PREP COST D RENTAL |
No |
Number |
The internal cost to prepare equipment for hire. This is for Currency D |
POWER USAGE |
No |
Number |
How much power (watts) an electrical item consumes |
RESIDUAL VALUE A DEPRECIATION LIMIT |
No |
Number |
The value of the equipment when it has reached 100% depreciation. This is for Currency A |
RESIDUAL VALUE B DEPRECIATION LIMIT |
No |
Number |
The value of the equipment when it has reached 100% depreciation. This is for Currency B |
RESIDUAL VALUE C DEPRECIATION LIMIT |
No |
Number |
The value of the equipment when it has reached 100% depreciation. This is for Currency C |
RESIDUAL VALUE D DEPRECIATION LIMIT |
No |
Number |
The value of the equipment when it has reached 100% depreciation. This is for Currency D |
REORDER QUANTITY SALES |
No |
Number |
Sales Only - The amount normally re-ordered when buying in from suppliers |
LOW STOCK WARNING LEVEL SALES |
No |
Number |
Sales Only - The stocklevel at which you will be warned that stocks are low. |
DESIRED STOCK HOLDING SALES |
No |
Number |
Sales Only - The stocklevel at which you expect that stocks are maintained. |
MANUFACTURERS PART NUMBER SALES |
No |
Number |
|
ACQUISITION COST A SALES |
No |
Number |
The cost (per day for rental) that you expect to pay your suppliers for new items. This is for Currency A |
ACQUISITION COST B SALES |
No |
Number |
The cost (per day for rental) that you expect to pay your suppliers for new items. This is for Currency B |
ACQUISITION COST C SALES |
No |
Number |
The cost (per day for rental) that you expect to pay your suppliers for new items. This is for Currency C |
ACQUISITION COST D SALES |
No |
Number |
The cost (per day for rental) that you expect to pay your suppliers for new items. This is for Currency D |