Understanding the Hierarchy

Before you start using CO2 Asset Management, it helps to understand how everything fits together. This page gives you the mental model.

The Big Picture

Everything in CO2 Asset Management follows a hierarchy:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                         ESTATE                               │
│              (Your entire property portfolio)                │
├────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┤
│         SITE           │              SITE                  │
│   (London Office)      │     (Manchester Warehouse)         │
├───────────┬────────────┼────────────────────────────────────┤
│ BUILDING  │  BUILDING  │           BUILDING                 │
│  (Main)   │  (Annex)   │           (Warehouse)              │
├───────────┴────────────┼────────────────────────────────────┤
│      FLOOR PLAN        │          FLOOR PLAN                │
│    (Ground Floor)      │        (Warehouse Floor)           │
├────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────┤
│  ● Asset    ● Asset    │     ● Asset        ● Asset         │
│  ● Asset    ● Asset    │     ● Asset                        │
└────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────┘

Each Level Explained

Estate: Your Portfolio

An Estate is the top level - it represents your entire property portfolio.

Think of it as: Your organization’s collection of all properties.

Examples:

“Acme Corporation Properties” (all buildings owned by Acme)
“NHS Trust Buildings” (all facilities managed by a trust)
“University Campus” (all buildings in a university)

Most organizations have one Estate. You only need multiple Estates if you manage completely separate portfolios (e.g., different business divisions with no overlap).

Site: A Physical Location

A Site is a single physical location - typically one building or one address.

Think of it as: One pin on a map.

Examples:

“London Headquarters” (your main office building)
“Birmingham Warehouse” (a storage facility)
“Manchester Branch Office” (a regional office)

One Estate can contain many Sites. Each Site has its own address, floor plans, and assets.

Building: A Structure on a Site

A Building is a physical structure within a Site. Many Sites have just one building, but some have several.

Think of it as: A distinct structure you could walk around.

Examples:

A Site called “Head Office Campus” might have:
- “Main Building”
- “Annex Building”
- “Car Park Structure”

For simple sites with one building, the Building and Site are essentially the same thing.

Floor Plan: A Visualized Floor

A Floor Plan is an image of a building floor that you upload. It becomes an interactive map where you place assets.

Think of it as: A blueprint or layout drawing you can click on.

Examples:

“Ground Floor” (with the uploaded floor plan image)
“First Floor”
“Basement”

Each building can have multiple floor plans - one per level.

Asset: What You’re Tracking

An Asset is an individual item placed on a floor plan.

Think of it as: A single piece of equipment with a specific location.

Examples:

“HVAC Unit #47” (placed in the plant room on the roof)
“Fire Extinguisher #12” (placed by the main entrance)
“Boiler” (placed in the basement)

Assets are placed on floor plans, so you can see exactly where they are.

A Real-World Example

Let’s say you manage facilities for Acme Corporation:

Acme Corporation (Estate)
│
├── London Headquarters (Site)
│   ├── Main Building (Building)
│   │   ├── Ground Floor (Floor Plan)
│   │   │   ├── Reception HVAC Unit (Asset)
│   │   │   ├── Fire Extinguisher - Lobby (Asset)
│   │   │   └── Lighting Panel A1 (Asset)
│   │   │
│   │   └── First Floor (Floor Plan)
│   │       ├── Server Room AC Unit (Asset)
│   │       └── Fire Extinguisher - Kitchen (Asset)
│   │
│   └── Annex Building (Building)
│       └── Ground Floor (Floor Plan)
│           └── Storage Heater (Asset)
│
└── Manchester Warehouse (Site)
    └── Warehouse Building (Building)
        └── Warehouse Floor (Floor Plan)
            ├── Industrial Heater #1 (Asset)
            ├── Industrial Heater #2 (Asset)
            └── Loading Bay Heater (Asset)

The Catalogue System

There’s another important concept: how assets get their specifications.

CATALOGUE ──contains──> LISTING ──creates──> ASSET
(Library)              (Template)           (Instance)

Catalogue: A Library of Asset Types

A Catalogue is a collection of asset specifications organized by category.

Think of it as: A product library or parts catalog.

Examples:

“Fire Safety Equipment” (contains fire extinguishers, alarms, etc.)
“HVAC Systems” (contains boilers, AC units, heat pumps)
“Lighting” (contains light panels, fixtures, controls)

Listing: A Specific Product Template

A Listing is a specific product specification within a catalogue.

Think of it as: One product from the catalog, with all its specifications.

Examples:

“5kg CO2 Fire Extinguisher” (in the Fire Safety catalogue)
“Model XYZ Condensing Boiler, 25kW” (in the HVAC catalogue)
“LED Panel Light, 40W” (in the Lighting catalogue)

Listings include specifications like dimensions, power consumption, efficiency ratings, and any custom fields relevant to that asset type.

Asset: A Specific Instance

When you drag a Listing onto a floor plan, you create an Asset - a specific instance of that template.

Think of it as: The actual physical item in your building.

The Asset inherits specifications from the Listing but has its own:

Location (where on the floor plan)
Identity (serial number, asset tag)
History (installation date, maintenance records)
Attachments (photos, documents)

How This Helps You

Question	Answer
”What’s in my portfolio?”	Look at the Estate level
”What’s at this address?”	Look at the Site level
”Where exactly is this asset?”	Look at the Floor Plan
”What are the specs?”	Inherited from the Listing
”When was it installed?”	Stored on the Asset

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