Before you begin, ensure you have access to the customer’s account and the container has been added to your inventory. (Need to add a container? Follow the steps in "Add or Edit an Inventory Container").
Once a container is in your inventory, it's time to manage its specific details. This process officially assigns (or links) a container from your general inventory to a specific customer’s service & location. Completing these steps updates the container’s status to reflect its current assignment, links it to a customer account for billing and tracking, and pinpoints its geographical location. It is a critical step in asset management, ensuring that each container’s location and status are accurately tracked. Properly associating a container with a service enables correct routing for drivers and accurate billing for the customer.
This feature is currently in an open beta. If you run into any issues or have feedback, reach out to support with the blue chat bubble in your Hauler Hero account or support@haulerhero.com.
Want to learn more? Check out our Beta Inventory documentation.
You can take this assigning action in two ways: either from the main Inventory tab itself, or direct from a customer’s service location page. Use the table of contents to navigate to the most relevant steps!
How to Assign an Existing Container from the Inventory Tab
Navigate to the Inventory tab from the main navigation menu.
From the All containers list, locate the container you want to assign and click the vertical three dots icon.
Click Edit container to open its details page.
In the Basic Information section, click the Location type dropdown menu, which is likely set to Yard by default.
Select Customer from the list of options. This will reveal new fields for Customer, Service location, and Service.
In the Customer field, start typing the name of the customer and select them from the search results that appear.
Click the Service location dropdown and choose the correct address for the container’s placement. The Location map will automatically update to show a pin at the selected address.
Optionally, you can associate the container with a specific active service by selecting it from the Service dropdown menu.
After confirming all details, click Save Changes.
A confirmation message “Container updated successfully” will appear at the top of the screen indicating the changes have been saved.
Tips
To specify a more precise location, you can manually adjust the pin on the Location map. Click and drag the pin to the exact spot where the container is or will be located.
How to Assign or Link an Existing Container (from a Specific Customer’s Service Location Page):
These steps walk through linking an existing asset from Inventory to a specific existing customer’s location and service (also known as adding from inventory).
From the specific customer’s profile, make sure you’re on the Services tab.
Ensure the correct location is showing and click into the appropriate service (example: Residential | $25/monthly).
From the Details & pricing tab, in the Containers section, click Inventory.
This will open the Add from inventory window. Select the container type from the dropdown, and feel free to remove or add any filters to return the results you’re looking for.
Locate and select the specific container you want to assign to this customer’s service and location.
Check the Update container location box, if desired.
Click Add inventory.
Or you can also select Add & Assign work order, which will prompt you to select whether you want to Schedule New Delivery, Add to existing work order, or Link only - No Work Order. See "How to Schedule a New Container Delivery".
Verify that the new container now appears in the Containers list for the selected service location.
Tips
If you cannot find the container you are looking for, ensure you have cleared any default filters, such as Measure, at the top of the Add from inventory window.
You can also follow this same process from the Map & Routing tab, instead of Details & pricing. Select the Containers button, and then Inventory.
Frequently Asked Questions:
The process steps above are the answer to both of these questions: You can both assign a container to a location *and* associate it with a service either from the Inventory tab *or* from a customer's specific location and service page, but here are some more specifics on what is really happening.
How do I assign a container to a location?
Once a container is in your inventory, you can manage its specific details and assign it to a location. You can update its information, and most importantly, change its Location type from Yard to Customer. This allows you to associate the container with a specific customer account and service location, updating its status and showing its position on a map.
Update basic container information, including type, serial number, and default yard.
Change the Location type to assign the container to a Customer.
Select the specific customer and service location from your records.
Manually adjust the container’s pinned location on the map for precise placement.
How do I associate a container with a service?
After a container is assigned to a customer’s location, you can associate it directly with one of their services. (Although, associating a container with a service is not necessarily a separate process from assigning it to a location. You can do both at once using the process steps described above in the article). This is a critical step for operational tracking and billing. From a customer’s service details page, you can add containers from your inventory. The system helps you find available containers that match the service requirements.
Add containers to a service directly from the Inventory.
The system automatically filters for available containers that match the service’s measure type (e.g., 8 Yard).
Handle scenarios with multiple containers at a single service location.
Create records for customer-owned containers that you service but do not own.