BCGBC4005A Produce labour and material schedules for ordering

Track suppliers

Material suppliers
Computer programs are generally used by larger companies to keep track of resources, workflow and costs for large projects. The programs can develop tables or charts which are used for tracking labour and materials. For example, this is useful for a company building 25 - 30 houses at the same time in one location. 
The table displays column headings showing the dates from Monday 15 November through to Friday 26 November. No weekend days are shown. The first row is 'Base stage' which has no cells shaded along the row. In the second row which is labelled 'Water tap' the cell below Monday 15 November is shaded. In the third row which is labelled 'Clear block' the cell below Monday 15 November is shaded. In the fourth row which is labelled 'Temporary power pole' the cell below  Monday 15 November is shaded. The table has been folded over at this point to show the activities further down.
In the fifth row which is labelled 'Lay base brickwork' the cell below  Friday 19 November is shaded and highlighted with a circle. In the sixth row which is labelled 'Excavate stump foundations' the cell below Monday 22 November is shaded. In the seventh row which is labelled 'Install and level stumps' the cell below Tuesday 23 November is shaded. In the eighth row which is labelled 'Install and level bearers' the cell below Wednesday 24 November is shaded.
The following example tells you how material supplier details are entered in.
Step 1 of 6
A task can have a number of different suppliers, for example a supplier of labour and a supplier of materials. Most builders have worked on projects before and would have a database off resource names available. This example lists these suppliers: The Landscapers, Hire Me, Melbourne Temp Fencing, Paul's Plumbing, Ely's Electrical, Timber Specialists, Jack's Excavation, The Brick Experts and The Brick Specialist.
The supplier 'The Brick Experts' can be added to the blank top cell of the list to assign the supplier to the task. If it is a new company you can type the name of the company in the blank top cell.

Step 2 of 6
The table shows rows numbered one to five. Only row one has data entered. There are five column headings as follows: 
1.	Description of each prime cost ite 
2.	Builder's supply allowance per item
3.	Quantity of components of materials
4.	Prime cost item allowance
5.	Builder's % margin on excess. 
The entry in row one is shown as follows, under the appropriately number columns from the above list: 
1.	Bricks
2.	$0.80
3.	1600
4.	1280
5.	20%
In the contract the prime cost sum table will contain information on material costs. First find the supplier's name and look across the row. This information which is entered into the program is quantity and cost per item.
Step 3 of 6
The table from the introduction is shown again with the menu names 'File', 'Edit' and 'View' across the top. To enter the contract rate into the schedule go to the 'View' menu and select 'Resource'. A drop down list appears with the heading Resource and one list item called 'Resource usage'.
Step 4 of 6
A table is displayed in which suppliers can be classified into groups such as labour or material. The column headings are Group, Maximum units, Standard rate, Overtime rate and Cost/use. This helps later, for example, if we want to find all the material suppliers. Materials can be selected under the heading Group.
The table shows 'The Landscapers' in the first row. Under the heading Group labour is listed. Under the heading Maximum units the quantity required is five trees. Under the heading Cost/use the cost per item is shown as $60.
'The Brick Experts' is in the second row. Under the heading Group Material is listed. Under the heading Maximum units the quantity required is 1600 bricks. Under the head Cost/use' the cost per item is shown as $0.80.

Step 5 of 6
The table from step 3 is shown again with the drop down menu highlighting 'Resource usage'.
The program then calculates the estimated cost related to this material supplier for the specified task. Go to the main menu and select 'View' then 'Resource usage'.
Step 6 of 6
This table focuses on three column headings: Resource name, Cost and Actual cost. The Landscapers and The Brick Expert are listed under Resource name with the estimated cost of $300 and $1,280 respectively. 
Later on in the project you could use the program again to enter the actual cost. The program can calculate the difference between the estimated cost and the actual cost. The builder can also use this computer program to monitor the project cost.

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