Assets & Equipment

Track the equipment your business owns in the Asset Register - who holds it, where it is, its maintenance and its depreciation.

Overview

The Asset Register sits in the Accounting menu, at Accounting > Asset Register. It helps you:

Maintain a register of your business assets
Track which person is holding each asset
Manage each asset's status and condition
Log maintenance work
Depreciate assets, for your books and for tax
Record disposals and write-offs

It is the same register the Accounting guide describes - this guide covers the day-to-day equipment side. The Accounting menu is shown to your business's owners and admins. If you can't see the Asset Register, it may be switched off for your business - an admin can check under Admin > Modules (Accounting > Asset Register).

The Asset Register

Overview

Open Accounting > Asset Register. Once you have assets, the top of the page shows:

Total Assets - everything on the register

In Use - assets with the In Use status (assigning an asset sets it)

In Maintenance - assets marked as under maintenance

Total Value - the current (depreciated) value of the register

Finding Assets

Search by name, asset tag, serial number, manufacturer or supplier

Filter by status and category

Filter by assignee - pick one or more people to see what they're holding, or Unassigned to see what nobody has

Choose which columns to show - Asset Tag, Name, Serial Number, Category, Status, Condition, Assigned To, Location, Purchase Price and Current Value

Click any row to open the asset.

Asset Categories

Common Categories

Categories are yours to define. Common ones include:

IT Equipment

Laptops and desktops
Monitors
Keyboards and mice
Headsets
Webcams
Docking stations

Mobile Devices

Mobile phones
Tablets
Portable chargers

Furniture

Desks
Chairs
Filing cabinets
Whiteboards

Vehicles

Company cars
Trucks
Motorcycles

Tools & Equipment

Power tools
Specialised equipment
Safety gear

Managing Categories

Adding Categories

Go to Accounting > Asset Register

Click Categories

Click Add Category

Enter:

Name
Description
Icon (optional)

Depreciation accounts - the asset account, accumulated depreciation account and depreciation expense account

Click Create Category

Depreciation Accounts

Assets post their depreciation and disposals to the accounts set on their category. An asset whose category has no depreciation expense and accumulated depreciation accounts is skipped when depreciation runs, and an asset can't be disposed of until its category has an asset account and an accumulated depreciation account.

Set them under Depreciation accounts when you create the category, or by editing it later. Until a category has them, Run Depreciation reports that no depreciation was due for its assets, and Dispose is refused with a message that the accounts aren't configured.

Adding Assets

Create Asset Record

Basic Information

Go to Accounting > Asset Register

Click Add Asset

Enter details:

Asset name
Description
Category
Status (Active, In Use, Maintenance, Retired or Disposed)
Condition (New, Good, Fair, Poor)

Each new asset is given the next asset tag automatically - AST-0001, AST-0002 and so on.

Location & Assignment

Assigned To - the person holding the asset. Choosing someone here doesn't change the status - to hand an asset over and mark it In Use, use Assign (see below)

Location - one of your business locations (set up under Business > Locations)

Assigned date and returned date

Purchase & Warranty

Purchase date
Purchase price
Supplier
Warranty expiry
Serial number
Model number
Manufacturer

Depreciation and Notes

Set the depreciation method and tax depreciation (see Depreciation below), add any notes, then click Create Asset. Editing an asset later uses the same form - click Edit Asset on the asset, then Save Changes.

Bulk Import

Import from CSV

Go to Accounting > Asset Register

Click Import CSV

Click Download Template for the column layout, and fill in your asset data - Asset Tag and Asset Name are required

Upload the file
Map the CSV columns to asset fields
Preview, then import and review the results

A row whose asset tag is already on the register is skipped rather than duplicated.

Status and Condition are optional - leave those columns out and imported assets start as Active and New. If you include them, fill them on every row with one of active, in_use, maintenance, retired or disposed, and new, good, fair or poor. A row with any other value - including the template's example status, "available" - fails to import.

Asset Assignment

Assigning to People

Assets are assigned to the people in your People Management directory.

Assign Asset

Open the asset (or use the row menu on the register)

Click Assign

Select the person
Set the assigned date (it defaults to today)
Add notes (optional)

Click Assign Asset - the status changes to In Use

You can also assign straight from the Assigned To column on the register: pick a person to hand the asset over, or clear the person to take it back.

Returning Assets

Check-In Process

Open the asset (or use the row menu on the register) - Return is offered while the asset is assigned and In Use

Click Return

Set the return date

Record the Condition on Return

Click Return Asset - the status goes back to Active and the return date is recorded

For now, Return Asset leaves the person's name in Assigned To. To clear it, click Edit Asset, remove the person under Assigned To, and click Save Changes.

The Notes box in the Assign and Return dialogs is the asset's own Notes - it opens with what's already there, and your changes are saved back to the asset. Add a line to record why it changed hands - someone leaving, an upgrade, or a fault.

What's Recorded

The asset page shows who is holding the asset, with its Assigned Date and Returned Date, alongside its condition and location.

Asset Lifecycle

Status Workflow

Active → In Use → Maintenance → Active → Retired → Disposed

Active

Ready for assignment
Not being held by anyone

In Use

Assigned to a person

Set automatically when you assign the asset with Assign or from the register's Assigned To column

Maintenance

Being serviced or repaired
Set by editing the asset

Retired

No longer in service
Stays on the register

Disposed

Sold, traded in, scrapped, written off or donated

Set by Dispose (see below), which also posts the disposal to your ledger

Use Dispose rather than choosing Disposed in the edit form - only Dispose posts the disposal to your accounts.

Depreciation

Depreciation here is the same fixed-asset depreciation described in Accounting - each asset carries a book schedule and a separate tax schedule.

Setting Up Depreciation

Depreciation is set on each asset, in the Depreciation section of the asset form:

Method - Straight Line, Diminishing Value or None

Useful Life (Years)

Residual Value ($)

Price includes GST? - for a GST-inclusive price, depreciation runs on the GST-exclusive amount

Depreciation start date - defaults to the purchase date

Tax method (None, Prime cost or Diminishing value (200%)) and Effective life (years) - the ATO decline in value for your income tax return, kept separate from the book method and not posted to the ledger

Depreciation Methods

Straight Line - Equal amount each year (cost less residual value, spread over the useful life)

Diminishing Value - Percentage of remaining value (200% divided by the useful life)

None - The asset isn't depreciated

Running Depreciation

Click Run Depreciation on the register to post book depreciation up to today to your general ledger, in one journal for all your assets. Mployr also runs it automatically on the 1st of each month, and running it again books nothing that has already been posted. Nothing posts into a closed or locked period. Assets whose category has no depreciation accounts are skipped - see Depreciation Accounts above.

Viewing Depreciation

The asset's Depreciation tab shows:

Book value (ledger) - net book value, accumulated depreciation, when it was last depreciated, and the method

Tax depreciation for the current financial year - effective life, opening written-down value, this year's decline and closing written-down value

Depreciation Schedule (projection) - an estimate of the value year by year, worked from the full purchase price. It can differ from what's posted - for example for a GST-inclusive price or a diminishing value asset - so go by Book value (ledger) for the figures in your accounts

The disposal details, once the asset has been disposed of

Disposing of an Asset

When an asset is sold, traded in, scrapped, written off or donated:

Open the asset and click Dispose

Choose the Disposal Method and Disposal Date

For a sale or trade-in, enter the Proceeds ($) - Mployr shows the book value and the estimated gain or loss

Click Confirm Disposal

Mployr books depreciation up to the disposal date, removes the asset's cost and accumulated depreciation from your books, and posts the gain or loss. Any proceeds are posted to an Asset Disposal Clearing account (added to your chart if it isn't there), ready to clear when the money is banked. The asset's status becomes Disposed. Dispose needs the category's accounts - see Depreciation Accounts above.

Maintenance

Recording Maintenance

Log Maintenance Work

Open the asset

Go to the Maintenance tab

Click Add Entry

Enter:

Type (Maintenance, Repair, Inspection or Upgrade)
Date performed
Description of the work
Performed by (a name or company)
Cost
Next due date
Notes

Click Add Entry

Maintenance History

The Maintenance Log lists every entry with its date, type, description, who did the work, the cost and the next due date, so you can see costs over time and when the asset is next due.

Warranty

The asset page's Warranty figure shows how many days are left until the warranty expires, or Expired once it has passed - keep the Warranty Expiry date on each asset up to date.

Asset Tracking

Location Tracking

Recording Location

Each asset can be placed at one of your business locations, set up under Business > Locations. Choose it in the asset's Location field, and update it when the asset moves. The register's Location column shows where everything is.

Stock and Consumables

The Asset Register tracks individual items rather than quantities. Stock you sell is tracked per location in the catalogue, with Receive Stock and Stocktake - see the Products, Services & Inventory guide.

Reporting

The Register

The register doubles as your asset listing:

Filter by assignee to see who has what, or Unassigned to see what's free

Filter by status or category

Show the Purchase Price and Current Value columns for values

Depreciation in Your Accounts

Depreciation runs and disposals post ordinary journals, so they appear under Accounting > Journal Entries and count in the Profit & Loss figures on the Accounting dashboard.

Tips

Record serial numbers for warranty claims
Set up each category's depreciation accounts before your first depreciation run
Log maintenance with a next due date so you know when each asset is due again
Record the condition every time an asset comes back
Update the location when an asset moves

Use Dispose when an asset leaves the business, so the gain or loss reaches your books

Retire assets instead of deleting them, so they stay on the register
Conduct an annual physical check of your assets against the register

In this guide

Assets & Equipment

Overview

The Asset Register

Overview

Finding Assets

Asset Categories

Common Categories

IT Equipment

Mobile Devices

Furniture

Vehicles

Tools & Equipment

Managing Categories

Adding Categories

Depreciation Accounts

Adding Assets

Create Asset Record

Basic Information

Location & Assignment

Purchase & Warranty

Depreciation and Notes

Bulk Import

Import from CSV

Asset Assignment

Assigning to People

Assign Asset

Returning Assets

Check-In Process

What's Recorded

Asset Lifecycle

Status Workflow

Active

In Use

Maintenance

Retired

Disposed

Depreciation

Setting Up Depreciation

Depreciation Methods

Running Depreciation

Viewing Depreciation

Disposing of an Asset

Maintenance

Recording Maintenance

Log Maintenance Work

Maintenance History

Warranty

Asset Tracking

Location Tracking

Recording Location

Stock and Consumables

Reporting

The Register

Depreciation in Your Accounts

Tips

Related guides