Keeping the asset register accurate during a move
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Keep an asset's identity fixed while recording location and status as separate fields during a move. A machine can be approved for sale but still at the old site, or delivered to the new site but not yet accepted into use. One column marked 'moved' cannot describe those states accurately.
Choose a person to maintain the master register and agree how updates reach them. Multiple local copies are useful only if changes are reconciled to a controlled current version.
Use a relocation register
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Permanent asset ID | Keeps the item identifiable across sites and temporary labels |
| Description and serial reference | Distinguishes similar equipment |
| Previous confirmed location | Shows where the movement began |
| Intended destination | Names the receiving site, sale route or other approved destination |
| Current physical status | At origin, in transit, received or another confirmed state |
| Commercial status | Retain, transfer, sale approved, sold or held for decision |
| Custodian or contact | Identifies who can confirm the current position |
| Movement reference | Connects the update to the agreed movement record |
| Receipt and exceptions | Records what arrived, when and any discrepancy |
The register does not replace accounting records or physical movement instructions. It supplies a traceable factual record for the responsible teams.
Keep labels linked rather than replacing identity
A new site may use different location codes. Preserve the original asset reference and map the new code to it. Use the numbering and labelling guide so temporary move labels and sale lot numbers do not erase the underlying identity.
Where a machine has accessories or separate components, identify what travels together and what has its own reference. A main unit arriving does not establish that every associated item arrived with it.
Reconcile exceptions promptly
Record an unplanned destination change, missing component or incorrect label as an exception with an owner. Do not alter the intended destination afterwards merely to make it match what happened without preserving the change record.
Use the internal acceptance process to confirm that the receiving site agreed to the asset. An item physically delivered to a branch can still be an unresolved management problem if nobody accepted responsibility for it.
The idle-equipment survey may reveal assets absent from the existing register. Add them through a documented investigation rather than assigning them ownership or sale authority based solely on location.
Supply sale information from the current record
Use the valuation asset-list guide when creating the subset for a valuer or auctioneer. Keep the location current and mark which equipment remains subject to transfer decisions.
UK Auction Group can discuss the confirmed sale candidates using that list. The same permanent identifiers should connect the original review, sale instructions and eventual departure record, even if the assets have moved in between.
Explore the surplus and relocation guides.
Sources
This guide gives general information. Equipment-specific, legal, tax and safety decisions may need a qualified adviser or competent specialist. The guides do not promise sale prices, fees or results.