1. What is this module about
The Reservation module in Workplace Management is designed to facilitate users with options to reserve (or book, whatever term you prefer) areas (e.g. meeting rooms, workplaces), assets (aka ‘equipment’) (e.g. beamers, cars, bikes, flip-overs) and catalog items (aka ‘catering’ or ‘services’) (e.g. sandwiches, coffee, lunch).
By default, once an object is reserved, other users cannot reserve it anymore in the same timeframe. The module also supports multiple settings to add restrictions (in general or per object) to how often, how far in advance, how near in the future you can reserve a given object. For example, catering needs to be ordered and prepared, so you do not want a user to book a lunch 5 minutes from now.
The next parts will go into more detail on some of the core concepts of this module:
1.1 Reservable objects
To be able to reserve any object (area, asset or catalog item), the object must exist, before it can be made reservable. See the relevant ‘Masterdata’ modules for more information about areas, assets and catalog items. To make an object reservable, set the field ‘Reservable’ to Yes on the main page of the object. This will also activate the ‘Reservation settings’ tab:
Via the ‘Reservation settings’ tab, the relevant reservation settings for this object can be set.
This tab can look a bit different depending on the type of object (Area, Asset or CatalogItem). For instance, the setting if catering is allowed to be reserved, is only available on the reservation settings tab of an area (as it can be indicated per area, if catering is allowed to also be booked for that area).
If an object is made reservable, it can be added to a reservation (of course depending on if the object is not yet reserved and relevant restrictions of the object (more on restrictions see below)). Multiple objects can be added to the same reservation. For each reservable object added to a reservation, a ‘Reservation item' is created (linking the reservable object to the reservation):
Most of the reservable settings are self-explanatory (by also using the hover over help texts). More information on the fields under the ‘Timing’ header are described in the next part ‘Reservation restrictions’. Some additional options are:
Availability (Regimes)
Linking a ‘regime’ can be done via the ‘Availability’ button on the reservation settings page. By linking a regime to a reservable object, the availability of the object can be limited. For instance, catering might only be available during office hours, thus a regime that only has an availability on workdays from 9 to 5 could be linked to reservable catalog items. This will make sure that users cannot select this object if they create a reservation that takes place outside of these available hours.
For more information on regimes, see: https://spacewell.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/KB/pages/edit-v2/105152618
Via the ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ it is possible to define a system group that is allowed to reserve a reservable object even if it falls outside of the availability determined by the regime. By default, this is set to the ‘Reservation coordinator’ system group. Users in this group will still get a warning, but not an error when reserving outside of a regime.
Block dates
Where regimes can be used to set general availability (e.g every workday between 9 and 5) , block dates can be created to block a specific period in time for the reservable object. For instance, if a room is being renovated, this time period can be blocked, resulting in users not being able to reserve this room during that time period.
Seating arrangements
Seating arrangements only apply to reservable areas and this is also only visible if the general setting for this is enabled ('Module settings' → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Use seating arrangements’).
Since certain (often larger) meeting rooms might have the option for multiple seating arrangements, the capacity can also differ based on the desired seating arrangement as a ‘Classroom’ seating setup might support more seats than a ‘U-shape’ setup.
Via the ‘Seating arrangements’ include on the reservation settings of a reservable area, the capacity per relevant seating arrangement can be added. The following seating arrangements are possible to add:
Classroom
Conference
Theatre
U-shape
Per seating arrangement, the capacity can be determined, as well as the setup and tidy up times. If these settings are determined and the seating arrangement is chosen in a reservation*, the seating arrangement settings will be applied instead of the general reservation settings (capacity, setup and tidy up).
*If seating arrangements are enabled (in general, and for the specific reservation type the user selects in a new reservation), the user will get the option to choose a desired seating arrangement, when searching for available areas.
If the user selects a specific seating arrangement, the capacity based on the specific seating arrangement is used to only give the user the available rooms which have this seating arrangement option and for which the capacity is at least equal to or greater than the number of persons indicated the reservation is for:
Via the general reservation settings, it is also possible to link a photo of the seating arrangement (in general, not per room). If the user selects a specific seating arrangement in a new reservation, this photo will also be displayed, showing the user how this seating arrangement looks.
Prices and Rates
If users need to pay for certain reservable objects, prices need to be specified. By default, only a catalog item has a price field that can be used in a reservation, but it is also possible to add rates to any other reservable object type (areas and assets). In a rate, the price and the period in which this price applies can be specified. This makes it possible to already specify future prices (e.g. the price of a sandwich will change from 4 euros to 4,5 euros as of next month.).
If rates have been added to a reservable object and the reservable object is added to a reservation, the applicable rate is determined by the reservation date and is automatically set in the reservation item. In case of catalog items, if no rates are specified, but the catalog item has a price, this is used to set the price of the reservation item. If the rate does not have a start and end date, the rate applies always.
Be aware: The actual invoicing of reservations is not possible via Workplace Management. but instead reports can be created to export the costs from reservations (and follow up on these costs in a financial system for example).
1.2 Reservation restrictions
By default, when reserving objects, some restrictions are always applied and some additional restrictions can be added based on specific needs.
1.2.1 Default restrictions:
The following checks are always done when looking for objects to reserve in a new reservation:
Object is already reserved
A reservable object (areas and assets) can only be reserved if it is not already reserved during the same period of time. Catalog items can always be reserved as they are considered as always available (at least if these items ( e.g. coffee or lunch) are actually in stock.
Via the ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ it is possible to define a system group that is allowed to reserve a reservable object even if it is already reserved. By default, this is set to the ‘Reservation coordinator’ system group. Users in this group will still get a warning, but not an error when reserving a reservable area or asset that is already reserved.
Available quantity
If a reservable object is shown as reservable in a new reservation, also depends on the available quantity. This check depends on the type of object;
Area: Areas are only reservable in a reservation, if the requested number of persons in the reservation does not exceed the capacity of the area (also indicated in a ‘Persons’ field on the area).
Assets: Assets have a quantity field. By default the assets quantity is 1 and can be changed to a higher number. Assets with a quantity of 1 are often used for unique items with a unique (serial)number (e.g. a car or laptop). Assets with a higher quantity are often used for items which can be registered in Workplace Management as one object (where no unique number is applicable), but there are multiple physical objects which can be reserved (e.g. 10x flip-overs or 5x party tables). When checking the availability of such an object, the application checks if there is at least one of the reservable quantity available to be able to add the item to a reservation.
Catalog items: Quantities are not relevant for any availability checks. As mentioned above, a catalog item is considered to be always available.
Linked property
In a reservation, the user must always specify the building* for which the reservation applies. This will determine the reservable objects that can be reserved. Only areas, assets and catalog items linked to the same building (via the ‘property’ field on the object) and catalog items that are not linked to any building can be reserved.
*Be aware, users can only select buildings if ‘Reservations’ are enabled for the building. This is determined via a setting on the building via the ‘Process settings’ tab:
1.2.2 Additional restrictions
Apart from the default restriction checks mentioned above, additional restrictions can also be applied in general or for certain reservable objects.
In general
Via the ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’, lots of general restrictions can be set to limit users from reserving all or certain reservable objects within certain time frames or numbers. The hover-over help texts will explain all the settings. The most relevant examples are also described here:
Reserve in advance from: This determines how much time ahead of the start of the reservation a user must create a reservation. This can be used to, for example, always enforce users to book or reserve at least 1 day ahead of time for any reservable object.
Reserve in advance until: This determines how far ahead in the future a user can make a reservation in general. This can be used to, for example, always enforce users to book no more than 2 weeks ahead of time for any reservable object.
A similar setting to reserve objects in advance from and until are also available per reservable object. The general settings are used to restrict this for all reservable objects. The setting on reservable object is used to limit the reservation period for the specific reservable object. Setting reserve in advance from/until on a specific reservable object, only has an effect if it is set even more restrictive (setting it less restrictive will not override the general setting).
Reserve in past until: By default, it is not possible to make a reservation in the past (to avoid users from setting a date in the past by mistake, an error is normally given). However, it often happens that a user makes a reservation for the current day (for instance a workplace) and the default start time (e.g. 08:00) has already past. To avoid an unwanted error and requiring the user to change the start time to the current time (e.g 08:30), this setting can be used to determine how far in the past a reservation can still be created. By default (to avoid the issue described) this is set to '2 hours'.
Reserving multiple workplaces at the same time: If the users are only allowed to reserve one workplace at the same time, this setting needs to be set to No. When the user is trying to submit a second reservation with a workplace, overlapping the first workplace reservation, an error message is shown. Especially if the number of workplaces is limited, making sure users cannot book more than one (be it by mistake or deliberately) is desired. However, in other situations, being able to reserve more than one workplace at the same time might be needed, if employees also need to book for external visitors.
Maximum number of workplace reservations: Via this setting, the maximum number of workplace reservations per week or month per user can be determined. If a user tries to book more workplaces in the specified time period than is allowed, an error will be shown to the user, when trying to submit the reservation.
Reservable object specific restrictions:
As already mentioned above, some restrictions can also be set on a specific reservable object. These are:
Regimes (see above)
Blocked dates (see above)
Reserve in advance/until times (similar to the general reservation settings, but for a specific reservable object)
On a reservable area: Is it allowed to add catering items to a reservation in a specific area.
Setup and Tidy up times: It is possible to add set up and/or tidy up times for individual reservable areas. The set up and tidy up times are added to the reservation (before and/or after) so that the area remains unavailable during these times to set up or tidy up the area for the next reservation. For example, bigger meeting rooms may require preparation time to set up a specific seating arrangement or need more time to clean up.
1.3 Reservation types
Reservation types can be used to determine the options (fields and reservable object types) available when making a reservation. When creating a reservation, one of the first fields that the user must enter* is the reservation type. Using different reservation types can be helpful when there are a lot of different types of objects to reserve, that are not all relevant within a single reservation.
For instance, if a user wants to reserve a company car, it does not make sense to also be able to reserve a meeting room or catering. Technically, every reservable object could be shown in a new reservation and leave the logical selection up to the user. However, using different reservation types (e.g. a type that only shows reservable assets in the category ‘Car’ and another type that shows reservable areas and catering) will improve the end user experience, as they are guided more thoroughly through the process of making a reservation. After the user selects the desired reservation type from a list (e.g. ‘Company car’ or ‘Meeting room’), the corresponding fields and reservable objects to select from are automatically determined.
*If only one reservation type exists (at least one is mandatory), the user does not get the option to select the applicable reservation type and the reservation type is automatically set in each new reservation (and also not shown).
Creating reservation types
Reservation types can (only) be managed by administrator users. The reservation types can be found either via the navigation menu ‘Reservations’ → ‘Reservation types', or via the ‘Module settings’ → 'Reservations’ (as an include).
Per reservation type, the following settings can be determined:
Reservation type setting | Explanation |
|---|---|
Name | The name of the reservation type, this is how users creating a reservation see the different reservation types to choose from. So make sure the name is clear as to what options it gives. |
Subject reservation (set automatically) | This (optional) text is automatically taken over to the created reservation subject with this reservation type. It is possible for the user to change this automatically set (pre defined) reservation subject. |
Reserve areas | The possibility to reserve areas in a reservation where this reservation type is selected. The option to determine this setting on reservation type, is determined by the general setting to reserve areas: ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Reserve areas’. |
Area category | If a category is selected here, only (reservable and available) areas of this category will be shown, when searching available areas. Leave blank when all areas should be shown. |
Use Seating arrangements | If this option is set to Yes, users can also choose a certain seating arrangement. The option to select a seating arrangement, is determined by the general setting to use seating arrangements ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Use seating arrangements’. This might be relevant to certain meeting rooms, but if a reservation type is dedicated to workplace reservations, it might make sense to not use seating arrangements for that type. |
Reserve assets | The possibility to reserve assets in a reservation where this reservation type is selected. The option to determine this setting on reservation type, is determined by the general setting to reserve assets: ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Reserve assets’. |
Asset category | If a category is selected here, only (reservable and available) assets of this category will be shown, when searching available assets. Leave blank when all assets should be shown. |
Reserve catering | The possibility to reserve catering in a reservation where this reservation type is selected. The option to determine this setting on reservation type, is determined by the general setting to reserve catering: ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Reserve catering’. |
Catering category | If a category is selected here, only (reservable and available) catering of this category will be shown, when searching available catering. Leave blank when all catering items should be shown. |
Register visitors | The possibility to add visitors to a reservation with this reservation type. This is only available, if the 'Visitors' module is activated. |
Hide persons field | If set to Yes, the persons field is automatically hidden for this reservation type. This might be relevant if the default value (1) is sufficient for the objects that can be reserved via the reservation type. For instance parkings, workplaces and assets |
Hide property field | If set to Yes, the property field is automatically hidden for this reservation type. This is only relevant if only one building is used to make reservations. |
Show cost center | If set to Yes, the cost center field is shown for this reservation type. |
Extra information for requestor | This information is displayed as a read-only field on the right side of the page, when creating a reservation. For example, a text can be shown: 'When your meeting ends please make sure that the table is empty and you turn off the lights.'. |
Keep in mind: the more reservation types are created, the more implementation is needed. Only create reservation types, if the settings are different enough and it will benefit the user experience by helping the user select the relevant objects to reserve more easily
1.4 Reservation workflow process
The following part describes the workflow for a reservation from a high over point of view. For a detailed description, see the user manual Reservation module for (end)users
Create and submit the reservation
A user can create a new reservation and add at least one reservable object to it.
Any approval tasks (if applicable) are generated and handled
If the reservation as a whole needs to be approved, the task for the reservation coordinator(s) will be generated. If any specific reserved object also requires approval, a seperate approval task is generated for each of the applicable reserved objects.
Any tasks to handout/prepare reserved objects are generated and handled
If the reservation is completely approved (or no approval was needed) and the generation of tasks for the handout/preparation of any of the reserved objects is applicable, these tasks are generated for the relevant users.
The reservation takes place
The reservation takes place and ends automatically after the reservations end time has past.
Any tasks to take in/clean up reserved objects are generated and handled
If the generation of tasks for the take in/clean up of any of the reserved objects is applicable, these tasks are generated for the relevant users.
The reservation is closed
Once the end time of the reservation has past, the reservation is automatically closed. It remains possible to make additional changes by the reservation coordinator (for example, change the actual used quantity of certain catering items).
1.5 Recurring reservations
A recurring reservation is a reservation that takes places more than once (for example, every week for the next 10 weeks). Recurring reservations are generated from a reservation schedule, and a reservation schedule is always created based on a single reservation. A recurring reservation can be created:
During the last step of creating a new reservation with the 'Create reservation schedule' button
By selecting an already existing reservation and convert it to a recurring reservation with the 'Create reservation schedule' button
The option to create a recurring reservstion is only available, if a user has the system group '1. Create reservation schedule'. See Authorizing users
If the function to create a reservation schedule is used on a already existing single reservation, this single reservation is canceled (or kept if the workflow does not allow it to be canceled anymore due to restrictions for cancellations) and a copy of it is used as a template for the reservation schedule.
The reservation schedule is used to determine the recurrence cycle and the end date or maximum number of reservations (occurrences) that will be generated from the reservation schedule. If the end is not determined by the user within the reservation schedule cycle, the maximum number of occurences that will be generated from the recurring schedule is determined by a general setting. This setting can be found via ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Maximum scheduled occurrences’. The maximum value of this setting is 1080 (the maximum value of 1080 is similar to the reserve in advance until option in Outlook).
When the reservations are generated from the reservation schedule, each reservation is created based on the original single reservation (that was converted to the template reservation of the reservation schedule), with the start and end times based on the cycle from the reservation schedule.
Detailed information on the use of the reservation schedule can be found in the user manual: Reservation module for (end)users
1.6 Reservation Calendar
The reservation module also has a reservation calendar option for reservation coordinators. Users with this authorization get the reservation calendar option via the navigation menu. The reservation calendar can be used for two main options:
Show existing reservations in a calendar view
The reservation calendar provides a visual overview (per day, week or month) of the reservable objects and the reservations taking place for these reservable objects. The reservation calendar has the option to filter per property. By default catalog items are not shown in the reservation calendar (since each item can be reserved many times simultaneously, resulting in a lot of reservations to display). Showing catalog items in the reservation calendar, can be enabled via the ‘Module settings’ → ‘Reservations’ → ‘Show catalog items in reservation calendar’.
It is also possible to directly create a new reservation via the reservation calendar by dragging a desired time period on a specific reservable object.
Colors of the reservations in the reservation calendar can vary. Reservations that are submitted are green, reservations not yet submitted are yellow, reservations in change status are orange. If setup and/or tidy up times apply to the reserved object, these times are added in the calendar view and are shown a bit darker before and/or after the reservations start and/or end time. If catalog items are added to a (area or asset) reservation, a red line is shown above the reservation:
Show (and reserve) objects that are not shown via the regular option to create a new reservation
If a new reservation is created via the regular way (via the startboard), the list of available reservable objects only shows object which have the option ‘Show in shortlist’ set to Yes.
If specific reservable objects are only allowed to be reserved by reservation coordinators (for example, a special room like an auditorium), the 'Show on shortlist' option should be set to No. This reservable object will then not be shown when creating a new reservation via the startboard. From the reservation calendar, the reservation coordinator can filter to also show objects not in the shortlist and can reserve these special rooms.
1.7 Other relevant options
Anonymizing reservations
It is possible to automatically anonymize reservations x period after the reservation ends. For more information see: https://spacewell.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/KB/pages/451936369/Anonymizing+data#Reservations
Adding visitors to reservations
It is also possible to add visitors to a reservation, to simultaneously reserve a meeting room and register a visitor. The reservation type setting 'Register visitors' determines if it is possible to add visitors to the reservation. If the option is enabled, users with the authorization to create reservations will also be able to add visitors without extra authorizations needed.
More information about registering visitors, see Visitor module
2 Additional information on this module
More information on the Reservation module can be found via the following related articles:
For an (end) user manual, see: Reservation module for (end)users
For more detailed implementation information (including how to enable the module, which system groups are involved, data imports, and more information on the startboard and navigation menu options) see: Reservations module activation and information