Projects Overview

A project is similar to a job, but it differs in size and scope. Projects are usually large in scale.

A project consists of a project header, project tasks, and project resources. You can cross-reference project resources to other transactions in CloudSuite Industrial. You can report on costs from each level of the project individually or roll up costs into the entire project cost.

The Estimate Projects form allows you to perform certain what-if situations without actually working in a project. Once you set up an estimate project, you can copy it over to a project using the Copy Projects form.

One of the biggest benefits to creating a project is that you can recognize revenue without having to invoice. The Revenue Milestones button on the Projects form allows you to set up revenue milestones which recognizes revenue at milestones that you determine.

Invoice milestones can also be created using the Invoice Milestones button on the Projects form so that an invoice is sent out when certain milestones are reached. Revenue milestones and invoice milestones are completely separate, but you can link the two.

View project transactions on the Project Transactions form.

The Process Project Milestones activity calculates unrelieved WIP and revenue recognition amounts, creates revenue milestones for the amounts calculated, nominates them and posts them. Invoice milestones are also created and nominated if selected.

Note: If you use progressive billing with projects, your desired result is likely billing costs to your customer so that they owe you money each time. This is the main purpose of using progressive billing with projects. You can, though, still have large fluctuations in your costs ending up with a credit to a customer, depending on how you structure your project. For example, a company machines a part out of 3,000 pounds of titanium that results in 2,400 pounds of scrap. That scrap has considerable value and is then treated as a by-product and credited to the customer at the end of the project. This might not be a desired result.

Costs

All job costs associated in a job-project cross reference are absorbed by the project. The costing method of the item is not used in this relation. Projects uses cost method Specific.

Job costs are a sub set of project costs. The summation of all of the job costs, resource costs (not cross referenced to jobs), and direct project labor, equate to the total project cost with the additional overhead and G & A.

Project WIP is accredited the job (sub job) cost at the time job inventory or labor transactions are committed. The associated project cost code is accredited and the associated job cost code is accredited.

Cost Codes

The project is defined in terms of job cost codes and project cost codes with job costs rolling up into a project cost code. This retains the job costing detail throughout. The project cost codes and job cost codes are never displayed together because job cost codes are a sub set of project cost codes.

As costs are reported against jobs or sub jobs, the job cost code %Complete increases its value respectively, and the project cost code increases its value respectively.

Before you Start

Before creating a project, set up this information:

Project Parameters
Project Types
Project Cost Codes
Project Retention Codes
Project/Job Period Costs
Project/Job Accumulated Cost by Period

Projects Form

Use the Projects form to set up a project header and any information that applies to the entire project.

See Creating a Project.

See the Project Tasks Overview for information about a project task.

See the Project Resources Overview for information about a project resource.