Cost codes

A second dimension beneath the project, so job cost breaks down by phase or trade rather than one lump.

Projects → Cost codes.

A project answers which job. A cost code answers which part of the job — excavation, framing, electrical, permits. Without it, a job with $400,000 of cost is a single number that cannot be managed.

Setting one: every document line carries a cost code alongside its project — on invoices as well as on bills and expenses, so both sides of a job break down the same way. A single invoice can carry several lines with different cost codes, which is how a progress bill against a schedule of values is built.

In a split: each part of a Splitting one cost across several projects can carry its own cost code, so one cheque can land on framing for one job and electrical for another.

Codes are organised by division and are unique within it, so two divisions can both have an "01" without colliding.

Where they show up: job cost by phase, estimate versus actual by code, committed cost against a code, and the construction edition's WIP schedule.