Overview
Adding assets should be one of the first steps you take when setting up your Limble account because assets are the building blocks of almost work in Limble.
If you have a lot of assets that you need to add to Limble at once, the most efficient way is by using an Excel spreadsheet.
This article will walk you through the steps to import your assets and asset information from an Excel sheet.
Table of Contents
Bulk Import vs. Bulk Update
Limble offers bulk importing and updating to make setting up your account and updating your information a breeze.
Imports are done for adding new assets to your system, while updates allow you to change information that is already in the system.
Updates and imports are done in a similar way but should be performed separately.
Getting Started
To prepare your bulk import, download the sample Excel spreadsheet and follow the instructions.
Navigate to the Manage Assets page, Locations > Select Your Location > Assets.
Click the “Import/Export” button from the toolbar. From the dropdown, select “Import Assets.”
(Note: if you have not added any assets into Limble, your Manage Assets page will be in what is known as an “empty state.” If your page is in an empty state, select the “Import Assets” button and follow the instruction from there.)
You will be taken to a new window with a list of instructions.
Download the Excel spreadsheet by clicking on Sample Import File.
(Note: Limble will recognize your CSV file even if you decide to rename it. Feel free to change the file name to something you can easily find later!)
Modifying the Excel Spreadsheet
Once you’ve downloaded the sample import file, you can add your assets and customize the fields you want to include.
Some information is required, but there is a lot of flexibility in what information you can modify and customize:
The first column, “Asset Name” is required. Do not change the asset name header (row 1, column A).
The “Parent Asset” column allows you to build an asset hierarchy into your import. If you have parent assets, and children assets that belong to them, this allows you to organize the hierarchy prior to putting assets into Limble. Do not change the parent asset header (row 1, column B). If the asset has no parent, enter “0.”
All other headers and columns can be modified. By default, Limble includes sample fields make, model, and serial number, which can be deleted or changed.
The sample file includes sample assets so you can see how to add information. Be sure to delete the contents of these cells and remove the sample data.
There are a few important formatting and upload rules that must be followed:
You are limited to 2,000 assets and 50 custom fields per import. If you have more than 2,000 assets, be sure to split up your import spreadsheets and label them accordingly.
Be sure that the field formats are set correctly (text, number, date, etc.) Field types cannot be modified once they are created. If you do not see the field type option you need in the dropdown, try to format the cells in Excel and attempt your upload again. If you still do not see the field type you need, we recommend creating the field within Limble first so the imported field information will be matched with the existing field.
Dropdown fields must be created in Limble prior to importing.
Dates can be in one of the following formats: YYYY-MM-DD, MM-DD-YYYY, MM-DD-YY, or M-D-YY.
You cannot import pictures of your assets. You must upload those manually.
Make sure to format the Excel cells the way you want them to work in Limble. For example, if you are tracking mileage, you’ll want to make sure the cells are formatted as numbers. This will be important when you import your information into Limble.
Building an Asset Hierarchy in Excel
You can build asset hierarchies in your Excel document so that child assets are automatically related to parent assets when they are imported into Limble.
To do this, you’ll want to put your parent asset into the Excel sheet first. For this example, the garage will be the parent asset.
In the Parent Asset column, add the parent asset. If the asset has no parent, enter the value as “0.”
Next, add the children assets. These should go directly under the parent asset. In the Parent Asset column, add the parent asset.
As you can see in this example:
The garage is the parent asset for greens mowers, cart fleet, and shop equipment.
The shop equipment is the parent asset for the grinder and heating and air.
Finally, heating and air is the parent asset for the heater and Salem HVAC unit 1.
When imported into Limble, the assets will maintain their hierarchy with the parent-child relationships set in the Excel spreadsheet.
(Note: to see your asset hierarchy, make sure your Manage Assets page is in hierarchical view.)
Importing Drop-Down Asset Fields
You can import assets with pre-filled drop-down fields if those drop-down fields already exist for another asset in Limble. This means the field type cannot be a new custom field created with an import.
To pre-fill a field with a drop-down menu, create a column in the import sheet with the exact name as the field in Limble. In the asset row, add the variable you want to pre-fill (as seen below):
Make sure to use the exact word as the variable you wish to pre-fill; otherwise, the field may be left blank.
Upload and Import
Once you’ve added your desired assets and fields, it’s time to upload.
Navigate back to the import screen, and select “Upload CSV.”
Select your Excel spreadsheet and click “Open.”
In the new window, you will see how many assets will be added (and updated, depending on the type of import you’re doing). You can click on the blue text to see the exact action being taken on the assets.
Limble offers different field types to log information based on the type of data you’re tracking. If you import a new field for the first time, you’ll need to choose the type of field you are creating.
Limble will do its best to guess what field type you’re trying to import based on how the cells are formatted in your Excel spreadsheet. Depending on the format, you will have one or more options to choose from.
Field types cannot be modified once they are created. If you do not see the field type option you need in the dropdown, try to format the cells in Excel and attempt your upload again. If you still do not see the field type you need, we recommend creating the field within Limble first so the imported field information will be matched with the existing field.
From the dropdown, select your option.
Then, click “Confirm.”
Your information will begin to upload. Depending on how many assets and fields you are uploading, this may take several minutes.
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Still don’t see what you’re looking for? Check out our YouTube channel for more tips and tricks! You can also reach out to us anytime at support@limblecmms.com.