Railroad museums have different inventory requirements than personal collectors or clubs. The Museum plan adds accession workflow features designed around institutional standards — provenance tracking, conservation status, donor records, and loan agreements.
What Accession Means
Accession is the formal process of adding an object to a museum's permanent collection. Unlike adding an item to a personal inventory, accession includes:
- Accession number — a unique institutional identifier (e.g.,
2024.001.003) - Provenance — documented ownership history from manufacturer to museum
- Acquisition method — gift, purchase, bequest, field collection, transfer
- Donor information — linked to your donor database
- Conservation status — current condition, treatment history, storage requirements
- Loan status — whether the object is on loan to or from another institution
Accession Number Format
RailScanPro's Museum plan generates accession numbers automatically in the standard three-part format:
[Year of Acquisition].[Accession Sequence].[Object Number]
Example: 2024.001.003 = the 3rd object in the 1st accession batch of 2024.
You can override the auto-generated number if your museum uses a different format. Go to Organization → Settings → Accession Number Format to configure a custom pattern.
Processing a New Accession
- Go to Museum → Accession → New Accession
- Enter the Accession Date and assign an Accession Number (auto-generated or manual)
- Add objects to the accession batch — scan with AI or enter manually
- For each object, fill in:
- Acquisition Method: Gift, Purchase, Bequest, Transfer, Exchange, Field Collection
- Provenance notes — free text describing ownership history
- Donor — link to an existing donor record or create a new one
- Appraised Value at time of acquisition
- Condition at Acquisition: use A–F grades (A = museum quality, F = non-functional)
- Assign objects to a Storage Location
- Click Complete Accession to finalize
Completed accessions are locked — edits require an administrative override with a reason log, which is important for institutional accountability.
Conservation Records
For each object, the Conservation tab tracks:
- Treatment History — date, conservator, treatment description, materials used
- Storage Requirements — temperature/humidity range, UV sensitivity, fragility flags
- Examination Schedule — periodic inspection due dates
- Current Status: Stable, Needs Treatment, In Treatment, Returned from Treatment
Loan Agreements
Museum plan supports tracking objects on loan in both directions:
- Outgoing Loans — objects your museum has lent to another institution
- Incoming Loans — objects on temporary loan to your museum
For each loan, record the borrowing institution, loan period, insurance coverage, and transportation method. Due-date reminders are sent 60 and 30 days before loan expiry.
Donor Recognition
Donor records are linked to accession batches. The Museum plan includes a Donor Recognition module — see Donor Recognition Features.
Next Steps
- Donor Recognition Features — honor major contributors
- Setting Up Your Club — the organizational setup guide
- Creating Public Galleries — display your collection publicly