Reports

Generate and export inventory reports in PDF and Excel formats

Overview

The Reports feature lets you generate comprehensive documents about your inventory, loans, and assets. Export data to PDF for sharing or printing, or to Excel for further analysis.

Report Types

Invenicum offers three types of reports:

Inventory Report

Complete listing of all items in your inventory:

• Item names and descriptions
• Quantities and minimum stock levels
• Locations
• Custom field values
• Asset type groupings
• Images (in PDF format)

Best for: Physical inventory checks, audits, insurance documentation

Loans Report

Details about loaned items:

• Active loans (currently out)
• Loan history (returned items)
• Borrower information
• Loan and return dates
• Overdue status
• Item quantities

Best for: Equipment accountability, tracking overdue items, usage analysis

Assets Report

Inventory organized by asset type:

• Grouped by category
• Asset type summaries
• Total counts per type
• Value summaries (if price fields exist)
• Custom field breakdowns

Best for: Category analysis, budget planning, purchasing decisions

Generating a Report

1. Navigate to Reports

   From the main menu, click Reports.

2. Select Container

   Choose which container to generate a report for using the dropdown selector.

3. Choose Report Type

   Click one of the three report type cards:

   • Inventory: Full item listing
   • Loans: Lending activity
   • Assets: Category breakdown
4. Select Format

   Choose output format:

   • PDF: For viewing, printing, or sharing
   • Excel: For data analysis and manipulation
5. Review Configuration

   Check the preview section to confirm:

   • Container selection
   • Report type
   • Output format
6. Generate Report

   Click Generate Report to create and download the file.

Reports are generated on-demand and downloaded immediately. There’s no need to wait for email delivery or check a queue.

Export Formats

PDF Reports

Advantages:

• Professional formatting
• Includes images and logos
• Ready to print or share
• Consistent appearance across devices
• Cannot be easily modified (preserves integrity)

Best for:

• Sharing with stakeholders
• Printing for physical inventory
• Archival documentation
• Audit trails

Excel Reports

Advantages:

• Editable and customizable
• Supports sorting and filtering
• Can add formulas and calculations
• Easy to import into other systems
• Enables pivot tables and charts

Best for:

• Data analysis
• Budget calculations
• Combining with other data sources
• Custom reporting
• Further processing

Use PDF for sharing, Excel for analysis. If you need to do both, generate two separate reports.

Report Contents

Inventory Report Includes

• Header: Container name, report date, user who generated it
• Summary: Total items, total quantity, asset type counts
• Item Details:
  • Name and description
  • Barcode
  • Location (full path)
  • Quantity and minimum stock
  • All custom field values
  • Images (PDF only)
• Grouping: Organized by asset type
• Totals: Summary statistics at the end

Loans Report Includes

• Header: Container name, report date, date range
• Summary: Active loans count, overdue count, total loaned quantity
• Loan Details:
  • Item name and voucher ID
  • Borrower name and contact info
  • Quantity loaned
  • Loan date
  • Expected return date
  • Actual return date (if returned)
  • Status (active/returned/overdue)
  • Notes
• Overdue Section: Highlighted overdue loans
• History Section: Past returned loans

Assets Report Includes

• Header: Container name, report date, summary stats
• By Asset Type:
  • Type name and image
  • Total items of this type
  • Total quantity across all items
  • Value summary (if price fields exist)
• Custom Field Analysis:
  • Breakdown by key custom fields
  • Counts per value
• Summary: Overall totals and statistics

Scheduled Reports

Scheduled/automated reports are planned for a future release. Currently, reports must be generated manually on-demand.

Future scheduled report features will include:

• Weekly/monthly automatic generation
• Email delivery
• Custom report templates
• Saved report configurations

Custom Report Filters

Advanced filtering within the report generator is planned for a future release. Currently, reports include all data from the selected container.

Future filtering options will include:

• Date ranges
• Specific asset types
• Location filters
• Custom field filters
• Status filters (active/inactive)

Working with Generated Reports

PDF Reports

Viewing:

• Opens automatically in your browser’s PDF viewer
• Can be saved to your device
• Print directly from the viewer

Sharing:

• Email as attachment
• Upload to shared drives
• Share via document management systems

Printing:

• Use landscape orientation for wide tables
• Portrait for text-heavy reports
• Check page breaks before printing

Excel Reports

Opening:

• Downloads as .xlsx file
• Opens in Excel, Google Sheets, or LibreOffice
• Compatible with Excel 2010 and later

Analyzing:

• Apply filters to columns
• Sort by any field
• Create pivot tables
• Add charts and graphs
• Calculate sums and averages

Manipulating:

• Hide unnecessary columns
• Add custom columns
• Apply conditional formatting
• Merge with other data sources

Excel reports use standard formatting. The first row is headers, followed by data rows. This makes it easy to import into other systems.

Report Best Practices

Generate Before Physical Counts: Create a PDF inventory report before doing physical inventory. Print it and use it as a checklist.

Regular Exports: Export to Excel monthly and keep the files. This gives you historical snapshots of inventory changes over time.

Name Files Consistently: When saving reports, use a naming convention like Inventory_ContainerName_YYYY-MM-DD.pdf for easy sorting.

Review Before Sharing: Always preview reports before sending them to stakeholders. Check for data accuracy and completeness.

Use Loans Report Weekly: Generate a loans report every Monday to follow up on overdue items proactively.

Archive Important Reports: Save copies of year-end or audit reports permanently. These are valuable for historical reference.

Common Scenarios

Year-End Inventory Audit

1. Generate Full Inventory Report

   Select Inventory report type in PDF format.

2. Print for Physical Count

   Print the PDF and use it during the physical inventory count.

3. Generate Excel Version

   Create an Excel version for any quantity adjustments.

4. Archive Both Versions

   Save both PDF and Excel versions with year-end date for records.

Budget Planning

1. Generate Assets Report

   Create an Assets report in Excel format.

2. Analyze by Type

   Review quantities and values by asset type.

3. Identify Needs

   Look for low quantities or aging equipment.

4. Build Budget Proposal

   Use data to justify equipment purchases or replacements.

Loan Follow-Up

1. Generate Loans Report

   Create a Loans report in PDF format.

2. Review Overdue Section

   Check the overdue loans section.

3. Contact Borrowers

   Use contact info in the report to follow up.

4. Track Returns

   Mark items as returned in Invenicum as they come back.

Insurance Documentation

1. Generate Inventory Report

   Create a complete inventory report in PDF.

2. Include Images

   Ensure the PDF includes item images for identification.

3. Document Values

   If using price fields, verify all items have values.

4. Submit to Insurer

   Provide the PDF as proof of inventory for insurance purposes.

Report Performance

Generation Time

Report generation time depends on:

• Number of items in container
• Number of images (for PDF)
• Complexity of custom fields
• Export format (PDF takes longer than Excel)

Typical times:

• Small containers (under 100 items): 5-10 seconds
• Medium containers (100-1000 items): 10-30 seconds
• Large containers (over 1000 items): 30-60 seconds

Large PDF reports with many images may take longer. For very large inventories, consider using Excel format for faster generation.

Common Questions

Can I schedule reports to run automatically?

Not yet. Scheduled reports are planned for a future release. Currently, generate reports manually when needed.

Can I filter reports to specific asset types or locations?

Advanced filtering is coming in a future release. Currently, reports include all data from the selected container.

Do reports include deleted items?

No, reports only include currently active items and loans. Deleted items are not included.

Can I customize the report format or layout?

Customization options are planned for a future version. Currently, reports use standard templates.

How long does report history stay available?

Reports are generated on-demand and not stored by Invenicum. Save downloaded reports on your device or file system for future reference.

Can I export only specific fields?

Field selection is planned for a future release. Currently, reports include all available fields.

Do Excel reports include images?

No, images are only included in PDF reports. Excel reports contain data only.

Can I generate reports via API?

API access for report generation may be available in a future release. Check the API documentation for current capabilities.

Related Topics

• Managing Items - Understanding inventory data
• Loans - Generating loan reports
• Locations - Location-based reporting