Purpose Statement
The purpose of this article is to explain each available toggle setting within the Assets module Setup. Enabling a toggle activates the corresponding functionality described below, allowing agencies to configure apparatus, equipment, inventory, checklist behavior, workflow automation, and integrations based on operational needs.
Background Information
The Assets module Setup contains system-level configuration toggles that control how apparatus, equipment, inventory, work orders, checklist scheduling, and workflow automation function throughout First Due. These settings are typically managed by administrators during initial system configuration or whenever operational workflows require adjustment. Changes made here directly impact user experience, data integrity, reporting, and automation across the Assets module.
Required Permissions
Users must have administrative permissions that allow access to Assets Setup and system configuration. This generally includes Admin or equivalent roles with permission to manage Assets settings.
Video
Step-by-Step Guide
Navigate to the Assets module Setup
- Click the First Due (FD) logo in the upper-left corner.
- Select Assets.
- Select Setup.
- The Settings page opens by default.
Info:
All settings appear as boolean toggles and may display additional configuration fields when enabled. Save all changes before leaving this page.
Enable Primary/Reserve Toggle (Apparatus)
When enabled, this toggle allows administrators to define an apparatus as either a Primary (frontline) unit or a Reserve unit, providing clearer operational status tracking across the fleet.
Enable Apparatus Reason/Comment for In/Out of Service
When enabled, this toggle allows administrators to require users to submit a reason and comment for taking apparatus in or out of service. This becomes the first page of the apparatus service status change workflow before users can then perform a Swap, Unit Update, Relocate, or simple status change.
Enable Equipment Primary/Reserve Toggle
When enabled, this toggle allows equipment records to be designated as Primary or Reserve, helping agencies distinguish frontline equipment from backup or spare items.
Enable Missed Checks
When enabled, administrators can define the number of days after which incomplete checklists or checklists that were never started will be marked as missed and become inaccessible to users; the timeframe is user-defined in days once the toggle is enabled.
Auto Create On-Demand Checklist on Completion
When enabled, the system automatically creates an On-Demand version of a scheduled checklist immediately after the scheduled checklist is completed. The generated On-Demand checklist remains available until the next scheduled Due Time or Start Time.
Use Case
An agency requires each employee to complete a Daily SCBA Readiness checklist. If an employee completes the checklist and is later relieved during the same shift, the relief employee can complete the automatically generated On-Demand checklist without requiring administrators to create separate Daily and On-Demand checklist schedules.
Default Inventory Location
When enabled, all newly entered inventory will automatically be assigned to a selected default location storage unless a different location is specified during inventory entry.
Require Vendor When Receiving Inventory
When enabled, the Vendor field becomes a required selection when receiving inventory, ensuring vendor information is consistently captured for tracking and reporting purposes.
Work Order “Submitted By” Field Defaults to Logged In User
When enabled, the Work Order “Submitted By” field automatically defaults to the currently logged-in user; if a unit user such as an apparatus is logged in, the field may be manually updated to reflect the actual individual submitting the Work Order.
Show New Work Order Modal for Inventory
When enabled, a Work Order modal is triggered when inventory items associated with compartments, storages, or pouches fail during checklist completion, allowing users to immediately create a Work Order; this toggle is enabled by default.
Display Apparatus Secondary ID Field
When enabled, administrators can select a user-defined Apparatus Secondary ID field and optionally enable the display of that Secondary ID field on the Fleet Overview for enhanced apparatus identification.
Once enabled, administrators can select to enable the Display Fleet Overview Secondary ID Field, enabling the visibility of the chosen Secondary ID Field to appear on the Fleet Overview.
Archive Swapover History
When enabled, administrators can define the number of days after which Swap History records automatically transition from Closed to Archived, helping manage long-term swap history visibility and system organization.
Scanner Remove Length Limitations
When enabled, barcode scans with fewer than six characters are allowed, removing character-length restrictions; this setting is always recommended for agencies using the barcode scanning feature.
Warning:
It is highly recommended that any agency seeking to use barcode scanning enable this toggle.
Display Equipment/Inventory Description
When enabled, equipment and inventory descriptions will appear within overview records, allowing users to quickly view descriptive details without opening individual records. If there is no description entered for an Equipment or piece of Inventory this field will be blank.
Set Timeout Timeframe for Checklists
When enabled, agencies can define the number of minutes after which the last user in an active checklist will be automatically timed out if idle, ensuring checklist availability and preventing unauthorized access.
Allow Multiple Associated Dispatch Units
Warning: If duplicate Dispatch Unit IDs exist, the system will display an error indicating multiple units are assigned to the same Dispatch Unit ID.
Enable Samsara Services Integration
Enabling this toggle requires an account upgrade; agencies must contact their Customer Success Manager to activate Samsara Services integration within First Due. If enabled, an API field appears to allow for the entry of an agencies Samsara API number to start the bidirectional flow of fleet communication between First Due and Samsara.
Autogenerate Equipment IDs
When enabled, the system will automatically generate numeric Equipment IDs when equipment is added manually or through the Equipment Import Wizard, with administrators defining the next Equipment ID value up to a maximum of five characters.
Require Unique API Apparatus ID
When enabled, each apparatus must have a unique API Apparatus ID value. This helps prevent duplicate API identifiers across apparatus records and supports cleaner integrations and more reliable apparatus matching when API-based data is used.
Auto-populate Current Price Per Unit
When enabled, the system will automatically display the current price per unit for each inventory item during:
- Receiving inventory into the system
- Inputting or approving Purchase Orders
This value will only populate if a price has already been entered for the inventory item. This helps streamline purchasing workflows and ensures consistency in cost visibility across inventory transactions.
Best Practices
- Review toggle dependencies before enabling settings in production. Some toggles expose additional fields or immediately change workflow behavior.
- Standardize naming conventions before enabling apparatus IDs, Dispatch Unit IDs, Secondary IDs, or autogenerated IDs to reduce duplicate records and integration issues.
- Enable Auto Create On-Demand Checklist on Completion only if your agency expects multiple personnel to complete the same scheduled checklist between scheduled intervals. Agencies requiring only one completion per schedule may not benefit from this feature.
- Configure Missed Checks and checklist timeout values to align with your agency's operational schedule. Values that are too aggressive may interrupt active users or prematurely mark work as missed.
- Use Require Vendor When Receiving Inventory if vendor information is important for reporting, receiving audits, or inventory traceability.
- Enable Require Unique API Apparatus ID before or during integration cleanup to avoid duplicate API identifiers.
- Enable Scanner Remove Length Limitations whenever your agency uses short or legacy barcode labels.
- Only enable Allow Multiple Associated Dispatch Units when there is a documented operational need.
- Restrict Setup access to trained administrators. These settings affect system-wide behavior and should be documented before deployment.
Troubleshooting & FAQs
Q: I enabled a toggle, but users do not see the change.
Confirm the setting was saved before leaving the Setup page. Then refresh the application and verify users are accessing the area affected by the setting.
Q: A setting appears enabled, but the related field or behavior is still missing.
Some toggles only affect specific workflows or record types. Verify you're viewing the appropriate apparatus, equipment, inventory, work order, or checklist workflow.
Q: Why is an On-Demand checklist appearing after I completed a scheduled checklist?
If Auto Create On-Demand Checklist on Completion is enabled, First Due automatically generates an On-Demand version of every scheduled checklist after it is completed. The generated checklist remains available until the next scheduled Due Time or Start Time.
Q: Users are getting blocked when receiving inventory.
If Require Vendor When Receiving Inventory is enabled, users must select a Vendor before completing the receiving workflow.
Q: Barcode scans are failing for short labels.
Verify Scanner Remove Length Limitations is enabled if your agency uses barcode values shorter than six characters.
Q: Users are being timed out of checklists too quickly.
Review the configured timeout value under Set Timeout Timeframe for Checklists. Increase the timeout if it does not align with normal operational workflows.
Q: Why are checklists being marked as missed?
Review the configured timeframe under Enable Missed Checks. Incomplete or never-started checklists are automatically marked as missed once the defined number of days has elapsed.
Q: We enabled multiple associated Dispatch Unit IDs and now receive duplicate warnings.
This is expected when multiple apparatus intentionally share the same Dispatch Unit ID. If this was not intentional, update the apparatus records to assign unique Dispatch Unit IDs.
Q: What should I check if an integration is not matching the correct apparatus?
Verify the apparatus API Apparatus ID, Dispatch Unit ID, and Secondary ID values. Duplicate or inconsistent identifiers commonly cause integration mismatches.
Q: What happens if duplicate API Apparatus IDs already exist when unique IDs are required?
Review existing apparatus records and assign unique API Apparatus IDs before enabling the setting to avoid validation errors and integration issues.
Q: Samsara fields are not available.
Confirm your agency has the required account upgrade and that Samsara Services has been activated by your Customer Success Manager. Without activation, the API field and integration settings will not appear.