Purchasing New Equipment
Purchasing new equipment is a bit more of a process than most people think, because we need so much data about each piece of gear to make its rental a repeatable and standardized process. We take these steps so that our inventory is uniform and people know what to expect when they order a specific piece of equipment from us. It's very important to separate new equipment immediately upon arrival until at least the rentalworks process is completed. Its very easy for non-tagged equipment to get mixed in with everything else and it becomes a pain to find it again to finish the process.
This form is a checklist that contains everything you'll need to make sure you setup the gear properly:
Branding
Every piece of equipment should have our logo on it. The Bolt sticker and RFID tag are standardized for each piece of equipment. To see where an item should be branded and RFID tagged, find a piece of that equipment already in our inventory and match it exactly.
- For Cables
Add cable bullets, instructions can be found at Cable Bullets. For any cable heavier than 100amp bates there are two cable bullets with ties, one gets an RFID tag, the other one gets a paper logo. if the cable is able to wrap in a coil make sure there are ties attached to the cable bullet. An example of using a cable bullet to hold an RFID tag without a tie would be a 100a-100a splitter. If you are putting a cable bullet on a piece of cable, the first one should always go on the male end.
- Stickers
Use the biggest sticker possible. If the item is something we already have, use consistent branding with other like items.
- Branding Iron
If branding iron seems appropriate you may use it to brand certain equipment. This would be useful for things such as wood materials
- Powder Coating
We will use powder coating with our brand colors for Stands and other grip equipment.
Deciding on Inventory Tracking
The very first thing you will need to do is choose the method on how to track this item in our inventory. Look at the Tracked By article to learn about the different ways and reasons for each. We default to using RFID tags, then barcode, then quantity as a last resort.
Affixing RFID Tags
If you have chosen to track this by RFID, there are 3 tags you can select from. Always go for the largest tag that will fit on the item, scanning range improves as the tag grows in size. Tags that do not use a cable bullet should be covered in 3m clear tape to increase durability.
Creating a New Item in Rentalworks
Click on the hamburger menu and go to Inventory > Rental Inventory. Click "+ New" to create a new item.
Rental Inventory Tab
Complete all Required fields. The only fields listed here are ones that require more information.
- Description
If it's a lighting fixture, be sure to follow the naming convention. (WATTAGE )(TYPE OF LIGHT) - MANUFACTURER "NAME" An example of this is 12K TUNGSTEN FRESNEL - ARRI "T12". For LED Panels use (MANUFACTURER) (NAME) LED. An example of this is ARRI S-60 "SKYPANEL" LED COMPLETE
- Unit
Most will be EA for each. Basically, it's how you charge for this item, which could be hourly, daily, etc.
- Tracked By
Use whatever you have decided as the Tracked By field. Look at the Tracked By article to learn about the different ways and reasons for each.
If possible include:
- Manufacturer Part Number
- Manufacturer URL
Pictures
Add manufacturer created images to every item added if possible.
- Save Record
Must save records before adding images.
- Click +Add under the images heading.
- Drag and drop image.
- Aisle and Shelf Numbers
This can be found in the Warehouse Inventory grid.
Final Fields
- Daily Rate
Ask for quotes from two local rental houses, enter the higher price.
- Unit Value
This is the market value for the item. This is usually a 40% discount from the unit replacement cost. If you have a better idea of the market value, you may use that instead.
- Unit Replacement Cost
Replacement cost is the full value of the item. Use the retailers full price without any discounts.
AKA
In this tab, put all the other names for this item. This will make it easier to search later.
Substitutes
Put any good substitutes for this piece of equipment in this tab.
Prep/QC Tab
In the QC grid it will show you the available warehouses and if QC is required there.
If you check this box, it requires us to scan the item to tell the system it has been checked before it goes out again. If you check this box, you need to update the QC Process Google Drive Document, reprint it, and pin it back up on the board above the prep desk.
Availability Tab
Check the box for hourly availability.
Kits or Completes
When making a complete you should first check with other vendors to see what they keep in their kits. We want our kits to be as standard as possible so that subrentals will be easy.
Adding a new complete to the system and adding a kit are very similar.
- Go to Rental Inventory and Click New
- Input everything as you normally would for a regular item.
This would be the Description, Inventory Type, Category, Sub Category, Manufacturer if possible.
- Classify it as a Complete or a Kit in the Classification
Kits - have no main item and instead are searchable by a specific name for the kit.. example: combo wheel kits require 3 wheels and have no main item. grip sandwich has 5 flags and no main item.
Completes - Have a main item and supporting accessories. example: M18 complete has an m18 head, head feeder cables, ballast, scrims and barn doors, but the main item in the complete is the m18 head.
- Click Save
- Click on the Complete or Kit Tab
- Click the Hamburger Menu and then Select QuickSearch
Now add in all the individual items for the kit/complete. set the price
- Now add the pricing in the Warehouse Pricing section of this tab.
Click Save All
Options or Required Options
If there are accessories that commonly go with a certain piece of gear, you can double click the Option column to change it to YES. Next to it is a CHARGE column that allows you to charge for options. Most options we will charge for, but there are rare instances like the source 4 barrels, where we do not charge for selecting the first barrel. So we have made all of the barrels and option and we do not charge for any of them.
Making something a required option does not do very much, it just makes the item RED when you are creating the order.
Inventory Purchase Utility
Once you have created the item and you have affixed the tag to the item, you need to add a quantity to that I-Code so the tags can be assigned.
Use Rentalworks Online
- Click on hamburger menu, under Utilities select Inventory Purchase Utility.
For Quantity Items
- Search for your I-Code or type in the description of your item you wish to add.
- Add the number of quantity items you are adding to your inventory.
- Complete as much information on this form as you can, including unit value, which is 60% of new price. Once done, click ADD ITEMS to add the items to your inventory.
For Bar Code/RFID/Serial Number Items
- Search for your I-Code or type in the description of your item you wish to add.
- Enter the amount of items you are adding to your inventory.
- Below, a grid will appear for each Barcode/RFID/Serial Number.
- Click on the top Barcode, scan the first tag you put on your item.
- Continue scanning the other items if you have multiples. By the end you should have all the barcodes on your items in the grid.
- Click ADD ITEMS to add the items to your inventory.
You will assign them using Quickscan using the instructions below.
Now you have a quantity associated with your item. If you are tracking by quantity, you're done, if not you must assign RFID/Barcode numbers using quickscan.
Assigning RFID/Barcodes using QuickScan
Now that we have created these quantities associated with the item, we have to tell the system which RFID tag is associated with which item.
- Sign into Quickscan using the credentials from LastPass.
- Select Assign Items from the main menu.
- Select Existing Items
- Scan the items Barcode
- Set the scanner sensitivity to 1, it's the antennae icon in the top right.
- Scan the RFID
- After both screens have been entered hit assign in the top right.
Now when you scan the item it will know what it is and its status will be trackable.
Wikipedia Article
We keep a wikipedia article on file for all of the types of gear we use on set. This is mostly for education of new people in the shop, but also helps promote our culture of continuous learning. We've setup some standard sections for every article, but if there is something special about the piece of equipment, you are always welcome to add more. When making new articles you can go into the Edit section of this article and copy paste this template to build your new article. Always be sure to add at least one picture and if you are ever on set, feel free to take pictures of it in use.
Uses
In this section, describe why people would order this piece of equipment in the first place. What can you do with it, what are the limitations, and what are you usually going to use it for.
QC Process
If QC is required on this item, what is the standard QC process? List it out in bullet point form.
Accessories
What are the common accessories with this piece of equipment if any? Be sure to link to other articles if they exist.
Troubleshooting
What are the common pitfalls to this item and how can they be fixed? If there's something that commonly breaks, feel free to list that along with who fixes it.