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Asset Management – working with SmartTrade Mobile and SmartForms to manage assets in the field

Asset Management is a SmartTrade Ultimate feature, using it with SmartTrade Mobile and SmartForms makes managing assets in the field a lot easier. 

You need to have at least one SmartTrade Ultimate licence to be able to be able to utilise the Asset Management functionality

Other functionalities that come with SmartTrade Ultimate:

  • Work Orders – an important feature for Asset Management, work orders for assets can be initiated from a SmartForm;
  • SmartGate portal – you can set up your clients so they can log jobs and/or see their SmartForm results;
  • Project cost control – this feature is primarily a cost control tool which enables users to:

• Create and track claims and retentions for quote jobs;

• Project variations can be entered and tracked separately but reported together;

• Create invoices;

• Consolidate multiple “draft” invoices into a single invoice for a single customer;

• Create project reports:

  1. Job Profitability report
  2. Project Summary Report
  3. WIP Report

Here's your chance to find out how Asset Management and SmartForms work together!

If you would like to evaluate how Asset Management works with SmartForms on SmartTrade Mobile give our support team a call!

Here’s how they will set you up to evaluate Asset Management and SmartForms:

✔ If you don’t have a SmartTrade Ultimate licence and/or aren’t using SmartTrade Mobile we will set you up with trial licences.

✔ We’ve also prepared a short user guide explaining how Asset Management and SmartForms work together.

✔ You can then experiment with a demonstration SmartForm, we’ve chosen the A6 Boilers demo SmartForm because it shows a number of the available SmartForms features. There’s also a short user guide to help you navigate your way through the demo SmartForm.

✔ And as always don’t hesitate to call our support team if you need some help!

✔ If after evaluating Asset Management working with SmartForms you think it might help your business you only have to call our sales team to get set up. We’ll then schedule some online training to make sure you are up to speed with Assets and SmartForms.

Working in the office with SmartTrade Ultimate

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✔ Enter Asset details

✔ Attach applicable SmartForms

✔ Create Job + Asset + SmartForms

✔ Dispatch Job + Asset + SmartForms to SmartTrade Mobile

✔ Clients can be given permission to see SmartForm results in the SmartGate portal

Working in the field with SmartTrade Mobile + Asset + SmartForms

✔ Open Job -> Asset -> SmartForms

✔ Complete SmartForms

✔ Sign-off SmartForms

✔ Return Job + Asset + SmartForms to Office

SmartTrade Ultimate + Assets + SmartForms, a great way to manage assets in the field!

We’ve recently released a software upgrade – here’s the new stuff in SmartTrade!

SmartTrade Mobile - in the Field

Ordering on SmartTrade Mobile is now available!

Mobile users will now be able to:

✔ Generate orders, previously you have been able to create an order number on SmartTrade Mobile to give to you supplier. NOW you can add MyData line items from the job sheet to an order and email it straight to your supplier, the order details are returned to the office with the job.

✔ New security privileges for SmartTrade Mobile to:

  • see or not to see the Client pop-up notes;
  • choose what job card fields are mandatory or not (Job Category; Accounting Group, Job List 1, Job List 2).

The feature additions allow you to undertake a comprehensive job workflow on SmartTrade Mobile:

✔ Create a new customer and site;

✔ Create a new job;

✔ Create a quote and email it to the customer;

✔ Accept a quote;

✔ Add materials, including MyData kitsets;

✔ Create an order and email it to your supplier – NEW!

✔ Download a SmartForm, complete the form, email a PDF copy to the customer;

✔ Attach photos to the job or SmartForm;

✔ Update assets (Assets is a SmartTrade Ultimate feature);

✔ Raise order numbers;

✔ Complete and return timesheets; and

✔ Create an invoice, preview it, get the customer’s signature and email the invoice to the customer.

There's also a number of minor upgrades and bug fixes for SmartTrade v6.

These are covered off in the Release Notes.

SmartTrade Mobile data is encrypted!

Given the increasing threat from hackers we thought we should point out that SmartTrade Mobile’s data is encrypted making it very difficult for hackers to get hold of the information.

We aren’t aware of any successful attempt to hack into SmartTrade Mobile data.

Posted by on in News and Announcements

It’s footy season again across Oz and NZ so here’s some jokes about the 3 major oval ball codes!

First a Rugby Union joke!

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Two elderly Kiwis, Leo and Frank, had been best friends all of their lives. When it was clear that Leo was dying, Frank visited him every day.

One day Frank said, “Leo, we both loved Rugby all our lives, we played together all through school and for the local rugby club afterwards and after we retired we still attended every Rugby game we could and we followed the All Blacks all around the world. Please do me one favour when you get to Heaven. Somehow you must let me know if it’s true Rugby’s the game they play in Heaven.”

Leo looked up at Frank from his deathbed and said, “Frank, you've been my best friend for many years. If it's at all possible, I'll do this favour for you.”

Shortly after that, Leo passed on.

A few nights later, Frank was awakened from a sound sleep by a blinding flash of white light and a voice calling out to him, “Frank! Frank!”

“Who is it?” asked Frank sitting up suddenly. “Who is it?”

“Frank, it's me, Leo.”

“You're not Leo! Leo just died.”

“I'm telling you, it's me, Leo”, insisted the voice.

“Leo! Where are you?” said Frank.

“In Heaven”, replied Leo, “I have some really good news and some not so good news.”

“Tell me the good news first”, said Frank.

“The good news”, Leo said, “it’s true Rugby’s the game they play in in Heaven!

“Better yet, all of our old buddies who died before us are here, and we all play Rugby!!”

“Better than even that, it's always warm and it never rains or snows, the grounds are always in perfect condition!!!”

“Even better still, we're all young again and we never get tired or injured!!!!”

“And best of all the after-match beers are free!!!!!”

“That's fantastic,” said Frank. “It's beyond my wildest dreams! So what's the bad news Leo?”

“You're listed in the run-on side next Saturday!”


Next an Australian Rules joke which epitomises the fact AFL supporters are more passionate than we Kiwis are about Rugby!

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A family of dyed in the wool Hawthorn supporters head out shopping one Saturday before Christmas. They are in a Rebel Sports shop, the young son picks up a Collingwood guernsey and says to his older sister, “I've decided I'm going to be a Collingwood supporter, I'd like this Collingwood guernsey for Christmas” (for non-Australians “guernsey” is their name for a footy jersey).

The sister is outraged at this, whacks him round the head and says, “Go talk to your mother.” Off goes the little lad, with the Collingwood guernsey in hand and finds his mother. “Mum?”

“Yes son?”

“I've decided I'm going to be a Collingwood supporter and I'd like this Collingwood guernsey for Christmas.”

The mother is outraged at this, whacks him round the head and says, “Go talk to your father.” Off he goes with the Collingwood guernsey in hand and finds his father, “Dad?”

“Yes son?”

“I've decided I'm going to be a Collingwood supporter and I would like this Collingwood guernsey for Christmas.”

The father is outraged at this, whacks his son round the head and says, “No son of mine is ever going to be seen in THAT!”

Half an hour later, they are all back in the car heading home. The father turns to the son and says, “Son, I hope you've learned an important lesson today?”

The son turns to his father and says, “Yes, Dad, I have!”

Father says, “Good son, and what is it?”

The son replies, “I've only been a Collingwood supporter for half an hour and already I hate you Hawthorn b*****ds!!!!”


Then a Rugby League joke!

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What does the Kiwi rugby league team do when they’re playing the Kangaroos and their captain tells them to assume their normal positions?

Line up behind the goalposts to wait for the conversion, of course!


Finally, another Rugby Union joke to celebrate the forthcoming British & Irish Lions tour of New Zealand!

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The Archbishop of Cantebury is a fanatical Rugby Union supporter so comes to New Zealand to watch the British & Irish Lions rugby team playing the All Blacks.

Between matches the Archbishop goes to the beach. Shortly after arriving at the beach he spots a commotion just off-shore. A helpless man, wearing an English rugby supporter’s jersey, is struggling frantically to free himself from the jaws of a 20 foot White Pointer.

As the Archbishop watches in horror, a boat with three men wearing Welsh, Irish and Scottish rugby supporter’s jerseys races from the shore. The Irishman quickly fires a harpoon into the shark's side while the Scotsman and Welshman reach out and pull the hapless Englishman from the water. Then, using long clubs, the three men beat the shark to death and haul it into the boat.

Immediately the Archbishop shouts to summon all three men to come and see him, “I give you my divine blessing for your brave actions” says the Archbishop.

“I always thought there was bitter hatred between the English and Celtic rugby fans, but now I have seen with my own eyes the proof that you can bond in the spirit of true brotherly love to support the British Lions.”

As the Archbishop drives off, the catholic Irishman asks his mates, “Who was that?”

“It was the Archbishop of Canterbury, he’s the head of the Anglican Church”, replies the protestant Scotsman. “He is in direct contact with God and has access to all of God's wisdom.”

”Well”, the Irishman says, “he may have access to God and his wisdom, but he doesn't know anything about shark fishing! Is the bait holding up OK? Or do we need to go get another Englishman?”

Ransomware - now the biggest cybersecurity threat! Make sure you have a solid backup strategy!!!
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In previous newsletters we warned SmartTrade’s customers about ransomware hackers who infect the computer’s operating system with malware that locks the owner out from their files. The hackers then demand a hefty payment to unlock the system, often in bitcoins that are virtually impossible to trace.

Ransomware is constantly evolving making it increasingly difficult to protect against, some 2900 new ransomware modifications were reported between January and March of this year. Recently seen ransomware such as Petya not only lock down the files but also completely remove access to the hard drives and operating systems, basically imposing full system encryption. The ransomware may sit inactive for weeks before activating, that way it also infects all the backup copies.

Unfortunately, several more of our customers have been infected.

Currently the two most prevalent ransomware malware are CBT-Locker and Teslacrypt. The CBT-Locker screen message looks like this.
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What can you do to minimise the risk of being infected by ransomware?

The obvious front-line protection strategy is up-to-date anti-virus protection. Because malware is built to circumvent anti-virus protection you also need an effective backup solution. It’s also very important to train your staff not to open email attachments unless they are totally confident about the source!

One of the mistakes some small business owners make is to do their backups to a different drive on their computer system, this gives you absolutely zero protection if ransomware locks you out of your system! It’s also of zero use if your computer is stolen or a fire or other catastrophe totally destroys the computer and/or hard drives. To be absolutely safe you need to store your backups on a completely different system in a different place, in the old day’s regular backups (retentions) were copied to disks or tapes and removed offsite.

These days if you don’t want the hassle of having to do backups yourself there’s plenty of “cloud” backup services available, a quick internet search will throw up a bunch of them.

SmartTrade offers our SmartSafe backup service, the entry level service costing $ 10 plus GST per month will meet the needs of most SmartTrade users. We’ve just negotiated a deal with the 3rd party hosting service which means the following enhancements to the SmartSafe service:

  • We’ve doubled the data cap at each price point. The new SmartSafe options are:
  • rates
  • Retentions increase from 7 days to 30 days.

Major changes to New Zealand’s Health and Safety laws took effect on 4 April 2016!

ln this article we give a general introduction to the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) then focus on the following two aspects of the Act:
  • worker participation - Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) and Health and Safety Committee (HSCs); and
  • the need to notify WorkSafe NZ prior to the commencement of particular hazardous works.

Seek advice!

We strongly recommend SmartTrade’s New Zealand customers visit the WorkSafe New Zealand site and get professional advice, to make sure they have an in-depth understanding of how the (HSWA) will affect their business.


An introduction to the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015
The Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) was enacted in August 2015 with most provisions of the Act taking effect on 4 April 2016. The new Act is based on the Australian Model Work Health and Safety Act.
The HSWA shifts the focus from monitoring and recording health and safety incidents to proactively identifying and managing risks. The primary duty of care is now on the business itself rather than the
employers or principals to ensure the health and safety of workers and others affected by the work it carries out. Key changes introduced by the new law include:
  • Introducing a new legal concept of a Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU). A PCBU will usually be a business entity, such as a company, rather than an individual;
  • Imposing a new due diligence obligation on officers. Officers are directors and other people who make governance decisions that significantly affect a business;
  • Imposing a new duty to take “reasonably practicable steps”;
  • Including a new object of securing workers’ health and safety;
  • Promoting continual improvement and good practice, benchmarked on internationalstandards;
  • Implementing a presumption in favour of the highest level of protecting workers from harm;
  • Increasing the penalties for noncompliance.
The actions your business needs to take include:
  • Identifying health and safety hazards and risks, and taking steps to prevent these from happening;
  • Making sure health and safety in your business is led from the top, has involved and is understood by your staff, and is reviewed regularly;
  • Holding regular training on health and safety matters;
  • Engaging workers in health and safety matters that affect them;
  • Supporting all officers to get up to date with health and safety issues and key risk factors;
  • Reporting and monitoring health and safety goals;
  • Regularly reviewing any incidents;
  • Carrying out frequent health and safety audits.

SmartForms, an excellent tool for managing workplace safety compliance in the field!

The ever increasing complexity of workplace safety and compliance requirements means more and more forms are needed to be completed and managed.
SmartTrade Mobile’s SmartForms feature enables businesses to complete workplace safety checklists on Android or IOS smart devices and store the resulting SmartForms in the cloud.
SmartForms can be emailed to your client, your clients can be setup to view their SmartForm results in the SmartGate online portal. SmartGate is a SmartTrade Ultimate feature, you need to have at least one SmartGate Ultimate licence to be able to use this feature.

For more information about SmartForms please contact our sales team.
Au 1800 350 495, NZ 0800 327 943 or email us at [email protected]

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Worker Participation - Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) and Health and Safety Committee (HSCs)
The Act requires businesses to engage with workers so they can contribute to health and safety on an ongoing basis, this is an absolute requirement so there’s no escaping it. To facilitate this outcome the Act introduces Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) and Health and Safety Committee (HSCs).
One of the most asked question is do I need to organise the election of a Health and Safety Representative or setup a Health and safety Committee? The rules are:
All businesses with 20 or more workers, or who are in one of the  high-risk sectors or industries listed in the Regulations, must:
  • arrange the election of HSRs if requested by a worker, and
  • consider whether existing worker participation practices are sufficiently effective and whether to set up an HSC if one is requested by an HSR or five or more workers.
    Schedule 2 of the Act lists high-risk sectors or industries as:
  • Aquaculture
  • Forestry and logging
  • Fishing, hunting, and trapping
  • Coal mining
  • Food product manufacturing
  • Water supply, sewerage, and drainage services
  • Waste collection, treatment, and disposal services
  • Building construction
  • Heavy and civil engineering construction
  • Construction services
Accordingly, SmartTrade users working in any of the defined high-risk sectors, and those not in a high-risk sector but having 20 or more workers, will be obliged to elect HSRs or setup HSCs if requested to do so by workers. Many SmartTrade users will fall into the Building Construction and Construction services categories.

If a business asked by a worker to elect HSR(s) refuses to do so because it employs less than 20 workers and is not working in a defined high-risk sector it must give the worker written notice of its decision within reasonable time.

Notifying WorkSafe NZ of particular hazardous works

Businesses may not know that they’re legally required to notify WorkSafe NZ at least 24 hours prior to the commencement of a particular hazardous work.

Notifiable work is defined by the regulations as:

  • Any restricted work, as that term is defined in regulation 2(1) of the Health and Safety in Employment (Asbestos) Regulations 1998:
  • Any logging operation or tree-felling operation, being an operation that is undertaken for commercial purposes:
  • Any construction work of one or more of the following kinds:

a. Work where workers could fall five metres or more, excluding work on a two-storey house, or work on a power or telephone line, or work carried out from a ladder only, or maintenance or repair work of a minor or routine nature;

b. The erection or dismantling of scaffolds from which a person could fall five metres or more;

c. Every excavation more than 1.5m deep in which people are required to work and which is deeper than it is wide at the top;

d. Any form of tunnel or drive where workers work underground, irrespective of timbering or support;

e. Those excavations where the excavated face is steeper than one horizontal to two vertical;

f. Any construction work where explosives are used or stored;

g. Work such as diving, where construction workers breathe air or any other gas that has been compressed or is under pressure;

h. Lifts of half a tonne (500 kg) or more a vertical distance of 5 m or more carried out by use of a lifting appliance other than by a mobile crane, excavator or forklift.

Particular Hazardous Work Notification SmartForm available!

SmartTrade Mobile users wishing to complete Particular Hazardous Work notifications electronically and email these to WorkSafe NZ can purchase the applicable SmartForm for $ 95 plus GST. The price includes our customising the SmartForm with your company logo plus any minor modifications you want made, provided the modifications are advised to us within a month of us emailing you the SmartForm.

For more information about SmartForms please contact our sales team.
Au 1800 350 495, NZ 0800 327 943 or email us at [email protected]

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  • Any restricted work, as that term is defined in regulation 2(1) of the Health and Safety in Employment (Asbestos) Regulations 1998: