How to Create an Asset in UniAsset

How to create an asset

There are four ways to get an asset into UniAsset. This article covers all of them and when to use each.

When to use each method

Requirements

• Available on: Nova, Orbit, Odyssey, Cosmos — assets are unlimited on every plan
• Roles: Owner, Admin, Manager

Before you start, create the categories, locations, departments and people you will file assets against.

Method 1 — Create one asset manually

1. Go to Dashboard → Assets (Individual).
2. Click New Asset.
3. Enter the Name. This is the only required field.
4. Fill in the fields that apply — see the table below.
5. Click Create Asset.

The fields

Set the Department from the asset detail page after saving.

Method 2 — Import from CSV

Use this for anything beyond a handful of assets. Owner or Admin only.

Import asks first what you are loading — Individual Assets, Asset Stock, or Consumables — and each has its own template carrying only the columns it accepts. For individual assets, choose Individual Assets.

Import matches category, location and person names against records that already exist — it does not create them for you.

Full walkthrough: How to import assets from CSV.

Method 3 — Duplicate an existing asset

The fastest way to create several near-identical assets — twelve of the same monitor, four of the same pump.

1. Open the asset you want to copy.
2. Choose Duplicate.
3. Set Number of Copies.
4. Choose whether to Copy images and Copy documents.
5. Give the copies a new name and adjust anything that differs.
6. Create.

Each copy is a genuinely separate asset with its own QR tag, its own history and its own serial number field — duplication copies the template, not the identity.

See How to duplicate an asset.

Method 4 — Create assets through the API

(Available on Odyssey, Cosmos)

POST /api/integrations/assets/create with an API key holding the asset:create scope.

Category, location and status names are resolved against your organization, not created. An unmatched name returns a 404 — deliberately, because silently creating categories from an upstream typo produces an unusable taxonomy within weeks.

See Getting started with the REST API.

What happens next

• A QR tag identity is generated automatically. Open the asset and use the tag card to print a label.
• A creation event is written to the asset's timeline. Nothing on that timeline is ever edited or deleted.
• The asset enters lists, filters, reports and alert evaluation immediately.

Your usual next steps:

1. Attach documents — warranty, invoice, certificates
2. Add photos
3. Assign it to a person and a location
4. Set up preventive maintenance (Orbit and above)

Common mistakes

Naming assets after people. "Jane's laptop" is wrong the day Jane changes desks.

Leaving the category blank. Depreciation configuration lives on the category, so a category-less asset has no financial treatment.

Skipping purchase cost and date. These drive depreciation, net book value, total cost of ownership and the Fixed Asset Register.

Creating one asset per interchangeable unit. Twenty identical chairs belong in Asset Stock, not twenty asset records.

Using the Assets module for supplies. Filters and toner are Consumables.

Troubleshooting

There is no New Asset button. Creating assets needs Manager or above. Employees and Viewers cannot create assets.

My category is not in the dropdown. Create it at Dashboard → Categories first.

The custom fields section is locked. Custom fields require Orbit or above.

"Your subscription has expired." An expired subscription blocks creating new records while leaving existing data fully readable. Renew from Settings → Billing.

Import fails on every row. Almost always because categories or locations named in the file do not exist yet. See Import error reference.

Related articles

• Creating your first asset
• How to import assets from CSV
• How to duplicate an asset
• How to edit an asset
• Understanding the four asset types