Equipment Readings
The Readings screen is a quick-entry form to record the current gauge value of a piece of Equipment (a Fixed Asset flagged as equipment): kilometers, hours of use, or whatever unit you use to measure it. It updates the equipment's last known reading, which is exactly the value that Preventive Maintenance Plans use to know whether servicing is due, and records every reading in the equipment's history. If the equipment carries several counters at once, you also log each of them from here.
What is it and what is it for?
Many pieces of equipment (vehicles, industrial machinery, generators, etc.) carry one or several counters that advance with use: a truck's odometer, an engine's running hours, a machine's cycle count. Each counter is a Meter defined on the Meters tab of the Equipment record, and its reading is kept with its own history. The Readings screen exists so you can update those values in seconds, without opening the equipment's full record.
These readings are what Preventive Maintenance Plans configured "by reading" check against: the plan states WHICH meter it is planned on, and is flagged as pending once that meter's last reading (plus its reminder) reaches the Next Reading defined on the plan. They are also the reference used when a piece of equipment is set to require a reading whenever spare parts or supplies are dispatched to it, on Maintenance Dispatches, where the readings of each meter are entered on the dispatch's own Readings tab.
How to use it, step by step
- Open the Readings screen from the Equipment Maintenance menu.
- Select the Equipment you want to log a reading for. As soon as you pick it, AdmCloud shows one row per active meter defined on the equipment's Meters tab, with its unit of measure, its last recorded reading and the date it was taken. The meter flagged as the Default is listed first. Meters flagged as inactive don't show up, since they no longer receive readings. If the equipment has no active meters, there is nothing to record: the screen says so with a message and a link to open the equipment and define them on its Meters tab.
- Type the new reading for each meter you measured. It should be that counter's current value, equal to or greater than its last reading. Meters you leave blank are not saved, so you can log only the ones you actually read.
- Press "Save". AdmCloud stores one reading per meter you filled in and clears the form so you can log another piece of equipment without reloading the page.
Key capabilities
- Updates the Last Reading and its date on the Equipment record in a single step, without opening its full edit form.
- Shows the previous reading and its date for reference before you save the new one, so you can confirm the value makes sense.
- Automatically feeds the "by reading" due-date calculation of the equipment's Preventive Maintenance Plans.
- Stays available as a reference for Maintenance Dispatches on equipment that requires a reading to be entered when spare parts are dispatched.
- Readings can be reviewed on the Readings History report (from the Maintenance reports menu or from the Reports menu on the equipment record). Its meter filter is a text filter on the meter description: type, for example, "Odometer" to see the odometers of the whole fleet.
Key fields
| Field | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Equipment | The Fixed Asset (flagged as equipment) you're logging a reading for. |
| Meter | Read-only: the counter's name. One row appears per active meter of the equipment, with the Default one first. |
| Unit of Measure | Read-only: the unit that meter's reading is expressed in (km, hours, cycles). It is the one set for that meter on the Meters tab of the Equipment record. |
| Last Reading | Read-only: the last value recorded for that meter on that equipment. Blank if none was ever recorded. |
| Last Reading Date | Read-only: when that previous reading was recorded. |
| New Reading | That counter's current value. Optional per meter: the ones you leave blank are not saved, so you can log only the ones you measured. |
One piece of equipment, several counters
Many pieces of equipment carry more than one counter. A cement mixer truck, for example, tracks both the kilometers driven on the road and the rotation hours of the drum: two different meters, in different units, and neither can be derived from the other.
That is why every reading belongs to a meter. The equipment does not keep a loose reading of its own: it keeps the readings of the meters you defined on it, each with its own history. That is what allows, on the same truck, one maintenance plan every 10,000 km and another every 500 rotation hours, each falling due against its own counter.
When the equipment carries several, it is worth flagging one as the Default on its Meters tab: it is the one listed first here and on the Readings tab of Supply Dispatches, and the one that represents the equipment in the equipment list and in reports.
If you replace one of the equipment's counters (for example, the odometer), add a new meter on the Meters tab and flag the old one as Inactive (if the old one was the default or had active maintenance plans, move them to the new one first): the old one keeps its history, but no longer shows up here and no longer receives readings.
Validations when saving
- You must select an Equipment.
- You must enter at least one reading. If you leave every meter blank there is nothing to save.
- No reading can be negative.
- The Equipment cannot be voided.
- You can only log readings for active meters of that equipment. If a meter is missing from the table, add it (or clear its Inactive flag) on the Meters tab of the Equipment record.
- If your plan has subsidiaries enabled, you can only log readings for equipment that belongs to your active subsidiary.
Availability, plan and modules
- This screen is only available when your company has the Equipment Maintenance add-on module active (Enterprise plan). If it isn't active, it doesn't show up in the menu.
- Access is controlled by the same edit permission used for the Equipments record: if you can edit Equipments, you can log Readings.
Tips and common pitfalls
Log the reading before generating the Maintenance Order. If you update the equipment's reading first, the Preventive Maintenance Plan will correctly reflect whether the reading-based maintenance is already due or coming up soon.
"The reading cannot be negative" / "You must indicate a reading". Check that you entered a number of zero or greater on at least one meter before saving.
Can't find the equipment? Check that it isn't voided and, if your plan has subsidiaries enabled, that it belongs to the subsidiary you're currently working in. Each meter's unit of measure (for example "km" or "hours") is set on the Meters tab of the Equipment record.