Challenge
Finance ran MYOB while project managers tracked costs in a separate Excel forecast per job. Progress claims were built by hand each month, taking four days per project to reconcile between systems. Retention tracking was unreliable: discovery uncovered $1.2M in retentions the business had never claimed. Subcontractor variations flowed through email with no central register, no approval audit trail, and frequent disputes when contract managers turned over.
Solution
We configured Business Central with construction-specific capability: project WBS-based job costing, % complete progress claim generation tied to the contract schedule, retention tracking with automated release reminders at defects liability expiry, and a subcontractor variation register with multi-level approval workflows. A custom Power Apps mobile app lets site foremen capture daily progress, variations, and photos straight into the job record. Power BI project dashboards roll up cost-to-complete, forecast margin, and retention exposure in real time for directors and commercial managers.
Technologies
Results
“We found $1.2 million in retentions we didn't even know we were owed. The system paid for itself before we had finished rolling it out to the second project.”