As the world becomes increasingly digitized, more and more universities and colleges rely on computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) to manage their operations. Maintenance and repair software centralizes information and automates the process of maintenance operations, which in turn optimizes the utilization of all circulating and non-circulating equipment. A CMMS also provides reports that can help your department make sound, data-driven decisions.

Reporting in a CMMS varies between software packages, with some more comprehensive than others. As reporting is so critical to the success of a CMMS, it is a key factor in selecting a CMMS software solution for your organization. For example, the CMMS reporting in WebCheckout Pro’s equipment scheduling & management software offers the data needed to manage workloads and identify patterns. Furthermore, you can integrate your CMMS with other systems you already work with to data-mine and build data visualizations that help you better understand the status of your inventory.

The CMMS reporting and tracking capabilities of WebCheckout Pro’s CMMS reporting help you properly care for your inventory. As a result, WebCheckout Pro will make you more informed about the status of your inventory and reduce unforeseen repair costs and downtime associated with equipment breakage and loss.

WebCheckout’s Repair and Preventative Maintenance Module (link) tracks the maintenance cycles of all your equipment, so you can see which equipment requires maintenance, when it’s being serviced, and when it will be available for new checkouts and reservations. Having this information on hand will help save you time and money on repairs and extend the lifespan of your equipment.

With WebCheckout Pro’s Repair and Preventative Maintenance Module, you get thorough record-keeping on every ticket with detailed descriptions, as well as time and labor costs. Additionally, you can add attachments for invoices, receipts, and photos to centralize documents relating to each item’s lifecycle. The WebCheckout Pro CMMS allows you to be thorough and accurate when managing every detail about the equipment in your inventory.

The Reporting capabilities in WebCheckout Pro’s CMMS, the Repair and Preventative Maintenance Module are second to none. To see how WebCheckout’s Repair and Preventative Maintenance Module can help optimize your department’s operations, contact us today for a free consultation!

The post Maintenance and Repair Reporting in WebCheckout appeared first on WebCheckout.

Fireside Chat: Best Practices for Running Inventories in Higher Education

Join a conversation with our higher education customers to learn how they keep an eye on their assets. We’ll be sitting down with a panel of our expert WebCheckout users to discuss how they are using technology to manage their AV assets and equipment.

What is a Fireside Chat?

We thought you’d never ask. A Fireside Chat simply refers to an informal conversation for sharing experiences. Our goal is to provide a space for higher education professionals to gather and share best practices for running inventories and managing assets.

Key Takeaways for Higher Education Professionals

• Real systems and processes other universities are using to successfully manage their equipment.
• Meet colleagues from other universities like yours and build new connections.
• Tips and best practices for maximizing the value of your inventory.

REGISTER NOW

The post Fireside Chat – Best Practices for Running Inventories in Higher Education appeared first on WebCheckout.

WCAG, and other methods for delivering access to your entire campus

This webinar will explore what it means to make a student interface fully accessible to students of all abilities. In this Webinar, members of our account and technical teams provide insight into why WCAG is used to measure compliance and the features that are needed for baseline university requirements.

What is WCAG Compliance?

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is developed through the W3C process in cooperation with individuals and organizations around the world, with a goal of providing a single shared standard for web content accessibility that meets the needs of individuals, organizations, and governments internationally.

The WCAG guidelines explain how to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. Web “content” generally refers to the information in a web page or web application, including:

• natural information such as text, images, and sounds
• code or markup that defines structure, presentation, etc.

Who is WCAG for?

WCAG is primarily intended for:

• Web content developers (page authors, site designers, etc.)
• Web authoring tool developers
• Web accessibility evaluation tool developers
• Others who want or need a standard for web accessibility, including for mobile accessibility

WCAG Related resources are intended to meet the needs of many different people, including policy makers, managers, researchers, and others.

You'll Learn

• How is WCAG used to measure compliance.
• What does it mean to make a student interface fully accessible?
• Examples of accessibility: WCAG, Responsiveness, Language Translation.
• Features needed for baseline university requirements.
• How accessibility features function in WebCheckout.

REGISTER NOW

The post Free Webinar: Accessibility 101 appeared first on WebCheckout.

And this year, that’s exactly what we did. 

We grew our team to strengthen and expand our capabilities in account management and product development. We hosted many online events to promote discussion and idea-sharing. These engaging events were attended by customers and non-customers and included Town Halls, Customer Discussions, and our first virtual User Symposium! During these events, the ideas led to two releases, including features to help customers address disinfecting equipment, quarantining, and social distancing.

Our CEO, Eric Dodson, summarized this year best when he said, “Everyone’s plans changed in 2020. I am proud of how the team at WebCheckout listened and responded to our customer’s needs”. 

Expanding our Team

With opportunities for growth at every corner, we added two new members to our team this year to provide a higher level of personalized support to each customer and open the doors to new product development possibilities.

In March, we welcomed AJ Oetman as our newest Account Manager. AJ has quickly proved an invaluable resource and committed partner to our customers. 

With AJ onboard, we officially established our stellar Account Management Team, responsible for providing a high level of personalized attention to each customer. With this essential team in place, we are ready to better understand each customer’s individual needs and partner with them to meet their inventory management goals. 

In November, Andersen Puckett joined the WebCheckout Development Team and hit the ground running with new product development. With Andersen on board, we can’t wait to see how WebCheckout’s capabilities expand in 2021!

Building Community and Teaching New Skills

When the pandemic became a reality in March, we knew our customers needed a new way to connect with other users, share best practices, and ask questions. As a result, we introduced Town Halls, a series of free webinars that feature live demonstrations from our experts, customer presentations, and engaging discussions. Each Town Hall lasted two hours and included ample time for customers to ask questions and discuss solutions. Each was attended by dozens of customers and non-customers alike.

Throughout 2020, 735 users attended our Town Halls! This success is thanks to our team’s hard work, and we can’t wait to see many more of our customers join us for future Town Halls in 2021! 

In addition to Town Halls, we also hosted our first-ever Virtual User Symposium. In previous years, we’ve offered in-person User Symposiums and welcomed wonderful groups into our office to share three days of in-depth user training and product development collaboration.

This year was a little different, but we could still gather on Zoom for three days of insightful learning sessions. Many of our customers came away from the event with new skills they could apply in their departments immediately!

Learn more about our events
Click here to visit the events page on our website or visit our WebCheckout Youtube page to watch our previous events!  

Want to take your WebCheckout to the next level?
Click here to learn more.

2020 Product Improvements

Throughout the year, WebCheckout grew by leaps and bounds! With four new versions packed with improvements and user-driven new features, we’re proud of the way WebCheckout has evolved this year. Here’s a look back at a few of the product improvement highlights of this year.

WebCheckout 9

In WebCheckout 9, we adapted functionality to streamline processes and effectively adjust operations for changing procedures. WebCheckout 9 fine-tuned new ways to help customers manage their inventory as efficiently as possible.

• Updated navigation menu with direct access to Tasks and RPM module settings

• True Rapid Return with more feedback and ability to return unserialized resources.

• Improved Patron Portal feedback and more configurable options.

WebCheckout 10

In WebCheckout 10, we adapted functionality to help customer streamline their processes and make their operations as safe and efficient as possible during the pandemic. 

• New Advanced Imports Feature allows imports to custom properties, changes to unique-identifiers, and bulk changes to Origin. 

• Provisional Returns: Operators now can mark Checkouts as received and provisionally return Checkouts. 

• Updates to Messaging Module allowing email template editor to display actual allocation data.

• New settings in Patron Portal to enable/disable Add Attachments option and enable/disable Notes to Checkout Center field.

• Improvements to Mobile Inventory App to add the ability to edit Condition Note/and or Condition Grade while performing an Inventory.

WebCheckout 11 

WebCheckout 11 introduced Circulation Windows, a Checkout Center setting giving customers the power to control how many Pickups and Returns happen during specific windows of time.

Additionally, WebCheckout 11 included many essential improvements to the Advanced Import Feature introduced in WebCheckout 10. 

• New Circulation Windows Checkout Center setting establishes fixed Pickup and Return windows and defines the number of Pickups and/or Returns allowed within each window.

• Find Department and Find Account Codes screen now has an Export as Importable option.

• Media Holdings can now be created using the Resource Advanced Import file.

• New Sections can now be created using the Advanced Import file.

WebCheckout 12

WebCheckout 12 builds on the improvements to Advanced Imports. It adds a new level of functionality, allowing customers to take full advantage of what this new feature set has to offer.

• New Advanced Import Application Import Data available in the Apps menu and only visible to Operators with Import Data capability.

• Ability to create new records and update all importable fields, including Custom Properties.

• Better import feedback, including the number of newly created records, number of existing records updated, and list of deactivated records.

Learn more about WebCheckout 12 and schedule an upgrade!

Email support@webcheckout.net to get started.

Looking forward to 2021!

With this year coming to a close, we’re looking forward to continuing on our roadmap in 2021. We will continue moving towards our goal of being the software system to fulfill your inventory management needs. 

The post 2020: The Year in Review appeared first on WebCheckout.

If you are looking to switch to a Mobile Booking Solution or are looking for a new solution altogether, you’ll want to keep reading.

With years of experience developing WebCheckout’s Mobile Booking Solution, we’ve learned the following essential ingredients:

1. Simplicity

Your users don’t have time to navigate a complicated system. Being able to easily and quickly reserve what they need is paramount.

And no one has time to train users on how to use your service. It would help if you had a tool that guides users to a successful conclusion.

2. Accessibility

Your users use different devices and have different needs when it comes to accessibility. To make it easy for all of your users to access your equipment, you’ll need a system that meets commonly accepted Accessibility standards such as WCAG and EU Web Accessibility Directive.

For more information about Accessibility requirements, check out our post, “What it Means to be ADA Compliant”.

3. Control Over User View

Your users don’t all have the same access to your inventory. They may need to be enrolled in a class or demonstrate skills, certifications, or permission to be authorized. Your Mobile Booking System should only show equipment a person is allowed to checkout and use.

4. Security

As the manager of a valuable inventory of specialized equipment, we know security is always an essential factor to consider for the safety of your assets and your users’ privacy. When shopping for a Mobile Booking System, be sure that the one you choose can access your institution’s credential management systems such as SSO or LDAP/AD.

Your organization may even require all departments to use systems that can integrate with these systems. It’s crucial at the beginning stages of your search to consider the IT impact of each option.

5. Ability to Integrate Your Policies

In addition to security needs, your department, no doubt, has policies and rules set in place to govern access to your equipment and for how long. Your new Mobile Reservation Solution is your frontline tool for enforcing these parameters.

The solution you choose should be flexible. When you set up your system, you’ll want to configure it to your specific policies. This flexibility will help your system do the work of enforcing your policies for you at the time of booking, reducing time and headaches for you and your customer.

6. Consistent Functionality on any Mobile Device

Have you considered how a Mobile Booking Solution will function for iPhone, Android, and iPad? Providing the most consistent, user-friendly experience also means that your solution must be compatible across devices.

7. Smart Display

There are always going to be frequent flyers who use your equipment more than the average customer. Does the solution you’re considering offer a way to show frequently reserved items? What about making suggestions when things aren’t available? Can users create their own “favorites” lists? Or recommend accessories or adaptors?

Features such as these improve the user experience by making checkouts quicker and simpler. Simpler checkouts mean users are more likely to check out equipment in the future, and therefore it helps you increase your usage rates and improve customer satisfaction.

8. Highly Informative

The ideal Mobile Reservation Solution gives your users the same information online that they would receive directly from your equipment specialists.

When selecting the best solution for your department, it’s wise to think about any supplemental information you’d like to include with your equipment. For example, your users may want to see images of each item, documentation, maintenance records, specifications, and other details about the equipment.

9. Quick and Easy for Repeat Users

The key to a successful Mobile Booking Solution is a positive user experience. And to make the user experience better for your most frequent users, it’s helpful to show the user their history and provide a way to copy or edit their reservations for a new check out.

10. Ability to Match your Brand 

Your users will feel more confident in your system if it matches your institution’s brand, including logo and color. You will be providing a more aesthetically pleasing, unified, and appealing experience overall.

WebCheckout Patron Portal

For a Mobile Booking Solution that checks all of these boxes, you should consider the WebCheckout Patron Portal.

At WebCheckout, we pride ourselves on listening to our customers’ needs and rising to the challenge of creating the best Mobile Booking Solution for your unique needs.

The post 10 Key Features to Look for in a Mobile Booking Solution appeared first on WebCheckout.

Years of hard work getting that degree have paid off; you’ve landed your first job in the industry. Most people starting out have to gain experience one day at a time, proving themselves as they go. But, you might be coming to your new job with more experience than you realize.

WebCheckout Alumni have Transferrable Skills

Over the last 20 years, thousands of students and employees at hundreds of institutions used WebCheckout for inventory and facilities management. Whether you worked with WebCheckout’s administrative backend or used WebCheckout’s Patron Portal, you are effectively alumni of WebCheckout (WebCheckout U.). You have gained a set of unique, transferable skills using an enterprise resource management application; and these experiences might be useful to your new employer. 

WebCheckout isn’t just for Higher Education

Organizations, including production companies, broadcasting studios, corporations, and government agencies, all use WebCheckout to manage their daily operations. Not surprisingly, many of these companies learn about WebCheckout from recent hires who cite their positive college experiences.

These customers use WebCheckout to manage media production equipment and facilities, making broadcast and production companies an excellent fit for applying experience using WebCheckout. Notable groups such as Vox Media, TBS, and Glass Entertainment already use WebCheckout in their day-to-day operations.  

Corporations and government agencies also benefit from WebCheckout. Toyota’s PDT Lab and the California Air Resources Board use WebCheckout to calibrate and maintain valuable scientific testing equipment. Even Houses of Worship find WebCheckout helpful for organizing and tracking their media equipment for large services and events.

A Common Need for Enterprise Resource Management Software

Several of these customers came to us by way of a recommendation from a recent grad. What they have in common is a need for booking, billing, repair, maintenance, kits, and communication. And all institutions, whether for-profit or not, want to maximize value and utilize their investments to their fullest potential. That’s where WebCheckout excels.

So, while WebCheckout has many features specialized for Higher Education: integration with Student Information Systems and Course Enrollment, the vast majority of WebCheckout’s solutions are a perfect fit for companies across other industries. And that means new employees can make a name for themselves by sharing their experiences with their new employer and add value from the moment they walk in the door.

Is your new company on the market for an inventory management solution?

Share your experiences using WebCheckout, an enterprise resource management system, and you can score some points with your new employer. Please reach out to us at sales@webcheckout.net.

The post Make Your Mark in the New Career appeared first on WebCheckout.

At WebCheckout, we know your institutions face a plethora of regulations including legal requirements to offer technology solutions that are accessible to all customers with disabilities. And that’s why we decided to offer an ADA-compliant mobile reservation solution. WebCheckout’s Patron Portal is the first and currently the only ADA-compliant mobile reservation solution available on the market.

But what does it mean for a website to be ADA compliant?

And how do WCAG Guidelines fit in? Finally, what risks do organizations encounter if they are not ADA compliant?

It’s challenging to provide a straightforward answer to some of these questions. However, we can elaborate on the relationship between ADA and WCAG and how it may affect your future.

Let’s start with the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act.)

The ADA is the most prominent U.S. law about public accessibility compliance. The ruling prohibits discriminating against citizens with disabilities within places of public accommodation. These days, websites are widely recognized as such places.

When the ADA was enacted in 1990, the law didn’t offer website standards. However, plaintiffs in court rulings have continuously upheld that the standards of WCAG provide reasonable access to web users.

So what is WCAG?

WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. It was designed through the W3C process by a host of global organizations to provide a single standard for website accessibility.

The guidelines primarily serve as a roadmap for developers. There are 3 Levels of accessibility that websites can achieve: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. The more “A’s,” the more accessibility is offered by a website. Most organizations aim  to comply with Level AA, which means they must meet 38 criteria. Some of these criteria include:

• All functionality can be accomplished with a keyboard.
• Text can be enlarged up to 200%.
• Text has adequate contrast against background (4:5:1 contrast ratio for small text, and 3:1 for larger text).

Again, these are just a few of the criteria that organizations, including WebCheckout, must meet to claim Level AA compliance.

In Summary

The ADA requires that all public websites are accessible, and the WCAG provides the standards for websites that have stood the test of multiple court rulings.

However, in a recent letter from senators to the Department of Justice, legislators urged the U.S. to provide clear standards for measuring and testing website accessibility. The day will come when this confusion is put to rest, and it’s overwhelmingly understood that the WCAG standards will be adopted for these purposes.

WebCheckout’s Commitment

WebCheckout’s commitment to achieving Level AA compliance started with a goal of equality. Since we primarily work with higher education, we need to offer the same quality user experience to every student and staff member.

We are especially grateful to our customers (particularly the University of North Florida) for their assistance with this mission. We foresee this becoming more of a “requirement” than a recommendation soon.

It’s an important time to stay ahead of the curve and ensure that all of your customer-facing software solutions meet these essential needs.

Sources:

https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/

https://www.boia.org/blog/is-there-a-legal-requirement-to-implement-wcag

https://myaccessible.website/blog/wcaglevels/wcag-levels-a-aa-aaa-difference

The post What it Means to be ADA Compliant appeared first on WebCheckout.

2020 is turning out differently than planned. The global pandemic is changing the way we live and work. At WebCheckout, we decided early on to adjust to this shift with a sensitivity to the specific impact the pandemic is having on inventory managers. That means connecting with customers, listening to what they are experiencing, and responding with new features to meet their changing needs.

We’ve introduced many new features and best practices based on feedback from our customers during the pandemic. These features support equipment quarantine processes, sanitation protocols, and safe social distancing for students and staff.

Features and Processes to Support Safe Operations During the Pandemic

WebCheckout has long been rich in features that support daily bookings, order processing, and inventory management. To further enhance WebCheckout’s existing capabilities, we’ve added the following new features:

• Sanitation Tickets
  WebCheckout automatically generates sanitation tickets when a patron returns a piece of equipment. Sanitation tickets take the work out of scheduling cleaning and ensure each item is consistently disinfected between each use.
• Virtual Reservations
  Departments can improve customer service and increase efficiency while limiting face time using WebCheckout’s Patron Portal. This ADA-compliant user interface allows users to browse the inventory, view availability, download documentation, and make reservations online.
• Support Unique Delivery Options (i.e., drive-up pickups and lockers)
  Patron Portal is highly configurable to adjust to unique delivery options. Administrators can easily set up Patron Portal to align with their department’s specific “no contact” transfer processes, such as returns using lockers or equipment returned through a drive-up pickup system.
• Updating Existing Reservations Made Before the Pandemic
  Using WebCheckout’s new bulk features, customers can easily select reservations and cancel them in bulk, notifying patrons of the changes automatically via email.
• Automatically Staggering In-Person Equipment Pickups and Returns
  Using WebCheckout, customers can implement built-in quarantine time to ensure operators have ample time to disinfect, sanitize, or quarantine each piece of equipment before the next person picks it up.
• Limit Simultaneous Activity
  Use WebCheckout’s policies to control the amount of activity during a given period. By limiting activity, you can reduce the number of people in your checkout center and shorten waiting periods when users arrive at your operation.
• Contact Tracing
  You can use WebCheckout to assist with contact tracing during COVID-19. WebCheckout provides a thorough record of activity for every piece of equipment. These records can tell you which equipment users checked out, and when, creating a clear chain of contact.

These features have been invaluable to our customers during this difficult time. Using WebCheckout, operations can continue to provide resources and equipment to their customers safely.

Virtual Events and Community Building During the Pandemic

Town Halls, Open to All

New features are only half the battle – we must continue to connect with our customers during these changing times. To support these connections, we’ve introduced a new free monthly webinar series called “WebCheckout Town Halls.”

Town Halls have been extremely popular, attended by hundreds of customers and non-customers alike. During these free two-hour webinars, our Support Team addresses frequently asked questions from customers and provides an open forum for customers to share their experiences and discuss best practices. Town Halls help us ensure that future versions of WebCheckout are closely aligned with our customers’ changing needs.

We record all Customer Town Halls
Watch previous Town Halls here.

2020 User Symposium: It’s Free and Virtual

Our annual User Symposium is a critical time for customers to come together, network, share ideas and best practices, and train with experts.

This year, we’re offering free admission for all! This is a fantastic opportunity to meet with our team of experts, learn from other users, and see what’s on deck for future versions of WebCheckout.

Register now!
Click here to register for this free event.

Staying Positive and Committed 

While these are uncertain times and the future isn’t clear, we remain committed to producing a high-quality inventory management software that is responsive to your industry’s evolving needs.

Throughout these changing times, our commitment to our customers remains our focus. We pledge to continue to provide top-notch customer support paired with an ever-improving tool to make your job as easy and safe as possible.

The post WebCheckout: Helping You Win the Battle Against COVID-19 appeared first on WebCheckout.

The post Circulation is Just One Piece of the Pie appeared first on WebCheckout.

Many of you have seen the movie Moneyball; and many of you also know how the game has changed in the last 20 years. The metric of batting average, home runs and RBIs has given way to more detailed “sabermetrics” such as on-base percentage and batting average with runners in scoring position.

For better or worse, baseball has changed. The changes in baseball are a reflection of our move from intuitive decision making towards a model of empirical, data-driven decisions. These types of decisions have even crept into the work of inventory managers.

The duty of an inventory manager is two-fold; they have the responsibility to make prudent purchasing decisions and they have a responsibility to meet the needs of their customers, who require equipment for their academic and project based pursuits. Both require a full suite of reliable metrics and data.

To serve the needs of his/her institution, a manager of circulating equipment must make decisions on the value of equipment such as:

• What technologies are on the rise or in decline?
• What are the current trends?
• What are the repair, training, and maintenance costs for a particular piece of equipment?
• How much should be invested in high-priced cutting edge technology?

For customers, are critical pieces of inventory available when needed? If not, why?

• Are there too few to meet the demand or are there shortages due to repair needs or one-time events?

Inventory managers need to quanitfy customer satisfaction based on both short-term and long-term data. This includes evaluating the relative success of individual interactions with customers and long-term data about how well the inventory was able to serve the needs of all customers for a certain period of time.

• Were all reserved items available at the time of pickup?
• Were the any kinks during any part of the customers interaction with the inventory? (reservation, checkout, return)?
• Were there long lines when the customer arrived to pick up equipment?

Here are a few things to keep in mind when monitoring short term vs. long term metrics:

Short Term Metrics
Short term metrics are the most relevant to serving customers on a daily basis:

• What is going out today?
• What times will be the busiest?
• What types of equipment will be running low today?
• Will staffing levels meet demand?
• Which events will require advanced preparation and setup?

Long-term Metrics
Long-term metrics serve both the patrons and the overall objectives of the institution.

• Do the hours of operation serve patron’s needs?
• Are the policies too restrictive?
• What equipment is at or beyond end-of-life?
• What should be repaired or replaced?
• What is the repair/maintenance track record for various makes and models.
• What can be repaired in-house and at what cost?

The post Moneyball Changed more than just Baseball appeared first on WebCheckout.