Cost Codes

[Questionator]

It is often desirable for construction companies to build on the same coding structure (e.g. CSI’s MasterFormat) for structuring the contract of the project, structuring and coding the costs associated to a project and structuring the activities within a schedule.

What are the advantages of using the same coding structure for contract, estimating, cost coding and scheduling system?

Give an example for how an WBS, a costing database, and a Gantt-chart may use the same coding system.

[Allan Edwards]

It is often desirable for construction companies to build on the same coding structure (e.g. CSI’s MasterFormat) for structuring the contract of the project, structuring and coding the costs associated to a project and structuring the activities within a schedule.

What are the advantages of using the same coding structure for contract, estimating, cost coding and scheduling system?

Give an example for how an WBS, a costing database, and a Gantt-chart may use the same coding system.

I guess WBS is “Work Breakdown Structure”, aka “Cost Estimate”? The advantages of what you describe is to create and maintain consistency in a numbering system across the various aspects of construction, that is estimating, job costing, accounting, scheduling, etc.

An example would be to assign a 4 digit # to Frame Material, say 3113, and every reference to framing material in your estimating program, any database listing framing material, invoices for frame material, job costing breaking out cost for frame material, and even the scheduling of framing would all have the pre-fix 3113.

I do see value in doing this but the problem is there are few totally integrated software packages performing all of the functions listed, so there is no consistency.

[Tom Bainbridge]

It depends on the company size and complexity

I worked for a Dutch company, (500 million sterling turnover) 20 years ago. They had an ULTRA simple 6 number cost code that was universal for the company, reguardless of the country, language, legal jurisdiction or tax system they operated in.

It was so simple I remember most of the first 3 numbers "100, 200 etc up to 900" nearly 20 years after I left

Now I work for myself, I work on two cost codes. Labour and Materials.

If it isn't labour, it is materials


EDIT, the system was SO simple I adapted it for a small sub contracting business, turning over only 500 thousand sterling a year with guys who where poorly educated

Even the most poorly educated guy can ALWAYS work out his weekly/hourly pay rate

SO play to their strenghts..........get simple, and play to their strenghts

Use numbers and a colour code. However poorly/well educated a guy is he can "do numbers" inside seconds

I used "green" for concrete. The guys understand "green concrete"

I used "red" for steelfixers. The guys understand that steel is rusty (it is red)

I used "brown" for the formworkers...... 'cos plywood is "yellow or brown"

You can't get any more simple.......... and the guys "get it"

[Questionator]

I see. Thank you for your input. Appreciate it.

How about a costing database? What is it and how does it work? And how do you include your cost coding system into your Gantt chart? Say in MS Project?

[Harringtonjason]

Are you guys doing his homework? This is obviously a student question and meant to encourage a person to think through the construction process. It's my opinion this is cheating. An ethical student may seek people out for guidance to understand his question better. Posting a homework question to be answered is cheating.

[Questionator]

Are you guys doing his homework? This is obviously a student question and meant to encourage a person to think through the construction process. It's my opinion this is cheating. An ethical student may seek people out for guidance to understand his question better. Posting a homework question to be answered is cheating.

Hi Harringtonjason, yes indeed this is my assignment. But I do not think this is cheating. What I'm getting is pretty much scattered information. I still have to refine and gather further before submission. There's no way I can copy and paste forum replies as my work, can I? Really what I can gather from the above replies only make like 10% of what I have to submit. Thanks for your concern :)

P.S. I still need help with costing database and cost coding Gantt chart.

[Tom Bainbridge]

Questionator.

Interrogate the "number code" by cutting it into parts, then interrogate each substring. As long as you write the database code correctly each substring will give you the necessary information. Write the code once and it will work for any project. You probably need a relational database to do this. (EDIT these days there are probably off the shelf databases you can buy)

If you don't understand the last paragraph, it is like using a highly detailed "lookup table" in a spreadsheet.

Gantt charts need two things. Data and an intimate knowledge of building construction methods and sequencing. You need to know how each part of a house / road / bridge or dam is physically constructed. You also need to know the lead times and design times of each component.

If you place an order for some custom doors for a house with a 4 week lead time, the day before they are needed on site, it may delay things a bit, but you might well be able to re sequence the work to avoid late completion........... unless they are already the last item in your program.

Do the same for the turbines in a dam or a powerstation, or you fail to organise a "possession" on railway....... and it will cause months of delays and megabuck delay payments.

If you fail to get one or more 1000 tonne turbines in place at the right time, not only are they going to be late,....... but you cannot shorten the testing, commissioning and bedding in time to compensate.

Such items are your critical path.

EDIT

In reality on powerstations the electrical and mechanical contractor is the lead contractor because the buildings cost peanuts in comparrison to the turbines they hold.

But Gantt charts work allways. Should the electrical mechanical contractor fail to get his "building contractor" in place....................

[e hilton]

Give an example for how an WBS, a costing database, and a Gantt-chart may use the same coding system.

As Tom has explained, this system is more useful for large scale projects as a method of tracking actual costs vs the original estimate and bid. For most residential construction it is of no value.

There are people who make a career of workign with Primavera software, and for them the three items you mention are all tied to a common set of codes.

And if you expect the people here to do your homework for you, you need to ask better questions and not just copy the question off the homework page. I don't think you understand the questions yourself, and you are asking us to educate you.

There are several fields available in MS Project that can be populated with a variety of information, particularly in the "Resource" family. But there's an old cliche "garbage in, garbage out" , so thye value of the gantt chart is only as good as the information contained therein. The project manager or estimator can set up the most beautiful database, but if the guys in the field don't report accurate data, and if that data isn't enered into the costing report, it's just eyewash.

[Tom Bainbridge]

e hilton.

I'd forgotten the name Primavera, it is so long since I used it. I seem to remember loading several "floppy disks" onto the computer.

My guess is that Questionator wouldn't know what a floppy disk was :)

[Questionator]

e hilton.

I'd forgotten the name Primavera, it is so long since I used it. I seem to remember loading several "floppy disks" onto the computer.

My guess is that Questionator wouldn't know what a floppy disk was :)

haha definitely. i still have a couple of 5.25" floppies (my childhood game), even though they dont run anymore, i still have it with me and my very first PC was a 286. not as young as you would expect.

thanks guys, you have been very helpful. let me read through and digest the information. i'll post again if i need further help. cheers!

[Unforgiven]

My company uses an abbreviated, single page version of CSI Master Format. We do mostly light to medium commercial construction and remodeling projects from $75k-$3M.

The benefit for me as a PM (I also do the estimating) is continuity through the project. When I write a budget and obtain estimates and proposals, they go into my Excel spreadsheet under various account headings. Every expense on the project has an account. Every man hour gets charged to an account.

Any time during the project I can run reports and determine where we are overspending, what is left in various accounts based on the amount allocated at the beginning of the project, etc. Every nut or bolt gets charged to the appropriate account, to a reasonable precision. It adds very little time or labor to the process, and helps immensely to determine if I'm bidding correctly.

At this time I have not implemented Masterformat coding into my MS Project Gantt charts, other than on larger projects where I sometimes plug my budget numbers in, but it hasn't really added anything of value to the process.

[swbuilder]

My company uses an abbreviated, single page version of CSI Master Format. We do mostly light to medium commercial construction and remodeling projects from $75k-$3M.
.

Unforgiven,
Your single page version of CSI, is that something you could send to me? We were homebuilders only for many years and have recently got into commercial construction too and on occasion Ive had to submit bids in the 16 csi master format. I've found the information online but I've noticed that the sub codes can go into incredible detail. Probably way too much for my needs.

[Dick Seibert]

Randy:

I use it on everything, here it is. The beauty of it is to have subcontractors bid an entire Division.

[Tom Bainbridge]

Dick. That system is different but has a familiar feel even 20 plus years after I stopped needing it. I could learn it with cheat sheets inside a couple of days

What, however, is a Division?

[e hilton]

What, however, is a Division?

Division 3 is Concrete. All concrete work breaks down into a code number that starts with 03.

Electrical is division 16. All electrical works starts with 16.

You could use just the 2 digit codes for a gross breakdown, or go to 3 or 4 or more digits if you wated finer breakdown. So cast in place concrete gets a different number than precast. And site lighting (parking lot lights) get a different code than recessed can lights.