No double booking
Two people can never hold the same facility at the same time. Every booking is checked against other bookings, setup time, hall parts, seats and blocked time, even when two people press Book together.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- Two departments turn up for the same room because both wrote it in the register.
- A shared calendar lets two people book the hall in the same minute.
- A booking moved to a new time lands on top of someone else's.
- The hall is booked while a part of it is already taken.
How it works
- A booker picks a free time on the office screen, the portal or the app; taken times are struck out.
- On Book, the system locks the facility and its related spaces for a moment and checks the time.
- It looks at bookings that hold the time: confirmed, in use, waiting for approval, offered from the waitlist or waiting for payment. Their setup and cleanup count too.
- It also checks the whole space and its parts, the seats left, and blocked time.
- If anything clashes, the booking is refused with a list of what is in the way. Otherwise it is confirmed or sent for approval.
- The same check runs again when a booking is moved, approved, or taken from a waitlist offer.
Everything it does
What is checked
- Other bookings of the facility in a state that holds the time
- Setup and cleanup minutes of both bookings
- The whole space and its parts
- Seats: the most seats taken at any moment, against the capacity
- Blocked time, once or weekly
- Bookings waiting for approval hold the time when the rule set says Hold the Slot while Waiting (on to start with)
At the same moment
- The facility and its related spaces are locked while one booking is checked
- A second request waits, then sees the first booking and is refused
The message
- Facility is not free at that time, then up to five clashes with date, times and the booking's title
- A private booking, or one at a facility that shows only free or busy, appears as Booked
- Blocked time appears as Blocked with its reason
Bookings from other SmartMy products
- Classes, exams, activities, parent-teacher meetings and other reservations are checked for clashes too
- Exams and timetable classes may move an ordinary booking out; the booker is told with free alternatives
- Others are refused, or skipped and noted on their source
When nobody holds the time
- With Hold the Slot while Waiting off, several requests can wait; the first one approved wins and the others are refused at approval
Who uses it
BookerSees only free times and gets a clear refusal when a time was taken a moment before.
Facility managerCan move other bookings out with Book Anyway when it truly matters.
Front deskWorks from a day list without clashes to sort out.
Where you use it
- Web: the back office, the office screens and the booking portal
- The SmartMy Facility app: the same check (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
- Bookings made by other SmartMy products: the same check
What you control
Settings
- Hold the Slot while Waiting: on to start with
- Setup Time and Cleanup Time per rule set
- Seats and capacity per facility
Works with
SmartMy CampusTimetable classes and exams reserve rooms through the same check, and may move ordinary bookings out.
Questions
What if two people click Book at the same second?
The facility is locked while the first booking is checked. The second waits, sees the first booking and is refused.Does a booking waiting for approval keep the room?
Yes, to start with. Untick Hold the Slot while Waiting on the rule set and the first approved booking wins instead.Can a manager double book on purpose?
No. A manager can move the other booking out with Book Anyway and a reason, but two bookings never hold the same time.Can the timetable take a room someone booked?
With SmartMy Campus, classes and exams come first. The booking is moved out and its booker is told with free alternatives.What do people see about a private clash?
Only the time and the word Booked. The title and the booker stay hidden.Related features
PLACES AND FACILITIESHalls that split into parts, and spaces booked by the seatA hall that divides into Hall A and Hall B is booked whole or by part, and the system keeps them apart. A gym, a pool or a study hall can take many bookings at once, up to its capacity.BOOKING RULESSetup and cleanup time, and blocked time for maintenanceKeep time free before and after each booking for setting up and clearing. Block facilities for maintenance, cleaning, events or holidays, once or every week.APPROVALManager override with a reason and free alternativesA facility manager can book outside the rules or move other bookings out of a slot. Each time takes a reason, kept on the booking. The people moved out are told why and shown facilities free at the same time.APPROVALBooking approval, with escalation when nobody answersBookings that need a yes, such as the auditorium, wait for the facility's approvers while the time is held. If nobody answers in time, the facility managers are asked. If they do not answer either, the request is turned down, so a forgotten request never locks the time.BOOKINGSWaitlist with a freed slot offered to the first in lineWhen the time you want is taken, join the waitlist. If it frees up, the first person in line is offered it and the time is held for them, two hours to start with. If they do not take it, the next person is asked.WITH OTHER SMARTMY PRODUCTSRooms for the timetable, exams and meetings with SmartMy CampusWith SmartMy Campus in the same account, classes, exams, parent-teacher meetings, activities and placement rounds reserve their rooms in SmartMy Facility by themselves. Exams and classes move ordinary bookings out and tell the bookers. Students and parents book under rules by class section and hostel, approved by the class teacher, the head of department or the warden.
See it with your own rooms.
Tell us what you run: rooms, halls, courts, desks. We will show you a booking from request to check-out with your rules.