Locations module

The Locations module records details about display and storage locations within an institution for objects recorded in the Catalogue.

When an object is attached to a Locations record and its current location is updated in EMu, an audit trail is automatically generated and displayed on the Location tab of the Catalogue module.

Note: See How to relocate an object for details of relocating objects recorded in the Catalogue module.

An object can have a current, permanent and temporary location

Three fields on the Location tab of the Catalogue module can attach to records in the Locations module:

Field	Description
Current Location: (Current Location)	Records where an object is now (including on display or on loan).
Permanent Location: (Other Locations)	Records where an object is normally located when not on display or loan.
Temporary Location: (Other Locations)	Records where an object is located if its permanent location is temporarily unavailable due to repairs, replacement, etc.

Note: The locations audit trail keeps track of an object's current location. It is therefore important that when an object is in its Permanent or Temporary location, this is also recorded in the Current Location: (Current Location) field.

Note: The time stamp of the location change that displays on the Locations tab in the Catalogue module does not necessarily reflect the actual time that the object was located. This is because it is possible to manually edit a location date if the date that the location change was made in EMu was not the actual date that the relocation took place.

Typical Locations tabs and their purpose

Tab	Description
Location	Records location details, including: Location code Location type Location hierarchy Storage type
Holder	A Holder location is a movable container that holds collection objects, e.g. crates and solander boxes. The current location for a Holder is another location; that is, the Holder record is attached to another Locations record. This tab records details for a Holder location, including: The name of the Holder. The current location of the Holder (a link to another Locations record). Details of who and when the Holder was last moved. When an object is in a Holder and the Holder is moved to another location, we do not update the location of the object in the Catalogue module, we update the Holder's current location on the Holder tab in the Locations module. When the current location of the Holder is changed, the location of all the objects in it is dynamically updated. Tip: If the object is moved out of the Holder into a different location, then we update the location of the object in the Catalogue module (see How to relocate an object). How to make use of a Holder location To create a Holder location: Create a record in the Locations module and select the Holder radio button. Enter a name for the Holder in the Name: (Holder) field. Enter a barcode / location code if they are available in the Identifiers fields. The current location of a Holder is another Locations record. In the Current Location: (Current Location) field attach the record for the location where the Holder is currently found: For each object that is located in the Holder, we update its current location in the Catalogue module. There are several ways you could do this: if multiple objects will be located in the Holder location, you could use the Bulk Relocation tool; or you could record the location for each object individually (as follows). Search for the object's record in the Catalogue module. On the Location tab, attach the Holder location to the Current Location: (Current Location) field. Note that the Movement History table is updated with details of the movement of this object (it may be necessary to refresh the record by clicking Refresh on the View tab of the Ribbon to update the table immediately): Any time we update the location of the object the Movement History is updated. Back in the Locations module, if we look at the Movements tab for our Holder, we find an audit trail for this location, which will help us identify all of the movements of this Holder: Tip: Every time an object is moved, an audit record is created automatically in the Internal Movements module. If the location of the Holder changes, we do not update the location in the Catalogue record for each object; instead we change the location of the Holder itself in the Locations module: Search for the record of the Holder in the Locations module. Delete the value in the Current Location: (Current Location) field on the Holder tab and attach to the new location: The Catalogue record for every object in the Holder location will update to reflect the new location of the Holder and the Movement History will update (it may be necessary to refresh the record by clicking Refresh on the View tab of the Ribbon to update the table immediately):
Dimensions	Holds details of physical dimensions of the location, including external and internal measurements, and X, Y, Z coordinates used for the Object Locator.
Tasks	See Tasks tab for details.
Notes	See Notes tab for details.
Multimedia	See Multimedia tab for details.
Security	See Security tab for details.
Audit	See Audit tab for details.
Admin	See Admin tab for details.

How to create a Location

Add a new record in the Locations module.
Select the Location: (Location Type) or Holder: (Location Type) radio button.
The default Location Type is Location. A Location is a fixed place - a building, floor, room, cabinet, shelf, for example. A Holder can be moved - a case, folder, crate, for example (details about Holder locations above).
Enter a location code in the Location Code: (Identifiers) field.
The Location code is generally a shorthand form of the Location Hierarchy.
If required, enter a barcode in the Barcode: (Identifiers) field.
Complete the Location Hierarchy fields. E.g.
Level 1 Building 1
Level 2 Level 4
Level 3 Room 10
Level 4 Cabinet 1
In this case the Location Code might be 1.4.10.1
Save the record.