User Guide
Do the job, then understand it
The guide is organised around what you are trying to do. Each journey lists what you need, walks the screens in order, tells you what you should see, and links to the methodology behind the numbers.
7
step-by-step journeys
34
emission categories
4
data modules
0
records silently dropped
New here? · 30 min
Your first 30 minutes
From a new account to a first calculated, traceable figure. Five set-up steps, then the journeys that match what you report.
How do I…
Journey · Scope 1 and 2 · 15 minReport a year of fuel and electricityThe most common first job: a boiler, a few vehicles and the electricity bill for one site, entered by hand, calculated, and checked. About fifteen minutes.Journey · Upload Sources · 20 minBulk-upload from a spreadsheetHundreds of rows, one file. Download the template, fill it in, upload, and know within minutes which rows landed and which need attention.Journey · Calculated tab · 10 minFix records that failed to calculateSlate would rather stop with a reason than give you a plausible number nobody can defend. This is the routine for turning red icons green.Journey · Organisation Setup → Emission Factors · 10 minChoose and order factor sourcesWhich publishers Slate asks, in what order, and how strict it is about gaps. The one setting that most changes your numbers.Journey · Provenance · 5 minShow an auditor where a number came fromAny figure in Slate can be traced back to a publisher's own row in a named edition. This is how you show it.Journey · Waste Data · 15 minCompare a waste scenarioModel today's waste handling against an alternative, such as more recycling or composting, and see the difference in greenhouse gas, energy, labour, wages and taxes.Journey · Water Data · 20 minClose a site water balanceRecord what came in, what is stored, what was consumed and what was reused, then let Slate check whether the books balance.
Screens in detail
Organisation SetupFacilities, reporting years, factor policy and reporting assets, across all six tabs.Uploading DataThe wizard, statuses and the error panel.Emission DataAll 34 activity categories, grouped by theme.Energy DataElectricity, steam, chilled water, renewables and CHP.Waste DataAnalyses, advanced configuration and the scenario tool.Water DataSources, intake, storage, consumption, reuse and the balance.Calculated Emissions & ErrorsColumns, status icons, provenance and bulk delete.Dashboard & ChartsKPI cards and customisable chart layouts.Settings & PreferencesUnits and number format, with a worked example.
When something goes wrong, or a word is new
Error → cause → fixTroubleshootingThe messages Slate actually shows, what each one means, and what to change. Messages are quoted in their general form; names and dates in yours will differ.Terms used in SlateGlossaryThe vocabulary of the platform and the standards behind it, in plain language.
Net Zero, Life Cycle Assessment, Carbon Market
These modules are on the roadmap and not built yet, so this guide does not describe them.