That's changing. From October 19, 2026, you'll be able to set a planning period and a usage period on each individual equipment item instead. We built it because the most common feedback we hear is that equipment planning doesn't match how productions actually run - gear gets reserved for a whole project when it's only needed for part of it, so teams end up splitting equipment into extra groups or tracking real availability outside Rentman. Per-item times fix that at the source, and they're the foundation for the related changes to the Warehouse module and Project status that we'll walk through below.
In this article, we explain why that matters, what's different from October 19, 2026, how to set times per item, and what to check in your own account beforehand.
Why per-item equipment times are useful
When every item in an equipment group shares one planning period, Rentman reserves all of those items for the full period. On a multi-day production that is usually longer than an item is really needed. A lighting truss that goes out on Monday and projectors that are not needed until Wednesday are both reserved from Monday, so the projectors look unavailable while they are still sitting in your warehouse.
Setting a time per item removes that. Your availability reflects when each item actually leaves and returns, so you can plan an item on another job for the period it is free, and get more use out of the stock you already own.
It also removes a common workaround. You no longer need to split equipment into extra groups purely to get the timing right, so your quotes and packing slips stay organized in the grouping you intended.
What is changing from October 19, 2026
There are 4 areas that will see a change from the 19th of October. Nothing is converted, and nothing is switched off.
| Until October 19, 2026 |
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When working on a project, every item in an equipment group shares one planning period and one usage period. |
| From October 19, 2026 |
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Each equipment line can carry its own planning period and usage period. Items follow the group time until you change one. |
| Until October 19, 2026 |
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One tile per subproject. |
| From October 19, 2026 |
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One tile per packing list. A packing list is created for every unique pickup or return date in a subproject. |
| Until October 19, 2026 |
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Carries project management and warehouse states together. |
| From October 19, 2026 |
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Project management only: Canceled, Inquiry, Draft, Pending, Confirmed, In progress, Execution done, and Complete. Warehouse statuses move to packing lists. |
Getting started with per-item equipment times
Three things are worth setting up or checking before you rely on per-item times in your workflow.
Packing slips become their own document type, so you can print one per packing list. A default template is available, and you can change it to suit your needs.
The warehouse only sees a subproject's packing lists once it is marked ready to pack. Every existing subproject starts out not ready to pack.
Every item time now links to an entry in your time schedule, so times can no longer drift when a project shifts. You can create a new entry from the equipment line itself.
Mastering equipment times: how to set a time per item
- Open the Equipment tab of a project.
- Click the Planning period or Usage period cell on an equipment line.
- Select a time schedule entry, or click + Add new time to create one.
- Click Save.
The dropdown lists the time schedule entries available for the main project and for the subproject you are in. Hover over an entry to see its exact start and end date and time.
Each planned equipment item carries its own usage period and planning period. When you plan an item, it takes the default periods of the subproject you plan it in, or the default periods of the main project when the subproject has none set. Items you do not change keep those times, so you only need to set times on the items that should deviate.
- Open the Equipment tab of a project.
- Select the items you want to change.
- Choose the edit action in the blue bar.
- Select a planning period, a usage period, or both.
- Click Save.
To apply one period to a whole equipment group at once, double-click the equipment group name and adjust the times there. This is useful when only one item in a group needs to deviate later, and everything else can stay on the group time. Read our article about equipment groups for more information.
Good to know
| Combinations. | Content items inside a physical combination follow the time of the combination. You cannot give an item inside a physical combination a time that differs from the combination or from the other items in it. This is possible with virtual combinations. |
| Sales projects. | If you do not need planning and usage times at all, set a duration instead of a period.The duration is used to calculate the factor that determines the price. |
| Pricing. | The total price and the price factor recalculate automatically from each item's own usage period, so an item that is rented for part of the project is billed for that part. |
What changes in the warehouse and in project status
Because items can now leave and return on different days, the Warehouse module works in packing lists. The overview shows one tile per pickup or return date instead of one tile per subproject, and your crew sees only the equipment going out or coming back at that moment. Read our article about working in the Warehouse module for more information.
Warehouse statuses move with it. Confirmed, Prepped, On location, Returned, and your own custom statuses all still apply, now to packing lists rather than to the subproject. Read our article about project status and equipment status in the warehouse for more information.
The subproject status becomes a project management status only. This is visible in the project itself. In progress is set automatically once the first item is booked in the warehouse, Finalizing once all equipment from every packing list is back, and you set Complete yourself. A warehouse progress indicator sits alongside your existing project progress indicators, and shows grey when a project is not in the warehouse yet, green when it is on track, and red when one or more packing lists are behind schedule.
Marking a subproject ready to pack
Because warehouse statuses move to packing lists, you can no longer set a custom status on a subproject. Many teams use exactly that to hand a project over to the warehouse: a custom "Ready to Pack" status that the project manager sets once the planning is final, so the crew knows it can start. It is the digital version of printing a packing slip and walking it over. From October 19, 2026, a built-in Ready to pack toggle in the Equipment tab replaces it.
The warehouse overview only shows a subproject's packing lists once it is marked ready to pack. Leave the toggle off while you are still finalizing the equipment plan, and nobody starts packing too early. Turn it on once the plan is locked, and the packing lists appear in the warehouse straight away.
- Open the Equipment tab of a subproject.
- Turn on Ready to pack.
Who can see a subproject before it is ready to pack
A user role permission in the Warehouse section lets a role see every subproject's packing lists, whether or not they are marked ready to pack. Keep it for warehouse managers who need to see everything coming up. It is switched on for every user role from October 19, 2026, so no warehouse overview looks emptier on day one than it does today. Read our article about user role permissions for more information.
Good to know
| The toggle locks once packing starts. | Once an item from a subproject has been booked in the warehouse, you can no longer switch the toggle back off. This is because equipment has already been packed. |
| Booking an unmarked subproject marks it for you. | If someone books an item from a subproject that is not marked ready to pack, Rentman warns them first, then marks the subproject ready to pack automatically. |
FAQs
No. Items follow the default project times automatically. You only set an individual time when you want an item to deviate.
No. No data is converted or modified. Your projects, equipment groups, and times carry over exactly as they are.
Item times now always link to an entry in your time schedule, so a time cannot drift when your project shifts. Creating an entry takes one extra step: click + Add new time while you are editing an item's time, and give it a name, a start, and an end.
That workflow becomes a built-in toggle in the Equipment tab. See "Marking a subproject ready to pack" above. Custom warehouse statuses are not going away. They now live on packing lists.
You can print one slip per packing list, or one slip for the whole subproject grouped by times. Packing slips are their own document type now, in the same way call sheets are.