Sub-Rentals and Sub-Sales
A Sub-rental is when a client asks us for a specific piece of equipment, but we do not have it. We rent this item from another rental house and then rent that item to the client. It is common practice for the vendors to give us a Sub-Rental discount, where they discount the total price by 20% in order to allow us to make some money on the order. If a sub vendor charges more for an item than we do we should talk to the vendor and see if they can match our price. If they cant then we need to change our pricing policy to match theirs.
POs should not be sent until the order has been approved
Creating Sub-Rentals in Rentalworks
Once you've made the order, you want to work out your shorts before you send it.
Marking Shortages as Subbed Items
- While in detail view click the shortages only button in top right
This will show you all of your shortages for the order.
- Type how many of each item you plan to Sub-rent
You don't need to check availability, you are just marking that it will be sub-rented from someone.
- Once you have marked these all as subrented items, make a card in Trello under the Subrentals/Crossloads section
You will just list each piece of gear that is getting subrented. As you find out where you are getting it from, you will note it here.
If they have any items that are not in our system, you will have to call the vendors directly and find someone who has them and input these items into our system with their pricing. Otherwise you can trust that our pricing is correct for all subrental items.
Crossloads
When there is gear on a job that also needs to quickly go onto another job when there is no time to check in, like if we know the gaffer or matt needs gear for 2 jobs we will do a crossload
- In Subrental/Crossload trello card make a new checklist and name is crossload - job name
That way you dont get confused about which job the gear is coming from
- In the Rentals Manager Closing Checklist follow the instructions for any crossloads
This will send the correct info of what needs to get dropped and what needs to get picked up from who.
Sub-Sales and Sub-Misc
Sometimes you will also do sub-sales and sub-miscellaneous charges. This could be special expendables or when you get a truck from another vendor the fuel/mileage/tolls will be sub-misc charges.
You will do the same process for these items. Mark them as subs in the sub-column, they will be added to your PO later. Its important that you do this because the invoice must match the purchase order exactly.
Requesting Subrentals
Now that the subrentals have been marked, you will need to find them. This can happen after you've sent the quote to them. It is not necessary to find the subrentals before you send a quote.
Some general notes:
- More specialty electric items will most likely be gotten from Chris Galdes or Shane Louis
- Rebel sun should be avoided as much as possible as they are far away.
- CFG is the last line for finding items, they will have what you need but we would prefer not to work with them if possible.
You will use the Subrental Request Macro to Request Quotes for Subs This will help you send an email with the proper dates and information to the subrental vendor. Follow the steps in the macro.
Let them know if you have deviated from standard pricing at all. If you need a discount, it should be included in this email. It can be helpful to tell them if its a short film or passion project.
Truck Rental Additionals
If you rent trucks from other vendors we need to make sure it comes with at least our basic package on the truck.
With each sub-rental with trucks:
- Replace the complete with the truck only item.
- Add the appropriate vendor package to complete their truck package.
This will keep false data from enetering our system of item availability.
After Hours Sub Drop Offs
Prioritize vendors that have the gear available for pick up between 830am - 5pm, if this is not possible you can schedule an after hours drop off into Shed 4. Should not be dropped into a truck directly. You will be prompted during the Rentals Manager closing checklist to send a Sub-Receive list to the driver and the codes to the vendor.
Creating Purchase Order
Only complete the following section once the job is approved.
- Go to Rental Tab, then inside the Rental Scroller, go to Hamburger Menu > Sub PO Worksheet
Only do this once you've received a quote from the sub-rental vendor.
- Select the Vendor and Ordered From Fields
If this vendor does not exist yet, Create New Vendor If no Ordered From is selectable, it is okay to leave this blank. Its mostly when we deal with bigger rental houses that have multiple rental agents.
- Type in 20% for the Discount Adjustment
This is found in the adjustments section at the bottom of the page.
- Enter the cost of the gear from the vendor.
Both the Quantity being rented, the days per week, and the unit price. These columns are labeled Qty, Cost, D/W.
- If you notice our pricing is too low and we are losing money on this, then use this time to update the pricing in our system to any differing prices.
- Hit Create Purchase Order at the bottom of the page
If you need to modify this Purchase Order in the future just click Modify Existing Purchase Order at the top and select the PO you want to modify. It will allow you to take things off and add things to that purchase order.
- Go to the Activities Tab and change the Receive and Deliver dates to one day before the rental starts and one day after the rental ends.
Make sure these dates are on business days only.
Modify Existing Purchase Order
- Navigate to the order
- Click the Rental Tab
- Click the Hamburger Menu > Sub Po Worksheet in the Rental Scroller
- Select Modify Existing Purchase Order
- Select the PO Number of the Existing Purchase Order
- Modify it however you like, then click Update Purchase Order at the bottom of the page
How to Pay Subrental Vendors
Importing Bills/Expenses to Quickbooks
Shop Tech Duties
Always try and schedule sub-rental pickups towards the end of the day, things may change on an order and this will ensure the sub-rentals are not cut or changed after we have picked it up. You should also make sure you coordinate with sub-rental vendors if we have to both drop-off equipment and pick up on the same day, as most times we can move our sub rental drop off until the end of the day when you are picking up the other equipment. It's important to never pick up sub-rentals for an order that has not been completed with all documents and approved quote in cine rental manager
- The shop tech cannot make or cancel subs, only the rentals manager may adjust subrental POs
- The shop tech may reach out to the vendor to discuss pick-up and drop-off times, or the location of equipment in their shop.
How to Print Receive List
- Click Warehouse > Receive from Vendor
- Click PO Number in the top left
- A scroller will pop up with all open PO's
- Select the PO you want to receive
- Click Print Receive List in the top hamburger menu
- Print HTML
Picking Up Sub-Rentals
- Go to the Purchase Order
Agent > Purchase Order. If you cannot find the purchase order, make sure you have Status > All, checked, to see all available PO's.
- Print out a receive list.
- Work with Rentals Manager to to schedule a pick up time. We should always call before leaving to confirm it's ready.
You will often times find that when you call they haven't even started picking the order.
- Drive the truck over to sub vendor
Whenever possible, use the truck that the gear will eventually go on, saving time crossloading.
- Once you get there, ask for a detailed packing list.
- Compare their list to our list, marking things off on our list as you find them on theirs.
At this point you're not looking at gear. Make sure the item and the quantity is the same. This will prevent us from having any issues where they made improper substitutions or forgot to give us an item on our order. If you find an item that is not the same as on our list, for example a SnapBag instead of a Chimera, call the rental manager to confirm this substitution is acceptable.
- Use their list to check that everything was provided.
Mark it off on their list as you find each item.
- Inspect everything for visual damage, no need to test anything.
- If any equipment is damaged, ask that a new one be provided. If new equipment cannot be provided, contact the rental manager to decide on how to proceed.
If we do take a damaged item, we must mark it in the notes of the purchase order so that it is noted they gave us something knowingly damaged.
- Call Rentals Manager before leaving the vendor
- Complete the Receive Equipment from Vendor in Rentalworks and check it off in the Activity App along with the other steps.
- If Vendor is dropping off subrentals to the shop, send the the subrental return email in the email template.
Receive From Vendor in Rentalworks
This is telling Rentalworks we have received new equipment into the shop, you cannot check out the equipment until it has been received, this helps us keep track of pick ups and returns at our sub-rental vendors. You can either do this on the gun or on the computer.
The shop tech is the only one who should be using the scanning gun for POs
Using QuickScan
- In the gun select from the Main menu "PO receive"
- A scroller will pop up with all open PO's
- Select the PO for the gear that you have already picked up. Do not do this until you pick up the gear.
- Go through each item in the pending section and check that each item has been picked up
- Click Create Contract
Using Rentalworks Desktop
- Click File > Receive from Vendor
- Click PO Number in the top right
- A scroller will pop up with all open PO's
- Select the PO for the gear that you have already picked up. Do not do this until you pick up the gear.
- Click Select All, this will select all items to receive. If you have not picked up all the items, click select all, then change the items that you did not receive to 0.
- Click Create Contract
How to Print Return List
- Click Warehouse > Return to Vendor
- Click PO Number in the top left
- A scroller will pop up with all open PO's
- Select the PO for the gear that you have already picked up. Do not do this until you pick up the gear.
- Click Print Return List in the Hamburger Menu
- Print HTML
Returning Sub-Rental Equipment
All sub-rentals should be returned by Noon unless specified otherwise.
- Before you leave, print the return list for all sub-rental vendors.
- Put gear on truck.
- Once you start unloading the equipment at the sub-rental vendor, check off the items on your return list
make sure to keep the gear very separate from their shop, or have them check it off as it comes off. The issue that happens here is they take it away, then say you are missing it. Because it’s been put away into their shop you can’t recount the gear.
- If no one is around to receive the gear, take a photo and have the rentals manager email it to the vendor to show that the gear was returned.
- Once all the gear has been counted, you don’t need to stay while they test it. No paperwork is required.
- Complete the Return Equipment to Vendor in Rentalworks and check it off in the Activity App.
Return to Vendor in Rentalworks
This is telling the system that we have returned the equipment to the sub-rental vendor.
The shop tech is the only one who should be using the scanning gun for POs
Using QuickScan
- In the gun select from the Main menu "PO return" *
- Select the PO for the gear you have already returned.
- Click each item and click Return to say that the item has been returned.
- Once all items are returned, click Create Contract
- Click OK, then close the Contract.
Using Rentalworks Web
- Click Warehouse > Return to Vendor
- Click PO Number in the top left
- Select the PO for the gear you have already returned.
- Click Select All, this will select all the items to return. If you have not returned all of the items, click select all, then change the items you didn't return to 0.
- Click Create Contract
If you are having issues returning items to their vendor, check to make sure they were checked in using Warehouse > Check In first.