The Problem
Before turning to ComputerEase construction accounting software, JMC Mechanical used Quickbooks for managing their business.
JMC Mechanical was growing and starting to work with larger clients. Their larger customers demanded more visibility and billing capability than Quickbooks offered.
Project Managers and Management at JMC Mechanical needed Job Cost reports, which Quickbooks couldn’t provide, to better manage costs and work. After purchasing Quickbooks and working with a consultant that specialized in Quickbooks, JMC Mechanical still didn’t have the visibility and functionality they needed.
Why Construction Companies Need Job Costing
Job costing is the key to managing construction budgets and identifying if a job will be profitable. It simplifies the complexity of managing a contracting job. This is especially true when a construction business works on larger and/or longer-duration jobs. There is simply more to manage and track. Or in other words, there is a higher likelihood that a business can lose money on a particular job.
According to Lisa at JMC, “Job costing is not something Quickbooks is capable of, even in their contractor version… it just wasn’t cutting it.”
The need for job costing was not going away. In fact, the need only grew as the company grew. Therefore, Lisa at JMC Mechanical was tasked to explore, vet, and select a new business management solution that met their specific needs. After several months of assessing construction-specific products, JMC Mechanical chose ComputerEase as their business management solution.
How ComputerEase Made a Difference
ComputerEase offers job costing software as part of the base system. When you invest in ComputerEase, you’re ensuring that you’ll always have an easy way to track your job costs, whether it’s through work-in-progress reporting, labor analysis, projected costs, unit production, or all of the above.
Since implementing ComputerEase, JMC Mechanical now had the ability to:
- Estimate jobs accurately and quickly: Without job costing, estimates are a best guess. With other bidders competing for the same work, many contractors end up underbidding. Without quick and easy access to historical records, mistakes are made that end up hurting the job and business. Job costing puts the data at your fingertips, so you can estimate jobs accurately and quickly.
- Manage profit for every job: Job costing gives you control of the money you make for every job. You see how much a job is costing. There’s no more stress, worry, or guesswork in managing a job, because expenses are broken down accurately. You can see how you need to manage work to maximize profit. “It’s been very helpful… for several reasons,” explained Lisa. “One is, being able to track costs and track where we are on a job. If it’s starting to go south, we know that by making changes we can save the job before things go to the point of no return.” Armed with critical information, the team could solve problems before it was too late.
- Work better with customers and vendors: Over estimating and under estimating can lead to project delays, lost profit, and broken budgets. This causes stress between you, your customers, and vendors. Job costing eliminates that stress. You can better collaborate and deliver more value to customers. That means future work and business for your company.
Looking Ahead with ComputerEase
Job Costing reports and ComputerEase have helped support JMC Mechanicals rapid growth. It has been an instrumental tool in supporting large projects and customers. The system improves cash flow and gives managers the visibility they need to keep jobs on track and profitable.
If you are a company facing similar growing pains as JMC Mechanical, we recommend you consider learning more about ComputerEase and how you can more effectively and more comfortably run your business.
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