How to Link Equipment to the Finance Schedule | Latner Software Documentation

Linking equipment to a finance schedule tells Latner which machines the loan paid for, so the repayments show up as a cost against those machines.

Overview

A finance schedule works perfectly well on its own, but on its own it can't tell you whether the machine it funded is earning its keep. Linking the equipment is what closes that gap.

Each link names an equipment class and model, and optionally a specific equipment number.
A Finance Percentage sets how much of each repayment belongs to that machine, so one loan can be split across several.
Linked repayments feed the Finance Payments column on the Equipment Profitability dashboard, apportioned by that percentage.
A machine can only be on one finance schedule at a time.
Links can be added while the schedule is Open or Active, and edited at any time.

Before You Begin

Make sure the following are in place before you start.

Requirement	Where to Find It
A finance schedule in Open or Active status	Financials › Finance Schedules
The equipment the finance paid for, already created in Latner	Equipment › Equipment
Create Finance Schedule permission	Security › Configuration › Permission Groups › Financial › Options

Work out the split before you start. If a $120,000 loan bought two identical excavators, each one carries 50% of every repayment; if it bought one machine outright, leave the percentage at 100%.

Linking the Equipment

Step 1 - Choose Add Equipment

Open the finance schedule and choose Options › Add Equipment. If the option is greyed out, the schedule is Completed or Cancelled - the tooltip reads "Schedule must be Open/Active to add Equipment".

Add Equipment can be used on an Open or Active schedule, before or after the repayment lines exist

Equipment Class - required. Narrows the models you can choose from.
Equipment Model - required. Link at model level when the finance covers a batch of identical machines and you don't need it broken down further.
Equipment Number (Optional) - the individual machine. Only equipment that isn't already on another finance schedule appears in the list.
Finance Percentage - the share of each repayment that belongs to this machine. Defaults to 100%.

This loan funded two excavators, so EX55001 carries 50% of every repayment

Step 3 - Save, and repeat for each machine

Choose Save. The link appears on the schedule's Equipment tab, and you reopen Add Equipment for the next machine. Double-click a row to change the machine or its percentage later.

Both excavators linked at 50% each, so the loan is fully accounted for across the two machines

After Linking

The repayments appear against those machines in the Finance Payments column of Dashboard › Equipment Profitability, which you can group by equipment category, class, model or number.
Each machine is credited with its share of the repayment, so a $3,420 repayment split 50/50 contributes $1,710 to each machine.
Only repayment dates inside the dashboard's date range are counted, and cancelled schedules are left out.
The Finance Payments panel on Financials › Financial Dashboard reports the same repayments grouped by branch and supplier, whether or not equipment is linked.

The two repayments inside the date range, split 50/50 across two machines, show as $6,840 of finance payments against the excavator category

Equipment links can be edited but not removed. If a machine was linked to the wrong schedule, edit the row to point at the right machine, or set its finance percentage to 0% so it stops attracting a share of the repayments.

FAQs

The machine I want isn't in the Equipment Number list.

It's already linked to another finance schedule - the list only offers equipment that isn't. Adding it anyway returns "Equipment ... is already linked to Finance Schedule ...", with the schedule number so you can go and check it.

It says Invalid Equipment Model/Equipment Number combination.

The equipment number you picked belongs to a different model to the one selected above it. Clear the model, pick the one that matches the machine, then choose the equipment number again.

Do I have to name a specific machine?

No - the equipment number is optional, so you can link at model level. You lose the per-machine breakdown on the Equipment Profitability dashboard, but the finance is still attributed to the right model and class.

What should the percentages add up to?

100% across all the machines on the schedule, if you want the whole repayment attributed. Latner doesn't enforce it, so it's worth checking the Equipment tab after linking the last machine - percentages that add up to less than 100% quietly understate the cost of running that fleet.

Can I link equipment to a schedule that's already being invoiced?

Yes, while the schedule is Active. The dashboard works from the repayment dates rather than from when the link was made, so every repayment in the reporting period is picked up straight away, including any already invoiced.