Change Orders
Simplify the process of overseeing change orders in construction projects using the Cost Management's Change Order tool. This tool offers efficient tracking of change orders through the approval process, providing insights into cost item impacts and historical reference points. Streamline your change order management for more effective project control.
To effectively work with change orders:
- Add nonmembers so that you can collaborate with suppliers and owners who don't need access to the rest of the project. To learn more, see the Company Setup section in the General Settings article.
- Assign collaborative permission to the change order that nonmembers need to work with. To learn more, see the Cost Management Permissions article.
Get familiar with the basic change order workflow which is a part of financial Cost Management workflow:
PCO (Potential Change Order) is a starting point of the change order workflow. All change orders can be generated from the PCOs (Potential Change Orders) on the PCO tab. SCOs and RFQs can also be generated from the cost items.
The different change order types are related in that:
- One or more PCOs can form a COR.
- One or more CORs can form an OCO.
- One or more SCOs can be generated from a single OCO.
As a result, within Cost Management:
- A PCO can be used to generate CORs, OCOs, or SCOs.
- A COR can be used to generate OCOs or SCOs.
- An OCO can be used to generate one or more SCOs.
Select a card to see the ways that you can work with the Change Order tool:
Change Order Tables and Columns
The values populate and move across the columns in the change order tabs. Click the icon to see all available columns.
Here is a handful of helpful examples:
- Approved: This column shows the approved amount. For cost changes, it populates the amount from the Approved column. See the Change Order Statuses article to learn more.
- Committed: The amount agreed to be paid for the relevant supplier scope change is shown in the Committed column. It also means that PCO turns into an SCO. Or when an RFQ is accepted.
- Estimated: This one shows the estimated amount. For cost changes, it populates the Reserves column in the overview.
- Proposed: This column shows the proposed amount. It also means that an RFQ has been generated and set as proposed in the Change Order tables. For cost changes, it populates the Proposed column in the overview.
- Submitted: This one shows the submitted amount. For cost changes, it populates the Submitted column in the overview. It also means that a PCO has been turned into a COR. When a COR is marked as Accepted, it populates the submitted amount in the Approved column. If you are not using the COR process the Approved means that a PCO has been converted to an OCO.
The change order tables provide detailed information on cost items, including the associated change order number. By clicking each number, you will be redirected to the specific tab where the corresponding change order is located. A flyout panel will open to provide further details.
Foreign Supplier Change Order Management
Once the foreign currency is set up, change orders can be entered and managed in the currency of the foreign supplier as the project progresses. The system will automatically recognize the currency set for a supplier within their contract. When a potential change order (PCO) arises, you or the supplier (with the appropriate permission level) can generate a PCO.
Link a cost item with a contract awarded in foreign currency to:
- Create change orders in the same currency as the contract
- View change order in a base currency based on defined exchange rates
The Estimated, Submitted, and Approved values will always be entered in base currency. Yet, you’ll see changes in the Proposed and Committed values. The base currency will be displayed with the icon next to it. Hover over it to see or edit the exchange rate:
You can also manage this information within the Cost Item’s flyout panel. First, select the item to open the flyout panel, then scroll to the Cost Summary section. Then, select the Proposed or Committed columns. Toggle between the two currencies and edit the exchange rate whenever needed.
You can copy values from the Estimated, Submitted, and Approved columns. Those values will be converted from the base to the foreign currency.
- Each cost item has an independent exchange rate of Proposed and Committed. When there are different currencies for cost items, the exchange rate is displayed as "Multiple".
- When generating a new contract from a PCO or cost item, you can choose the currency, edit the exchange rate, and copy the value from the Estimated column. The
icon shows converted value.
More Resources
Check out our video course to learn more about managing change orders in Cost Management.