Learn how the asset tree organizes your plant's equipment into a hierarchy of locations, assets, sub-assets, and components, and why getting this structure right is critical for maintenance control and sensor data accuracy.
What Is the Asset Tree and Why Does It Matter?
The asset tree is the hierarchical structure that organizes every piece of equipment in your operation inside Tractian. It works like an inverted organizational chart: starting from your plant (the top level) and branching down into areas, equipment, sub-assemblies, and individual parts.
Think of it as the backbone of your entire Tractian setup. Everything else (work orders, sensor data, alerts, maintenance plans, reliability insights) depends on how well your asset tree reflects your real-world plant layout.
If the tree is poorly structured, you'll face problems like:
Sensors linked to the wrong equipment.
Work orders that don't map to the right location.
Maintenance history scattered across misnamed or duplicated assets.
Difficulty filtering and finding equipment quickly.
Getting it right from the start saves significant time and prevents data quality issues down the line.
How the Asset Tree Is Structured
The tree has five hierarchical levels. Each level nests inside the one above it.
Level | What It Represents | Example | Can Have a Sensor? |
Location | The physical site or plant where equipment is installed. This is the top level of your tree. | "XPTO Factory" | No |
Sub-location | A subdivision within a location. Used to break large sites into manageable areas. | "Production Line 01", "Utilities Building" | No |
Asset | The main piece of equipment. Serves as a container when it has sub-assets below it. | "Electric Motor 01", "Centrifugal Pump A3" | No (when it has sub-assets) |
Sub-asset | A specific part or monitoring point of an asset. This is where sensors are registered. | "Drive End", "Non-Drive End" | Yes |
Component | An individual inventory item that belongs to an asset or sub-asset. Used for parts tracking and maintenance control. | "Bearing 6205", "V-Belt B68" | No |
Important: Sensors are always linked to sub-assets, never directly to a parent asset. If an asset has sub-assets beneath it, it automatically becomes a "parent asset" (shown with a solid cube icon) and cannot hold a sensor itself.
Understanding Each Level in Detail
Location
A location is the physical area where your equipment is installed. It's always the starting point of your tree.
A location can be a factory, a warehouse, a building, or any distinct physical site.
Every asset in Tractian must belong to a location.
You can have multiple locations in a single Tractian account (for example, if your company has several plants).
Sub-location
Sub-locations let you divide a location into smaller, more specific areas.
Use sub-locations to mirror the physical layout of your plant: production lines, sectors, floors, or zones.
Sub-locations are optional. If your site is small, you can place assets directly under a location.
You can nest sub-locations inside other sub-locations if you need deeper granularity.
Example: Inside "XPTO Factory" (location), you might create "Production Line 01", "Production Line 02", and "Utilities" (sub-locations).
Asset
An asset represents a main piece of equipment: a motor, pump, compressor, gearbox, fan, etc.
If you plan to monitor different parts of the equipment with sensors, the asset will act as a parent container. The sensors go on the sub-assets below it.
If the equipment only needs one sensor at a single monitoring point, you still need to create a sub-asset for the sensor.
Every asset must have a name, be linked to a location (or sub-location), and ideally include an image for easy visual identification.
💡 Tip: Use clear, standardized naming. A pattern like [Equipment Type] - [Identifier] works well. For example: "Electric Motor - M01", "Centrifugal Pump - P03".
Sub-asset
A sub-asset is a dependent part of an asset. This is the level where sensors are actually linked.
Each sub-asset typically represents a monitoring point on the equipment: "Drive End", "Non-Drive End", "Coupling Side", etc.
When you register a sensor, you assign it to a sub-asset, not to the parent asset.
Once an asset has at least one sub-asset with a sensor, the parent asset's icon changes to a solid cube to indicate it's a container.
Example: For the asset "Electric Motor - M01", you create two sub-assets: "Drive End" (with a Smart Trac sensor) and "Non-Drive End" (with another Smart Trac sensor).
Component
Components are individual parts that belong to an asset or sub-asset.
They do not receive sensors.
They exist for inventory tracking, spare parts management, and maintenance planning.
Examples: bearings, belts, pulleys, impellers, seals, couplings.
💡 Tip: Registering components helps you track part replacements over time and plan predictive maintenance more accurately.
Typical Tree Structure: Visual Example
Below is an example of how a well-organized asset tree looks:
XPTO Factory (Location)
└── Production Line 01 (Sub-location)
└── Electric Motor - M01 (Asset / Parent)
├── Drive End (Sub-asset, Smart Trac sensor linked)
│ ├── Bearing 6205 (Component)
│ └── Bearing 6207 (Component)
└── Non-Drive End (Sub-asset, Smart Trac sensor linked)
└── Bearing 6305 (Component)
Best Practices for Building Your Asset Tree
Mirror your physical plant. The tree should reflect how equipment is actually organized on the factory floor. Walk the floor if needed before building the tree digitally.
Be consistent with naming. Pick a naming convention and apply it everywhere. Avoid mixing formats like "Motor 01", "Mtr-01", and "Electric Motor 1" for similar equipment.
Don't skip levels. Even if your site is simple, maintaining the full hierarchy (Location → Asset → Sub-asset) ensures your tree scales correctly as your operation grows.
Plan before you register. Map out your tree structure on paper or a spreadsheet before entering it into Tractian. It's much easier to reorganize a spreadsheet than to move assets around after sensors are already linked.
Remember the sensor rule. Sensors go on sub-assets. If you need to monitor an equipment, create at least one sub-asset beneath it, then link the sensor there.
Important: Typical asset trees have up to 8 levels of depth, but this varies by operational complexity. More levels give you more granular control, but don't add levels that don't reflect a real physical or functional division.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I move an asset to a different location after creating it?
Yes. You can drag and drop assets in the tree sidebar to reorganize them. You can also edit the "Parent Asset or Location" field in the asset's settings.
What happens if I link a sensor directly to an asset instead of a sub-asset?
If the asset has no sub-assets, the sensor links to it directly. However, if you later add a sub-asset, you'll need to reassign the sensor to maintain the correct hierarchy.
How many levels deep can my tree go?
There is no hard limit, but most operations use between 4 and 8 levels. Add depth only when it reflects a real physical or functional distinction.
Can I have a sub-asset without a sensor?
Yes. Sub-assets without sensors are valid. For example, you can use them to represent a monitoring point where you plan to install a sensor later.