Settlements

In the settlements section, we focus on monitoring and documenting all financial transactions related to projects. Each invoice, cost, or subcontract entered into the system is an element taken into account in reports on the project budget. Thanks to this, we can track and control expenses, identify any discrepancies, and take appropriate corrective actions.

In the “Contracts → Invoices” section you can:

Review invoices issued for ongoing projects.
Export the invoice list to CSV/XLSX format.

REMEMBER: By default, only the administrator can export the invoice file. To change this, you need to edit role permissions (e.g., add the ability to export to the accountant’s role).

NOTE: You can create a user account for the Accountant role, which will allow access to the invoice list without the need to export and send files.

The invoice list only shows those invoices that were issued by the Contractors.es software or were entered into the system during the settlement of a selected project after issuing an invoice in another program.

NOTE: By default, only the Accountant has full access to the invoice list and the ability to make changes. The Manager can view all invoices, but cannot add or edit them. The Project Manager and Estimator only have access to invoices added under their projects.

REMEMBER: If an invoice on the list is associated with a change in the project, this will be marked in the appropriate column in the way shown in the screenshot below.

Types of settlement invoices

Settlement invoices are documents used for financial settlement between two parties to a contract for services rendered or products delivered. They are used to settle payments and reflect progress in the implementation of a project or contract.

Partial or full invoice applies to situations when:

A selected stage or scope of work has been completed - the invoices issued so far reduce the contractual obligation with each subsequent settlement.
The project is settled on a “Time and Material” basis - based on the work done so far.

Advance and final invoices are used when:

We settle with advance invoices before the work is done, during it, and with a final invoice after the project is completed.
The value of the final invoice is reduced by the amount of the advance payment.

Issuing/adding an invoice for a client to the project

To issue an invoice for a stage or service related to the project being implemented, proceed in the following order:

Go to the “Contracts → Projects” menu and select the project you want to settle by clicking on its name with the cursor.

NOTE: Invoices can be issued/added only by users with appropriate permissions, which are modified and set by the administrator. By default, only accounting can issue/add invoices.

REMEMBER: If the first invoice issued for a given project has a specified billing method, then subsequent invoices for this project must be settled in the same way.

NOTE: Projects implemented on a “Time and Material” basis are always settled on the basis of partial and total invoices.

In the preview, select the “More → Invoices” tab, and then click on the “New” button.
Fill out the form, the meaning of the fields is as follows:

Type: When creating the first invoice for the project, choose the type of invoice settlement from the available options:
- partial or total invoice,
- advance invoices and final invoice.
Date: Invoice issue date.
Payment deadline: Determine the financial obligation deadline of the client.

NOTE: The field is automatically filled with the default value set by the administrator. If the payment deadline has been set by him for 14 days, the “Payment deadline” field will display a date corresponding to this setting.

Name of the goods or service: Describe the scope included in the invoice settlement.
Net amount: The value of the client’s obligation, expressed in net amount.

NOTE: The system suggests the settlement amount in the “Net amount” field, which has not yet been invoiced.

According to the valuation method specified in the project, two options are available.

Option I: For projects with a specified contract amount.

The net value includes the remaining contract amount.
You can change this value, and the remaining difference will remain for subsequent invoices.

Option II: For projects settled according to the “Time and Material” scheme.

The net value includes:
- “Current labor cost” - a list of hours worked by employees within a specified time range, gathered based on their logins in the mobile application or entered into the system.
- ”Summary of work and materials” - an amount specifying the total costs associated with a specific stage of work, which include: “Current material costs”, “Other labor” and “Current other costs”.

REMEMBER: Make sure you have verified the working time of employees for any incorrect starts/ends of work before issuing an invoice for a given period.

NOTE: Unregulated working time of employees will be taken into account in subsequent settlements.

The remaining visible fields for this type of project valuation relate to:

Amount invoiced in other invoices: The sum of all amounts that have already been invoiced in previous invoices for a given project.
Outstanding balance without invoice: The difference between the sum of currently accrued work and material costs, and the amount invoiced in other invoices.

The further part of the form will be the same for both valuations and contains data:

VAT rate: Determine the VAT rate depending on the service provided.
Gross amount: The net value increased by the selected type of VAT rate.
Footer on the invoice: Optionally additional content visible at the bottom of each issued invoice.

REMEMBER: If the administrator sets the content of the “Footer on the invoice”, the value in this field will be automatically filled in by the system.

Update work progress: Choosing “Yes” automatically updates the work progress to the selected level. This field is used when site visit reports and daily foreman reports in your company are performed sporadically.

Save changes using the “Commit” button.

NOTE: The “Paid in full” and “Paid amount” fields suggest the amount of settlement with the contractor.

REMEMBER: To send the saved invoice to the contractor via e-mail, use the “Send e-mail” button and specify the recipient of the message. By default, it is the contractor - the customer’s contact/company must have an e-mail address entered.

Project cost register

During the implementation of the project, additional costs may occur (apart from the cost of employees and materials). By adding these costs to the system, we get the actual “Project financial balance”, showing profits or losses. The “Costs” module allows you to add these expenses, which allows for more accurate monitoring of the project’s finances.

NOTE: Project costs can be created and viewed by the Project Manager Assistant, Manager, Project Manager, Estimator, and Accountant, in addition to the administrator.

You can add a project cost in the following order:

Go to the “Contracts → Costs” menu and select the “New” button.
Fill out the form, the meaning of the fields is as follows:

Project name: Choose the project from the available list to which this cost refers.
Cost name: Enter the name of the incurred cost. This field is required.
Invoice number: Optionally provide the invoice number associated with this expense.
Note: Add additional information about this cost if necessary.
Date: Provide the date of the cost incurred.
Cost type: Determine the type of expense, whether it concerns material, salary, equipment, or another type of cost.
Amount: Enter the value of the incurred cost, which will be included in the final project settlement.

Save the data using the “Commit” button.

Subcontracting agreements

Subcontracting agreements are concluded between our company and an external entity that performs specific tasks or services within the project. The terms of cooperation entered into the system will allow for smooth and clear settlements of contracts with subcontractors.

NOTE: Subcontracting agreements can be added by the Project Manager Assistant, HR, Manager, Project Manager, and Estimator, in addition to the administrator. The function of settling contracts lies with the Accountant.

REMEMBER: According to regulations, the subcontracting agreement must be in writing. The deadline specified in the contract is the basis for payment for services rendered. Optionally, you can attach it to the “More → Attached” tab in the selected project.

REMEMBER: If there is not yet a project in the system that is to be associated with the “Subcontracting Agreement”, create a record of this project in the “Contracts → Projects” section.

You will register the subcontracting agreement in the system in the following order:

Go to the “Contracts → Projects” menu and select the “New” button.
Fill out the form, the meaning of the fields is as follows:

Project: Choose from the list the project that the subcontracting agreement should concern.
Subcontractor: Specify the entity from the “Subcontractor” group, responsible for performing the service.
Scope of the contract: Describe the arrangements for the work to be done and the deadline for their implementation.
Time and material: Choose the method of settlement for the service, by making a choice:
- Choosing the “No” option - the contract concerns a specific amount for the service, regardless of the number of hours worked by employees and the days needed for implementation.
- Choosing the “Yes” option - the settlement for the service will be added up after summing up the working hours of the employees, for whom the contractual cost per hour of their work should be determined. You can enter their working time into the system or create accounts for the subcontractor’s foremen to improve communication and count working time.

REMEMBER: The daily reports created with the number of employees performing a given scope of work will sum up the total number of hours worked, which will be multiplied by the hourly rate for performing the service.

Non-standard hourly rates: Optionally adjust the payment rates for non-standard working hours of employees in subcontracting agreements, taking into account the specifics of work or special conditions. They are set individually.
Non-standard percentage wage rates: Special arrangements for employee working time settlements, exceeding basic rate hours. These fields are automatically filled in by the system with the values set by the administrator. These amounts can be changed.

REMEMBER: The system allows for the introduction of multiple subcontracting agreements for the same project and subcontractor simultaneously. The scope of each contract should be specified in a separate form.

Save the entered data using the “Confirm” button.

NOTE: In the case of a subcontracting agreement for a project settled on a “Time and Material” basis, it is recommended to complete the “Work Schedule History” tab or monitor it in case the subcontractor’s foreman uses the mobile application and account in the Contractors.es system to monitor the progress of work and the number of hours worked, according to which the service will be settled.

To add a “Work Schedule History”, follow the scheme below:

Go to the preview of the selected subcontracting agreement by clicking on its name with the cursor.
Select the “Work Schedule History” tab and complete the form, the meaning of the fields is as follows:

Planned work start: Enter the date and time of the start of the work commissioned to the subcontractor.
Planned work end: Enter the date and time of the end of the work commissioned to the subcontractor.

NOTE: In the form, you can specify the scope of work for a single working day. To include subsequent working days, use the “Planner → Employee Schedule” section, which is described in more detail here.

Lunch break: Leave the field blank as the employees are not employed in your company.
Scope of work: Choose from the list the suggested type of work commissioned to the subcontractor for a given day.

NOTE: The subcontractor’s foreman can change the scope of work you entered when submitting daily reports, choosing another one from the list available in the mobile application.

Subcontractor’s Foreman: Choose the subcontractor’s foreman from the list.

NOTE: Create a new contact for the subcontractor’s foreman if it does not exist in the system. This is a necessary requirement.

REMEMBER: If two independent crews are to work on the construction site, and each of them is to have a different foreman, then create a separate contact for each of them.

Planned number of Subcontractor’s employees: Enter the number of employees who will be assigned to perform the task, in accordance with the arrangements with the subcontractor.
Non-standard percentage salary rates: By selecting “Yes”, you have the option to adjust the administrative settings entered here and enter new values in the form fields.
Note: An optional additional description referring to the arrangements for work allocation.

Save the data using the “Confirm” button.

REMEMBER: “Subcontracting Agreements” concerning one subcontractor are available in the preview of his record in the “CRM & Organizer → Companies → “Subcontracting Agreements” tab.

NOTE: In the “Work Schedule History” preview based on daily reports, which are sent by the subcontractor’s foreman using the mobile application, fields marked with a red arrow will be noted, informing about the actual working time and the number of employees involved in performing the contracted services.

Settlement of the contract with the subcontractor

In the “Contracts → Subcontracting Agreements” section, the system automatically displays a list of unsettled contracts, marked with the “Active” option. You can filter records on the list using standard methods described here.

NOTE: Only users with appropriate permissions have the ability to make changes in the records of this system section.

If you want to settle a contract with a subcontractor, follow the scheme:

Go to the “Contracts → Subcontracting Agreements” menu and find the contract you want to settle.
Click on the ”+” button or the “Display” action button.

NOTE: In the case of continued settlements, the amount settled so far will be visible, which will allow tracking the remaining amount to be paid to the subcontractor.

Fill out the form, the meaning of the fields is as follows:

Contract with Subcontractor: The name of the subcontractor to whom the service settlement applies.
Data: The day on which the settlement for the service provided, included in the contract, was accepted.
Paid amount: The monetary value that will be transferred to the subcontractor.
Payment description: The method of transferring the payment for the service with a note regarding its receipt, for example “In accordance with the contract”, “Delay … days”, “Incomplete service” etc.
Contract fully paid: Determine the payment status for the subcontract by making a choice:
- “Active” switch - “Paid amount” may differ from that given in “Contract amount” due to comments on the performance of the service (e.g. improperly performed service).
- ”Inactive” switch - the contract will remain on the list with the visible “Paid amount” for further settlement.
Contractual work completed: Determine the stage of the conditions included in the contract by making a choice:
- “Active” switch - the work specified in the contract has ended, the contract is moved to the “Contractual work completed” list.
- ”Inactive” switch - the contract remains on the “Active” list until further settlement with the subcontractor.

Save the changes using the “Confirm” button.

REMEMBER: If the contract with the subcontractor is to be settled based on the total number of hours worked by employees, the value in the “Contract amount” column will be automatically updated according to workday reports. After the project is completed, the sum of the employees’ working time will stop accumulating.

Example illustrating multi-stage settlement with a subcontractor.

On the list of subcontractor contracts, find the contract to be settled.
Click on the “Paid amount” or the “Display” action button.

A list of the amounts paid so far, referring to the given contract with the subcontractor, will be displayed on the screen.

By subtracting the value in the “Paid amount” field from the “Contract amount”, you will get the remaining amount to be settled with the subcontractor.
Click on the “New” button and enter a new settlement in the form, entering the value by which the “Contract Amount” is to be reduced in the “Paid Amount” field.

REMEMBER: If the settlement went according to the agreement and reached the final stage, it is important to mark the sliders as “active” in the last two fields of the form.

Save the entered data using the “Confirm” button.

REMEMBER: Actions on subcontractor agreement records should be coordinated with accounting.

Employee remuneration

Employee remuneration for working time is settled in accordance with:

The number of hours worked settled based on system settings, available in the sections:

“Admin → General Settings → Calendar → Default working hours”,

“Contracts → Settings → Working time: Number of hours of the working day”,

The value of hourly rates, set individually in the system for each employee through the module:

“CRM → Employees → selection of an employee from the list → “HR” tab. Variables relate to records for which have been defined:

Standard gross hourly rate (in the case of a fixed salary),
Non-standard hourly rates for specific ranges of work,
Non-standard percentage rates of salary, such as overtime outside the range of working day hours or hours above the number of working day hours.

NOTE: If the employee is not an employee of the company, his settlement is made in accordance with the terms contained in the subcontracting agreement.

REMEMBER: The rates of field employees who use the mobile application are recorded in the “Contracts → Planner → Browse events” section when creating a work planning record and calculated at the time of logging in and leaving work.

REMEMBER: Before settling the working time of employees, it is worth verifying all fields to make sure that all records have correct start and end work hours - it may happen that someone forgets to log out when leaving work.

NOTE: Only users with appropriate permissions can make changes to work schedule records.

Employees entered in the work schedule, who do not use or partially use the mobile application, can settle their working time in two ways:

Method I: Using the “batch method” that automatically fills in blank fields.

There are two options to choose from:

Fill in the end of work as planned if there is a start of work: This applies to situations where the employee logged in at the start of work, but did not log out at the end or did so with a significant delay.
Fill in both the start and end of work as planned: The start and end of work fields will be consistent with the range of hours specified for the working day.

Method II: By manually verifying the fields, regarding the supervisor’s reports about the employee’s work irregularities.

After finding the selected entry in the employee’s list, you need to make changes in it using the “Edit” action button.

Method III: If we fill in the schedule retrospectively, the working time is filled in to be consistent with the planned one.

REMEMBER: The system marks in red the entries where there were irregularities related to the time or place of the employee’s login.

REMEMBER: The settlement of the employee’s working time is possible only until the payment of the salary is transferred to the accounting department.

Example: Monthly settlement of the working time of a field employee.

In the “CRM & Organizer → Employees” section, we click on the employee’s data to be settled.
In the record preview, we select the “Salary” tab and set the settlement date on the drop-down calendars, e.g. September 1-30, 2023.
We click on the blue “Search” field just above the table with records.
The system will display a string of days for a given month for a given employee, along with the name of the project, the time range, and the due salary amount assigned for each working day.
After expanding the field with the value “Amount of Remuneration”, marked with a red arrow in the screenshot below, a detailed scope of work will be visible, based on which the given rate was calculated.

According to the above example, the employee received a remuneration rate in the basic dimension in the hours 7:00 - 15:00, which includes the range of working day hours. However, from 15:00 to 15:30 the remuneration rate was calculated according to the settings for the range of work that exceeds the number of working day hours, but fits within the working day hours. The sum of both amounts constitutes the value of the settlement for the employee’s working time on a given day.
We scroll down and review the monthly summary to make sure all days on the list have already been settled.

NOTE: If any days remain unsettled, the “Actual End of Work” and “Amount of Remuneration” fields will remain empty.

For unsettled days, we edit the existing entries by clicking on the dates of these events.

We fill in the forms paying attention to the “Planned End of Work”, “Actual End of Work” and “Non-standard percentage salary rates” fields, which will change the final value for the daily work time settlement.
We save the data using the “Approve” button.

REMEMBER: After creating a list summarizing the employee’s remuneration for a selected period of time, the administrator will be able to export it to an Excel file for import into an accounting program or another financial system. This permission can also be set, for example, to the role of an accountant.