Large organizations own multiple assets that move through various stages in the operational workflow.
‘Custom Substates’ allows premium users to define these stages based on organizational needs. A custom substate is defined as a more specific state of the parent state of an asset, while the parent state could be a general state. A parent state is also known as the primary state of an asset.
Here are some examples of parent states and their substates for understanding:
| Parent State | Substate |
| Available | Default, In Transit to User, In Transit to Origin |
| Checked Out | Default, Under Evaluation |
| Under Maintenance | Default, Undergoing Repair, Quality Inspection, Routine Service |
Custom substates can be applied only to asset and asset stock.
Benefits of Custom Substates
Here’s how a user can benefit from custom substates:
- Enhanced communication: All business stakeholders remain on the same page regarding the asset status and status updates. This way, users know where and in what state an asset is located.
- Improved collaboration: By identifying the stage of an asset, departments can better communicate and streamline operations. Users can resolve bottlenecks and inefficiencies if an asset is in a particular state for prolonged periods. For example, the operations team can take corrective action if an asset is in the ‘In transit’ state for too long.
- Increased visibility: Substates provide clarity to users regarding the stage of an asset. For instance, if an operations manager needs to check out an asset, they could see if it is available and whether it is in transit and make decisions accordingly.
Let’s walk you through the Custom Substates workflow to understand how to use the feature.
1. Enable Custom SubstatesÂ
Go to Company Settings → Add-ons → ‘Enable Custom Substates’ and contact the support team to enable it for you.
2. Assign custom substates to assetsÂ
You can access and create custom substates from the Navigation Menu → More → Customize → Custom Substates.
This will take you to the main page of Custom Substates. Click on ‘Asset’ to add a custom substate for assets and click on ‘Add Custom Substate’.
Here you can choose the Parent State from the dropdown and then be able to define substates for the Parent State.
You can define the name of the substate and what the substate does in the Description. Once you are done entering the details, press ‘Done’
This is how your defined substate will appear on the substates listing page.
3. Edit the substateÂ
To edit any substate click on Substate → Edit. The following page will appear where you can make changes to the substate’s name and description. For instance, the description has been changed in the example below.
4. Deactivate a substateÂ
To deactivate a substate, Go to the Substate → Deactivate.
The following overlay will appear asking you if you want to deactivate the substate. Click ‘Yes’ to proceed.
Once you deactivate the substate, it will appear grey on the screen and the system will prevent you from setting it as the ‘Default’ substate.
Note: You can re-activate the substate by clicking on ‘Activate’ on the substate details page.
5. Move all assets to the default state
You can move all your assets to the default substate selected by clicking on ‘Move Available Assets to [state name]’. Once you do this, all assets will move to the default state allowing you to move each asset individually to other substates of the parent state.
Before you move all assets, the system will ask you to confirm since this is an irreversible action.
You can change the state of an asset by going to its Asset Details Page → More → ‘Change Substate to’. This will change the substate immediately to any substate within the defined Primary state – for example, ‘Available: In transit to Origin’ in this case.
6. Assess state historyÂ
History is stored for all asset substate transitions made in your account. On the Asset Details page go to More→ State History.
A window will pop up with the substate actions taken on the asset.
7. Assign custom substate to asset stock
To add a custom substate for asset stock, Go to the Navigation Menu → More → Customize → Custom Substates → Asset Stock. Here you can assign custom substates to asset stock just the way we did for assets.
You can choose from the parent states: Available, Checked out, Retired, and Verification Pending. Once you have defined the name and description of the substate, click ‘Done’.
7.1 For existing asset stockÂ
There must be some asset stock in your account before you created the custom substates. In order to apply substates to previous stock go to the substates page and click ‘Move Available Asset Stock Quantity’.
Note: The selected substate for this action is always the default substate. For instance, In the image below its ‘Available to Book’.
Once you move the asset stock to a substate, the action will not be reversed.
7.2 For new asset stock
After you have created a new Asset Stock, go to the More→ Custom Substates → Add Stock. Here specify the Quantity and Location for the new asset stock.
The new stock added will be automatically assigned the default substate under the Quantity by Locations Tab i.e., ‘Available: Available to Book’ in this case.
8. Adding asset stock to carts
You can also choose asset stock quantities from different substates to add to a cart. Go to the Asset Stock Details page → More→ Add to Cart.
An overlay will appear asking you to enter the Quantity, Location, and State of the required asset stock.
Once you select the relevant fields, asset stock will be transferred to the current cart.
9. Creating substates for packages and bundlesÂ
Moving an asset that is part of a package to a substate will automatically move all of the assets part of that package and the package itself to that substate.
For instance Package 1 contains a Monitor and a Microphone. The monitor is in a substate ‘Available: In Transit to Owner’.
The package will also be in the state ‘Available: In Transit to Owner’ automatically then.
Note: For bundles, individual items can exist in any state. However, when the bundle is being checked-out by cart, the cart states will apply on all assets.
10. Create reports for substatesÂ
For Assets and Asset Stock, you can run reports for different substates. Go to the Navigation Menu → Reports.
For example, we want to run a report for all Available Assets. Here you have the option to choose Asset States to refine your report results.
Now you are ready to set up custom substates and utilize them to improve the visibility of your assets and their respective states.
