The asset description is used to further describe an asset type. If the asset type is sufficient to identify the asset, you may not need to record an asset description against an asset. However there may be several different varieties of an asset type.
The Asset Descriptions table has several different tabs for recording information about an asset description. The tabs are: Browse, Details, Spares, Suppliers, and Types.
The Browse tab is a list of the asset descriptions that have been added to the table.
The Details tab shows the detailed information that you can record about each asset description. The fields available on the Details tab are:
Description - This is the description of the asset description. You must enter a description for each asset description, and each description must be unique.
Brand - This is the brand of the asset description.
Model - This is the particular model of the asset description.
Part Number - This is the part number for the asset description.
For equipment assets it is sometimes important to know which assets have parts that can be swapped between them in the event of a breakdown of an asset. In order to keep track of which assets can be used as spares, you can record for an asset description all the other asset descriptions that can be used as spares. This means that if an equipment asset of a particular description breaks down, you can see from the Asset Descriptions table which other asset descriptions can be used as spares for that asset.
The Spares tab displays two boxes. The box on the left hand side of the window displays all the spares that can be used as replacements for assets with the current asset description. The box on the right hand side displays all the other asset descriptions.
Open the Asset Descriptions Table.
Find the asset description to which you wish to add spares. Change to the Spares tab.
Highlight the asset description you want to assign in the list of available asset descriptions, or use the Control key as you click on the list of available asset descriptions to highlight more than one asset description.
Click on the single left arrow or double-click on a highlighted asset description.
The asset descriptions you highlighted will move from the list of available asset descriptions to the list of assigned spares.
Open the Asset Descriptions Table.
Find the asset description to which you wish to add spares. Change to the Spares tab.
Click on the double left arrow.
All asset descriptions will move to the list of assigned spares.
Open the Asset Descriptions Table.
Find the asset description from which you wish to remove spares. Change to the Spares tab.
Highlight the asset description you want to remove from the list of assigned spares, or use the Control key as you click on the list of assigned spares to highlight more than one asset description.
Click on the single right arrow or double-click on the highlighted asset description.
The asset descriptions you highlighted will move to the list of available asset descriptions.
Open the Asset Descriptions Table.
Find the asset description from which you wish to remove spares. Change to the Spares tab.
Click on the double right arrow.
All asset descriptions will move to the list of available asset descriptions.
The suppliers tab shows the suppliers that supply assets that have a particular description, make, model and part number.
You can open the Suppliers lookup table by selecting a row, and choosing Open from the File menu, or from the popup menu. The Suppliers table will be opened, with the selected supplier highlighted.
The fields on the Suppliers tab are:
Supplier - The name of the supplier that can supply assets with the asset description.
Manufacturer - Indicates whether the supplier actually manufactures the product.
Supplier - Indicates whether the supplier supplies the product.
Contractor - Indicates whether the supplier is a contractor in the production of the product.
Preferred - Indicates whether this supplier is the preferred supplier for the product.
Asset descriptions can be linked to multiple asset types. The Types tab displays a list of all the asset types that the current asset description has been linked to. All linking and unlinking of asset descriptions to asset types is carried out from the Asset Types table.
You can open the Asset Types lookup table by selecting a row, and choosing Open from the File menu, or from the popup menu. The Asset Types table will be opened, with the selected asset type highlighted.