In our latest webinar, CEO Roy van den Broek, led the discussion on what's new in Rentman, as well as what's coming next. Let's take a closer look at the topics we've talked about during the event.
Behind the scenes & our vision for the future
We kicked things off by talking about how we develop new features for you. It all starts with your feedback! We get tons of requests (with more than 1.500 this year alone), and we conduct hundreds of interviews to better understand your needs.
What we've heard loud and clear is that since Covid-19, crew is more important than ever. It's the people that make the real difference, not just the equipment. We also heard that many of you have complex workflows that our software wasn't always able to handle. So, we took a big step. We focused on making our inventory management more flexible to better support your advanced processes.
New updates
Zapier integration
We know you juggle with a lot of different tools. That's why we're excited about our new Zapier integration! This lets you connect Rentman with all your favorite tools, automating tasks and saving you tons of time.
But our personal favorite feature? Automatic file syncing with Google Drive (or your preferred file storage). When you create a project in Redman, a dedicated folder automatically pops up in your Drive, keeping all your project files organized and easy to find. And with thousands of potential Zapier connections, the possibilities are endless! We can't wait to see how you leverage this to streamline your workflow.
Let's take a look at one of our favorite examples: Automatic file syncing with Google Drive (or your preferred file storage). When you create a project in Rentman, a dedicated folder automatically pops up in your Drive, keeping all your project files organized and easy to find.
With thousands of potential Zapier connections, the possibilities are endless. Now, you have many more opportunities to streamline your workflows.
Add public holidays
Want to make sure that you don’t take on jobs on non-working days? Try the new “Important days” setting in the Configuration module to block those days in your Rentman calendar. Once created, warning notifications or an ⛱️ icon will appear in multiple places in your workspace to let you know not to carry out work on that day.
➡️ Read more about Important days.
Find gear images quicker
We've introduced a new feature that lets you search for pre-recorded images of your gear directly within Rentman. Simply click the "Search with Google" button in any equipment page, above the image section. Rentman will then search the web and display relevant images, saving you tons of time populating your database.
Three Crew improvement areas
We heard your feedback, and we're focused on enhancing your crew management capabilities in Rentman. Here's a sneak peek at what's coming:
- Easier access to crew information: We're building one central location for all your crew information, including historical work data, time tracking, absences, and even skill sets.
- Smoother & more efficient communication: Rentman will help you update crew schedules, keeping everyone informed about the latest updates. We'll also offer improved communication tools to streamline your flows.
- More accurate time tracking: Rentman will make time tracking easier for your crew. The system will be simple to use, capture both scheduled and non-scheduled project hours, and provide you with clear, easy-to-understand overviews.
Our goal? Rentman is your single source of truth for all crew-related information.
New Crew updates
Plan work with Shifts
With our Shifts feature, scheduling your crew has never been easier! Shifts lets you create pre-defined crew availability periods for tasks outside specific projects. For example: warehouse duties, office work, or anything else that keeps your crew busy. Shifts is a great way to ensure you have the right people available for any non-project workload, streamlining your overall flows.
New Job Board feature
Introducing the Job Board, our latest feature designed to fill up your roster. The Job Board lets you post jobs directly from the visual crew planner, include detailed job descriptions, as well as provide your crew with a central hub to view all available jobs.
Crew members can easily respond to jobs that interest them, giving you more control over filling your roster and giving your crew members a better sense of autonomy.
Two Equipment improvement areas
We're working on taking Rentman's equipment management solution to the next level. Here's a look at our upcoming improvements:
- Increased flexibility when setting up & planning gear: We're reworking the core foundation of our equipment management solution to provide you with greater flexibility. This will help you tackle even the most complex equipment challenges you face.
- More intuitive planning & tracking: You shared your feedback, we listened. Rentman is a powerful tool, but it can sometimes feel complex. We're committed to making Rentman more intuitive and user-friendly, simplifying your daily workflows.
These efforts pave the way for a future where Rentman will handle all your toughest equipment challenges.
New Equipment updates
Equipment Insights tab
Keeping track of the location of your equipment during high season can be a nightmare. Our new Equipment Insights Tab directly tackles this challenge! It allows you to spot items that are delayed, on location, in repair or lost. All in one place.
With better insights into the current state of your equipment, you can rest assured you'll take better decisions in the future.
Scan return
Warehouse operations just got faster and more efficient with our improved Scan Return feature. You can now scan entire truckloads of equipment at once using bulk QR codes. The Scan Return function also automatically assigns returning equipment to the correct projects, eliminating the need to manually search them in your projects.
New flexible options to set up and manage your gear
Plan Physical Combinations in projects
Managing your equipment just got a lot more powerful with Physical Combinations. This new feature lets you:
- Track the contents of your physical combinations within the warehouse, ensuring accurate inventory management.
- Schedule physical combinations directly in your projects, streamlining your workflow.
Previously, containers were great in tracking equipment, but could not be scheduled in projects. Physical Combinations, on the other hand, could be scheduled, but made tracking items impossible. With the new update, Physical Combinations eliminate this frustration by providing a single solution with both functionalities.
Scan a returning flight case to see its content
Packing and storing flight cases just got simpler. This feature eliminates the guesswork and ensures your flight cases are always packed and ready to go. Upon returning a physical combination to the warehouse, you'll get a clear overview of what should be inside compared to what's actually there, as the system automatically verifies if all required items are present.
Once everything is scanned and verified, you can confidently seal the flight case, knowing it's packed correctly and ready for its next assignment.
Spot flight cases to be repacked or filled
We understand that sometimes incomplete physical combinations might accidentally end up back on the shelf. To prevent this and ensure all your flight cases are properly packed, we're introducing a bigger overview of all your physical combinations.
Now, you'll gain a clear understanding of your entire physical combination inventory. This overview will display all your flight cases and their current status (complete, incomplete, or containing additional equipment). This will let you easily identify incomplete combinations that require your attention.
We're happy to announce that all these improvements are currently in the final testing phase. Expect to see them rolled out very soon in your workspace!
These are the latest updates in Rentman. Thanks to everyone that signed up for the webinar! We received lots of questions during the event, so we selected our favorite ones and created an FAQ section below.
Do you have more questions? Don't hesitate to contact us at [email protected].
FAQ
You asked, we answered
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Will the QR codes of our containers also be transferred to physical combinations?All containers will be converted to physical combinations. This means that the QR codes currently attached to the containers will be transferred to the physical combinations, as well as their serial numbers.
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Can I book vehicles that are not related to any projects?Yes, with our newest Shifts feature. It allows you to book vehicles on a shift, just like you would book a crew member.
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Will the Scan Return feature work in the app as well?We don't have a specific Scan Return function in the app. However, in the app, you can select as many projects as you want to scan and start scanning all items that are ready to be returned. It will work in a very similar way as the Scan Return function.
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Will it be possible to see shift details when opening a shift in my schedule?We are currently looking into all requests and feedback for our Shifts feature. We're planning on launching an updated version of the feature, including displaying all the details for the shift, especially in the app.
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Can I make changes to the content of a physical combination while it's currently planned for a project?When you schedule a physical combination to a project, that's when you can adjust the content of the combination entirely to your liking. You can even schedule an empty flight case and fill it up in the warehouse. The default content will appear in the project once it's scheduled, but you can adjust it once it's added to the project.
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Is there a way to send automatic reminders to crew members when project dates are approaching?For Rentman, it's currently in the roadmap, as we're investigating which communication is currently missing in the software. However, this can be already fixed using our new Zapier integration. For example, you can connect it to your favorite emailing platform and set rules to send automatic emails whenever something happens inside Rentman (or in this case, when a project date is approaching).
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How is Rentman going to calculate revenue for physical combinations?By default, Rentman will calculate revenue based on the main price you set for the physical combinations. Depending on how you handle serial numbers in your workspace, you may have to manually update the price of a combination in case you made changes to its content.
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Will we be able to let our teams clock in and out of shifts?We are currently working on improving the time registration module. We want to let your crew open the module directly from the activity, which means less clicks and more accurate time registrations. This will include clocking in and out of shifts as well.
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Can we print physical combination content slips?Yes, it will be possible to print a slip that contains all the content that's currently inside the physical combination. Besides that, you can print out regular slips that contain planned content for a combination, so you can see what still needs to be packed.
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Is there a way to let my crew members indicate their availabilities so I know not to schedule them when they're unavailable?Yes. However, it's important to check their user roles in the configuration module, as they may not have the permission to do this. After that, they will be able to indicate their availabilities as well as set recurring events for their availability. You can also send them an availability invitation through the crew planner for a specific time period to find out if they are available or not.