Operations & Loans

The Operations section facilitates the physical tracking and care of objects, including movements, conservation, outgoing/incoming loans, insurance, and exhibitions.

Loans Management

Track objects as they move between your museum and other institutions.

• Outgoing Loans: Objects lent to other museums for exhibitions or research.
• Incoming Loans: Objects borrowed for your own displays.
• Loan Record: Captures insurance values, condition on departure, expected return dates, and the borrowing organisation’s contact details.
• Barcode Lookup: Scan an object barcode from the loan detail page to quickly add it to a loan.

Managing a Loan

1. Navigate to Operations > Loans.
2. Click New Loan and select Outgoing or Incoming.
3. Link the relevant Contact (borrowing institution or lender).
4. Add objects to the loan using the object search or barcode scanner.
5. Record insurance values and the expected return date.
6. Update the loan status as it progresses: Draft → Active → Returned.

Conservation

Document the physical condition and restoration work performed on objects.

• Condition Reports: Standardised assessments of an item’s health, with condition ratings and detailed notes.
• AI Condition Assessment: Upload a photo and receive an AI-generated condition assessment. See AI Assistant.
• Triage: Mark items that require urgent attention.
• Work Logs: Record individual conservation treatments, materials used, and the conservator responsible.

Movements & Locations

Always know exactly where an object is located.

• Permanent Locations: The default storage or gallery position for each object.
• Temporary Movements: Recorded for photography, conservation, transport, or loan preparation.
• Location History: A full audit log of every location the item has occupied.
• Location Tree: Locations are arranged in a hierarchical tree (Building → Room → Bay → Shelf) for precise tracking.

Insurance

Track insurance policies and claims for the collection.

• Policies: Record policy numbers, providers, coverage limits, and start/end dates under Operations > Insurance.
• Claims: Log individual insurance claims, linking them to affected objects and policies.
• Valuation Summary: The system aggregates item valuations to provide a total collection value for insurance reporting.

Valuations

Record the formal valuation history for individual objects.

• Accessible via the Valuations tab on any Item record.
• Record the valuation amount, currency, date, valuation type (Insurance, Fair Market, Replacement), and appraiser.
• A complete history is maintained, with the most recent valuation displayed prominently.

Exhibitions

The Exhibitions module ties together items, loans, and locations for public display.

Planning an Exhibition

1. Navigate to Operations > Exhibitions.
2. Click New Exhibition.
3. Define the Title, Start/End Dates, and Venues.
4. Curate the Object List by linking Items and Incoming Loans — reorder objects using drag-and-drop.
5. Progress the status from Planning → Active → Closed as the exhibition runs.

Methodologies

Methodologies are configurable step-by-step checklists that can be attached to collection entities (Items, Accessions) to ensure consistent processes are followed — for example, a Photography Checklist or a Deaccessioning Review process.

Administrators define methodology templates under Administration > Methodologies. Staff can start a methodology instance on any supported record and mark steps as complete as they work through them.

Activity Logs & Auditing

Every significant action across Operations modules (creation, updating, deletion) is securely logged.

• Administrators can view a complete history of changes under Administration > Activity Logs.
• This ensures full accountability and traceability over time.

Permissions Required

• View Operations (movements_read, conservation_read, loans_read): View operational records.
• Track Movements (movements_manage): Move objects between locations.
• Manage Conservation (conservation_update): Create condition reports and work logs.
• Manage Loans (loan-specific permissions): Create and update loan records.
• Finance & Insurance (museum_update): View or edit insurance policies and valuation data.