Cost management
What the project costs today, what it will cost at the end, and why the number moved. All three answers come out of the same data rather than three different spreadsheets.
The budget is approved, but actual costs are assembled in accounting after the fact — by the time the number appears, there is nothing left to manage.
The contractor claims quantities and there is no way to check them: estimates, schedule and payment certificates live apart from each other.
A saving in one area masks an overrun in another, so whether the project ends up over budget is anyone's guess.
The investor asks how much more money is needed to finish and gets a different figure every time.
Bill of quantities
One basis for estimates, tenders, contracts and acceptance. A single list of work that every document on the project refers back to.
Budget with contingency
Cost by line, with contingency for identified risks kept separate from the allowance for the unknown. The split matters: they are spent under different rules.
Earned value
Planned value, earned value and actual cost in one frame of reference. Progress can be compared against money instead of against impressions.
CPI and SPI
For the project and for every work package. They show where money and time are being lost, not merely that there is a slippage overall.
Estimate at completion
What the project will cost at the end at the efficiency achieved so far. Recalculated every reporting period, not fixed once at the start.
Change control
Every change is assessed: what it costs, how it affects the date, and which contingency it is funded from.
Verification of claims
Claimed quantities are checked against the bill, the schedule and the actual state of the site before a certificate goes for payment.
- 1
Reconciling the estimates
We gather estimates, contracts and costs already incurred and bring them into one structure. This step is usually where the first discrepancies surface.
- 2
Bill and budget structure
The bill of quantities is built and the budget is allocated across lines and work packages aligned with the schedule hierarchy.
- 3
Cost loaded onto the schedule
The budget is spread over the programme, producing a funding schedule and a planned S-curve.
- 4
Accounting cycle
Actuals collected, earned value calculated, indices and variances reported — on the same rhythm as the schedule update so the two agree.
- 5
Forecast and decisions
Cost at completion recalculated, causes of variance examined, and options put forward with a price on each.
Budget, spend and remainder in one place
The indicator strip in the dashboard: project budget, earned to date, remaining, and schedule variance. It drills down to the individual work package, so "because of what" does not need a separate request.
See what it looks like- How is earned value different from percent complete?
- Percent complete is usually stated by whoever is doing the work, and there is nothing to check it against. Earned value is the budgeted cost of the work actually performed, so it can be compared both to the plan and to the money spent. "60% complete" against 40% earned shows up immediately as a contradiction.
- What are CPI and SPI in plain terms?
- CPI shows how much work you get for each unit of currency spent: below one and you are paying more than you are getting. SPI says the same about time: below one and you are moving slower than planned. Both are calculated per package as well as per project, so you see not just that there is a problem but where it sits.
- Do you prepare estimates or check other people's?
- Both, but they are different jobs. An estimate is prepared or reviewed once; cost management is a recurring cycle that runs until the project closes. If only an estimate is needed, that is a separate one-off piece of work.
- How much contingency should be held?
- It depends on how far the design has progressed and on the type of asset, not on habit. Uncertainty at concept stage is higher than at detailed design, and the contingency should reflect that. We size it from a risk register with probability and impact assessed, rather than adding a percentage just in case.
We run the whole project, but any single task can be taken on its own.
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Tell us about the task — within 1–2 days we will prepare a team structure, a roadmap and a commercial proposal.