Templates

Reusable blueprints that speed up creating items you add over and over.

Templates save you from re-typing the same details every time you add a common piece of equipment. A template stores a name, description, model number, lifespan, category, manufacturer, and whether the item is a container. The Templates screen lists each one as a card and lets you add, edit, or delete templates. Like the rest of the module, your changes save and send up automatically, and the supporting category and manufacturer lists are available offline.

Overview

The header reads Templates. Each template appears as a card with these lines and two round buttons in the bottom-right corner.

Line on the card	What it shows
Name :	The template's name, in bold.
Description :	The optional note. Blank if none was entered.
Category :	The category items made from it will use.
Manufacturer :	The maker items made from it will use.
Model :	The model number to apply.
Lifespan :	The expected lifespan, in months.
Is Container :	Whether items made from it are containers.

Button	Color	What it does
Pencil (Edit)	Blue	Opens Edit Template with the existing values filled in.
Trash (Delete)	Red	Asks you to confirm, then removes the template.

The three-dot button at the top right holds a single menu choice: Add Template.

Getting Here

1. Open the Account tab and tap the Inventory module.
2. On the Inventory landing screen, tap Templates.
3. The screen opens with the header Templates and a card for each one.
4. Tap the Back arrow to return to the Inventory landing screen.

An agency administrator can also reach this screen from Agency Settings → Inventory → Templates.

Adding a Template

1. Tap the three-dot menu at the top right and choose Add Template. The New Template screen opens.
2. Enter a name in the Template Name field. This is the only required field — leaving it blank brings up "Please enter template name" when you try to save.
3. Optionally add a Description.
4. Optionally tap Category and Manufacturer to pick from your agency's existing records. Each list starts with -- None --.
5. Optionally fill in Model and Lifespan (in months).
6. Tap the Is Container checkbox if items built from this template should be containers.
7. Tap Save. The new template appears in the list.

Fields on the New Template form

Field	Type	Required?	Notes
Template Name	Single-line text	Yes	Spaces at the start and end are trimmed.
Description	Multi-line text	No
Category	Dropdown	No	Starts with -- None --, then every category.
Manufacturer	Dropdown	No	Starts with -- None --, then every manufacturer.
Model	Single-line text	No	The model number to apply.
Lifespan	Number	No	In months. Saved as 0 if left blank.
Is Container	Checkbox	No	Off by default.

The header reads New Template when adding and Edit Template when editing.

What a template does and does not store

A template covers only the details that are the same for every unit of that product. The things that differ from one unit to the next are not in a template at all.

Stored on the template	Not stored — set per item
Name, Description	Item Name, Description of the individual unit
Category, Manufacturer	Serial Number
Model	Status, Status Reason
Lifespan (months)	Assignment
Is Container	Storage Location, Vehicle, Location Details
	Parent Item
	Purchase Date, In Service Date, Expiration Date, Warranty Expiration
	Cost

note

Because a template is a reference record rather than a factory, choosing a template does not auto-fill a new item form for you. Templates are the agreed shape for a kind of gear — the category, maker, model, and expected life your agency has settled on — so you can copy them into the Items form without having to look anything up or guess.

Editing a Template

1. Find the template and tap its blue pencil (Edit) button.
2. The Edit Template screen opens with every field already filled in. A blank lifespan shows as an empty field rather than a zero.
3. Update the name, description, category, manufacturer, model, lifespan, or container setting as needed.
4. Tap Save. A brief "Template updated" message appears and you return to the list.

If you tap Back with unsaved changes, the app asks "Data Updated — Do you want to save changes?":

Choice	What happens
Save	Checks the name, then saves and returns to the list.
Cancel	Discards your edits and returns to the list.

Tapping Back with nothing changed returns to the list without asking. Note that ticking or clearing the Is Container checkbox counts as a change, so it will trigger the prompt.

Deleting a Template

1. Find the template and tap its red trash (Delete) button.
2. A confirmation appears titled Delete with the message "Are you sure you want to delete this template?"
3. Tap Delete to remove it, or Cancel to keep it.
4. The template disappears from the list. Offline deletions are queued and send when you reconnect.

Deleting a template has no effect on items you already created — they carry their own copy of every value.

Saving Online and Offline

Situation	What the app does	What you see
Online, save succeeds	Sends the template to the server and mirrors it into the saved copy on your device, including the category and manufacturer names so the card reads properly.	"Template added" or "Template updated", then the list.
Online, save fails	Falls back to the offline queue so your work is not lost.	No error — it appears in the list and sends later.
Offline	Saves on your device and queues it, resolving the category and manufacturer names from the lists already loaded.	It appears in the list immediately.
Editing a template that has not reached the server yet	Queues the edit rather than sending it, even if you are online.	The edit appears in the list immediately.
Offline delete	Removes it from your device and queues the deletion.	The card disappears.
Online delete fails	Shows the error the server returned and keeps the template.	An alert with the server's message.

tip

Create a template for any item your agency buys in bulk or replaces often. Having the category, manufacturer, model, and lifespan written down once means the tenth unit is recorded the same way as the first — which is what keeps the Inventory Dashboard counts trustworthy.

Loading, Empty, and Offline States

Situation	What you see
Opening while online	The saved list paints instantly, then a spinner runs and the list refreshes.
Opening while offline, with saved data	The saved list appears. No error message.
Opening while offline, never synced	An empty screen with no cards. Connect once and reopen.
Server does not answer but you have cards	Your cards stay on screen with no alert.
Server does not answer and the list is empty	An alert shows the error the app received.
Returning from Add or Edit	The list re-paints from saved data and the queue is nudged to send.

A template with no category, manufacturer, or model still shows those lines on its card, blank after the label. A lifespan that was never set reads 0.

How This Connects

• Where the data comes from. Templates live on your agency's server and are kept in a saved copy on your device, which is what lets this list appear instantly and work offline.
• What updates it. Saves on this screen, saves by a teammate, and edits an agency administrator makes in Agency Settings → Inventory → Templates.
• Templates read from two other lists. The Category dropdown draws on Categories and the Manufacturer dropdown on Manufacturers. Both are the same lists that fill the Items form, and both remain available when you are offline.
• Templates arrive with the item list. The template list is fetched in the same combined request that loads items, categories, storage locations, manufacturers, and vehicles.
• Templates inform the item form. The fields a template stores — category, manufacturer, model, lifespan, container flag — map one-for-one onto fields on the Items form. The identifying details, serial number and dates, stay per-item.
• Container templates shape the Browse tree. A template with Is Container ticked is a reminder that items of this kind are bags or cabinets, and so should be openable as folders in Browse Items with other gear pointing at them through Parent Item.
• Renames flow through on refresh. If a category or manufacturer is renamed, the template card shows the new name after the list next refreshes from the server while you are online.
• Offline and reconnect. New and edited templates appear in the list straight away and are queued. The queue drains when you reconnect, when you reopen this screen, and right after a save. Unlike items and nested categories, a template has no parent record to wait on, so only your connection decides whether it goes up immediately.

Troubleshooting

If this happens	What to do
"Please enter template name" appears	The Template Name field is empty or only spaces. Type a name and save again.
"Missing organization." appears	The app has lost track of your current agency. Close and reopen the app, then try again.
The Category or Manufacturer dropdown is empty	Create those records first on Categories or Manufacturers, then reopen the template form.
A record you just created is missing from a dropdown	The lists are filled in when the form opens. Tap Back and open the form again.
Lifespan saved as 0 when you left it blank	Expected — a blank lifespan is stored as 0. Type a number of months for a real value.
Picking a template does not fill in a new item	Templates are reference records, not auto-fill. Open the template to read its values, then enter them on the Items form.
A template card shows an old category or manufacturer name	Go online and reopen the screen so the list refreshes from the server.
A template you deleted keeps coming back	The deletion may have failed on the server. Go online, reopen this screen so the queue sends, and watch for an error alert.
A teammate's new template is missing	Go online and reopen the screen. Server changes arrive on refresh.
You were asked to save when you thought nothing changed	Ticking or clearing Is Container counts as a change. Choose Cancel to discard it.

Related Pages

• Items
• Categories
• Manufacturers
• Browse Items

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