This guide explains how HirePOS calculates item availability, which records affect it, and how to investigate unexpected availability or double-booking warnings.

For the everyday Availability workflow, see Availability Overview.

For a bulk hire item, the basic calculation is:

Available quantity = Quantity For Hire minus the quantity occupied by applicable records

Applicable records can include sales/hire transactions, maintenance, inspections and branch transfers.

For singular hire items, HirePOS normally represents the same activity using coloured bars instead of quantities.

An item is included when it is:

• Active

• Not disposed

• Assigned to an Item Type configured as a hire item

The item’s Quantity For Hire provides its starting capacity.

Where branch quantities or serial-tracked quantities are used, HirePOS uses those allocations when calculating availability for a selected branch.

Items configured as sales or non-stock items do not normally appear unless their Item Type has also been configured as a hire item.

Credit notes do not consume hire availability.

Statuses such as On Hire, Off Hired, Return, Returned, Booking and Contract describe the sales/hire record’s type or current stage. They are not separate availability records.

HirePOS uses the most relevant dates available on each record.

For sales/hire records:

• Actual hire dates take precedence once entered.

• Booked or estimated dates are used when actual dates do not yet exist.

• The actual return date ends the occupied period.

• Open-ended or TBA hires continue reserving availability until completed.

• Lag time can extend the displayed occupied period before or after the booking.

For maintenance:

• The Start Date and Finish Date define the maintenance period.

• Pending maintenance without a confirmed finish can continue affecting future availability.

• If a pending maintenance Finish Date has passed without completion, HirePOS treats the record as continuing through the current time.

For inspections:

• An inspection without a Finish Date remains unfinished and continues blocking availability.

• If no Start Date exists, the inspection begins affecting availability from the current time.

• Pass, Fail or Not Set does not determine whether the item is available. Completion is based on the Finish Date.

A hire line is treated as returned when an actual return date has been entered.

Returned records remain visible as historical activity and are included in calculations for the period during which they were actually on hire.

They stop reducing future availability after their actual return date.

This means:

• A singular item retains its Returned bar over the historical hire period.

• A bulk item contributes its hired quantity to historical Qty Out values until the return date.

• A returned grouped component contributes to the historical group total until the return date.

When Exclude Returned Items from Availability is enabled, returned hire lines are removed from:

• The Availability grid

• Availability Drilldowns

• Availability calculations

• Double-booking checks

This setting removes the complete returned record from Availability, including its historical activity.

The setting is located under Setup > Preferences > Restrictions.

An active maintenance record reduces availability by its Quantity Serviced. If no applicable quantity has been entered, it normally occupies one unit.

Check:

• The selected item

• Start Date

• Finish Date

• Status

• Quantity Serviced

• Service Branch, where branches are enabled

• Selected serial numbers

Pending or recurring maintenance records can affect future availability as soon as the maintenance record is created.

An unfinished inspection checklist occupies one unit until a Finish Date is entered.

Its Pass, Fail or Not Set result does not change this. A passed inspection without a Finish Date is still unfinished for availability purposes.

To prevent inspection checklists from affecting availability:

1. Go to Setup > Preferences > Maintenance.

2. Open the Inspection Checklist settings.

3. Enable Disable Inspection Checklist Availability Checks.

4. Save the changes.

If Auto-create Post Inspection Checklist on Return is enabled, returning an item can create an unfinished post-hire inspection. That inspection may then block one unit until it is completed.

Qty Out shows the quantity occupied in each time slot.

If the occupied quantity exceeds the applicable Quantity For Hire, the cell is shown in red.

Qty In shows the remaining capacity:

Quantity For Hire minus Qty Out

For example, an item with a quantity of 20 and a Qty Out of 7 has a Qty In of 13.

Singular items normally use coloured bars in Qty Out mode. Enable the personal preference to show singular-item quantities if a numeric display is preferred.

HirePOS calculates package availability from the availability of each included component.

For each component, it:

1. Calculates the component quantity available.

2. Divides that quantity by the number required in one package.

3. Rounds down to a complete-package quantity.

4. Compares that result with the other package components.

The component producing the lowest result limits the number of complete packages available.

For example:

• A package requires two chairs and one table.

• Six chairs can make three packages.

• Two tables can make two packages.

• The package availability is two.

The calculation uses the actual items included in the package. Items sharing a Group Code are not automatically treated as substitute package components.

Grouped availability combines items that share a Group Code.

Use it when several interchangeable hire items should be treated as one pool. The grouped row shows the combined quantity and activity rather than identifying one exact asset.

Important limitations:

• Grouping is an aggregate view.

• It does not make grouped items substitutes within package calculations.

• It does not show the current location of each individual asset.

• Grouped view cannot be used with Branch Splitting.

Use Itemised view when investigating one particular item, serial number, location or branch allocation.

This section applies only when the Branches module is enabled.

Selecting a branch:

1. Limits the item rows to items or quantities allocated to that branch.

2. Applies the relevant branch activity to those items.

3. Shows the resulting availability for that location.

For bulk hire items, bookings, maintenance and inspections are generally attributed using the Branch, Service Branch or Inspection Branch on the applicable record.

Singular hire items are treated as the same individual asset regardless of the branch recorded on the booking, maintenance record or inspection. Activity for that item can therefore affect its availability even when the associated record uses a different branch.

With no branch selected, standard Itemised availability combines stock across all branches.

Branch transfers do not change the combined business-wide total because they move stock between locations rather than adding or removing it.

Enable Branch Splitting to display separate rows for each branch.

HirePOS uses:

• The item branch for applicable non-serialised equipment

• Branch quantity or serial allocation records where those are used

Branch Splitting cannot be used with:

• Grouped availability

• Show Current Location

These modes require different row structures and cannot represent the same information together.

Branch transfers affect availability when viewing a specific branch or using Branch Splitting.

• A pending outgoing transfer reduces availability at the source branch.

• A pending incoming transfer increases the destination branch’s future capacity from its transfer-to date.

• Transfers have no net effect when all branches are combined.

Use the Availability Drilldown or open the transfer bar to inspect the contributing Branch Transfer.

The State filter limits items and applicable activity to branches within the selected state.

Branch and State filters are available only when:

• The Branches module is enabled

• The logged-in user is not restricted in a way that removes free branch selection

A branch-restricted user may be unable to see unassigned items or records from another branch. Use an unrestricted Administrator account when reconciling availability across the whole business.

Show Current Location is a personal Availability preference for singular hire items.

It adds a location column containing a map pin or in-stock home icon. For an item on hire, the location information can include:

• Invoice number

• Customer

• Current hire location

• Address

• A link to open directions

Bulk items and packages do not display one current location because a single row can represent multiple physical units.

Enabling Show Current Location disables:

• Grouped availability

• Branch Splitting

Both features can combine multiple assets or locations into one row, while the location pin represents one exact singular asset.

The Month view displays 31 days but moves forward or backward seven days at a time.

Weekends use a different header colour. Holidays use the configured holiday colour and description. These are visual indicators and do not change item availability.

Depending on your preferences and permissions, the screen can include:

• Start Date

• Day, Week or Month

• Branch

• State

• Item

• Item Type

• Category

• Sub-Category

• Itemised or Grouped

• Qty In or Qty Out

• Include Quotes

• Branch Splitting

When no specific Item is selected, typed text can search the item code, serial number and description.

The selected Category can be retained as a personal setting.

Select a quantity, baseline quantity badge or drilldown control to open the Availability Drilldown for the corresponding item, branch and date.

Go to Setup > Preferences > Availability to configure personal display options.

Bar colours and Bar Z-Order change how records are displayed. They do not change the calculated quantity available.

The following settings do more than alter the screen’s appearance:

Includes quotes and estimates in the current Availability view.

Use it when quoted work should be treated as potentially reserved stock.

Removes inspection checklists from availability calculations.

Can indirectly affect availability by creating an unfinished inspection when an item is returned.

Removes returned hire lines from Availability, drilldowns and double-booking checks, including their historical activity.

If an item appears unavailable, overbooked or missing:

1. Confirm that the item is active and has not been disposed.

2. Confirm that its Item Type is configured as a hire item.

3. Check its Quantity For Hire.

4. Review branch or serial quantities where applicable.

5. Confirm the selected date range and view.

6. Clear unnecessary filters.

7. Check whether Include Quotes is enabled.

8. Open the Availability Drilldown.

9. Review the effective dates on bookings, invoices and contracts.

10. Check for open-ended or TBA hire records.

11. Check active and recurring maintenance.

12. Check for unfinished inspection checklists.

13. Check applicable branch transfers.

14. If branches are enabled, compare the item branch with the transaction, Service or Inspection Branch.

15. Review whether returned records are included or excluded.

16. Switch from Grouped to Itemised view when investigating an exact asset.

17. Use an unrestricted Administrator account when checking all branches or unassigned records.

Do not change an item quantity simply to clear an unexpected availability warning. Identify and correct the contributing transaction, maintenance record, inspection, transfer or branch allocation first.