Overview and Setup

Before you can create and manage fixed assets, the Fixed Assets feature must be enabled and configured for the company.

Overview

Setting up Fixed Assets requires configuration across multiple areas of WorkBook. Complete the steps in order because each step depends on the previous one.

• Enable the module. Turn on the Fixed Assets feature for the company.
• Create GL accounts. Add the chart of accounts entries needed for fixed asset postings.
• Configure the suspense account. Designate a holding account for asset purchase transactions.
• Create a journal type. Set up an automatic journal for fixed asset postings.
• Map the journal type to the company. Link the journal to Fixed Assets.
• Validate finance settings. Confirm that the configuration is complete and consistent.
• Create asset groups. Define depreciation policies and assign GL accounts.
• Grant user access. Make sure that the relevant users have the required permissions.

After you complete these steps, you can create assets, capitalize them, run depreciation, and perform other fixed asset operations

How Fixed Assets Work

Before you begin the setup, it helps to understand the end-to-end flow that the setup supports:

• Purchase: You receive an invoice for an asset, such as a laptop. You post the creditor invoice by using the Fixed Asset line type. WorkBook posts the cost to the suspense account on the balance sheet.
• Create: You create an asset record in the Fixed Assets register.
• Capitalize: You link the suspense account transaction to the asset. WorkBook moves the cost from the suspense account to the asset cost account. The asset now has a recorded value.
• Depreciate: You run depreciation periodically. WorkBook calculates the depreciation charge and posts it automatically.
• Dispose: When the asset is sold or written off, you dispose of it. WorkBook removes the remaining value from the balance sheet.

The configuration steps in this topic create the GL accounts, journal types, and asset groups that make this process work.

Important: All fixed asset operations are performed in company currency only. Multi-currency transactions are converted to company currency before they are applied.

Who Needs to Do This

You need administrator or advanced-level access to complete the full setup. Specifically:

• Company Variables access, to enable the module in Step 1
• Chart of Accounts access, to create GL accounts in Step 2
• Basic Finance Settings access, to configure the suspense account in Step 3
• Journal Types access, to create and map the journal type in Steps 4 and 5
• Settings access, to create asset groups in Step 7

In most organizations, the finance controller or system administrator, or another advanced user with the required company access completes these steps once during the initial setup.

Step 1: Enable the Fixed Assets Module

The Fixed Assets module is controlled by company variable 81. It must be enabled for each company that will use Fixed Assets.

1. Open Settings > Company Settings > Company Variables
2. Find Variable 81, Fixed Assets.
3. Set the value to 1.

Until this variable is enabled, the Fixed assets section does not appear in Finance & Administration, and the Fixed asset groups page is not available in Settings.

Warning: After an asset in the company has a financial value, that is, after it has been capitalized, Company Variable 81 cannot be disabled. You cannot turn off fixed asset management while valued assets exist. Plan your go-live carefully.

Important: This is a per-company setting. If your WorkBook installation has multiple companies, you must enable it separately for each company that will use Fixed Assets.

Step 2: Create GL Accounts

Fixed asset groups require five GL accounts for financial transactions. Before you create groups, make sure that these accounts exist in the chart of accounts.

Open Finance & Administration > General ledger > Chart of accounts, and create the following accounts, or identify existing accounts that can be reused.

Table 1. Required Account Types

Purpose	Account Type	Employee Name
Asset cost	Balance sheet account	FA Cost Account
Accumulated depreciation	Balance sheet account	FA Accumulated Depreciation
Depreciation expense	Operating account	FA Depreciation Expense
Revaluation gain/loss	Operating account	FA Revaluation Account
Disposal gain/loss	Operating account	FA Gain/Loss on Disposal

All accounts must be:

• Automatic, not manual posting accounts. Automatic accounts allow WorkBook to post journal entries to them without manual intervention.
• Not blocked. Blocked accounts cannot receive postings.

Important: You can use one set of five accounts for all asset groups, or you can create separate accounts for each group if you want more detailed reporting. The right choice depends on your reporting requirements.

Table 2. Suspense AccountYou also need a suspense account of type Balance sheet account. This account is used as a temporary holding area for purchase costs before they are capitalized to a fixed asset.

Purpose	Account Type	Example Name	Example Number
Suspense	Balance sheet account	FA Suspense Account	60000

When a creditor invoice for an asset purchase is posted, the cost goes to this suspense account. During capitalization, the amount is then transferred from the suspense account to the asset cost account.

Step 3: Configure the Suspense Account

After you create the suspense account in the chart of accounts, you must tell WorkBook which account it is.

1. Open Settings > Finance > Basic finance settings.
2. Find Fixed Assets Suspense Account.
3. Select the suspense account you created in Step 2.

   The page saves automatically when you select a suspense account.

This links the suspense account to the Fixed Assets module so that capitalization transactions know where to find the source amounts.

Step 4: Create a Journal Type for Fixed Assets

Fixed asset operations, including capitalization, depreciation, revaluation, and disposal, create journal entries. These entries require a dedicated journal type.

1. Open Settings > Finance > Journal types.
2. Create a new journal type with these settings:
   • Name: "Fixed Assets" or a similar name.
   • Automatic: Yes
   • Blocked: No
   This journal type is used for automatic fixed asset postings.

Step 5: Map the Journal Type to Your Company

After you create the journal type, you must assign it as the company's fixed assets journal.

1. Open Settings > Finance > Journal types.
2. Open the second tab, where journal types are mapped to the company.
3. Set Fixed Assets Journal Type to the journal type you created in Step 4.

This tells WorkBook which journal type to use when posting fixed asset transactions.

Step 6: Validate Finance Settings

Before you continue, validate that the finance setup is complete and correct.

1. Open Settings > Finance > Validate finance settings.
2. Run the validation.
3. Review and resolve any errors or warnings.

When Fixed Assets is enabled, the validation checks these additional requirements:

• At least one asset group exists.
• The asset group has all GL accounts assigned.
• A balance sheet account is assigned as the Fixed Asset suspense account in Basic finance settings.
• The fixed assets journal type is mapped to the company.

Other common issues include:

• blocked or missing GL accounts
• incomplete posting configuration

Important: Fixed asset groups are created in Step 7. Group-specific account configuration is not fully confirmed until the group is used on an asset.

Warning: Do not skip this step. If finance settings are invalid, fixed asset operations can fail at runtime. It is much easier to catch configuration issues here.

Step 7: Create Asset Groups

After the GL accounts and journal type are in place, you can create asset groups that define depreciation policies.

1. Open Settings > Finance > Fixed asset groups.
2. Click the action to create a new asset group.
3. For each category of asset, create a group with:
   • a descriptive name, such as IT Equipment, Office Furniture, or Vehicles
   • the appropriate depreciation method and parameters
   • all five GL accounts assigned

See Fixed Asset Groups for detailed information.

Step 8: Grant Users Access

Users who work with fixed assets need the correct permissions.

Task	Required Access
View and manage fixed assets, including create, capitalize, depreciate, revalue, and dispose.	Finance access
Manage fixed asset groups.	Finance access and Settings access
Import fixed assets.	Finance access
Configure module settings in Steps 1 to 6.	Administrator access or Advanced user access to the relevant finance and settings areas

To grant Settings access to a user:

1. Open Settings > Advanced tools > User access rights.
2. Select the user.
3. Enable Allow Setting Access for the relevant company.

Setup Checklist

Use this checklist to confirm all steps are complete before going live:

• ___ Company Variable 81 set to 1 for the company
• ___ CL accounts created, including at least:
  • ___ 1 asset cost (BS)
  • ___ 1 accumulated depreciation (BS)
  • ___ 1 depreciation expense (OP)
  • ___ 1 revaluation (OP)
  • ___ 1 disposal (OP)
  • ___ 1 suspense (BS)
• ___ All GL accounts are automatic and not blocked

• ___ Suspense account configured in Basic finance settings
• ___ Journal type created for fixed assets (automatic, not blocked)
• ___ Journal type mapped to the company as the Fixed Assets journal
• ___ Finance settings validated with no errors
• ___ At least one asset group created with all five GL accounts assigned
• ___ User permissions configured, including Finance access for asset users, Settings access for group managers