Working with Project Records
After you have saved a project record, you can begin building your project schedule. In addition, NetSuite updates fields on the project record as work is completed on your project.
Schedule subtab
After you save a project record, the Schedule subtab shows on the project record. The Schedule subtab is a workspace to enter and modify project tasks, as well as track task progress.
For more details about the Schedule subtab, read Working with the Project Schedule.
NetSuite updates the following fields as work is completed on your project:
Project Overview
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The Estimated Work field shows the total time for estimated work on all task records for this project.
Note:If this project is set to include CRM tasks, this total includes the Current Time Budget of CRM tasks associated with this project. For details, read Including CRM Tasks in Project Totals.
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The Actual Work field shows all time entered against this project. This total includes open, pending approval, approved, unapproved, and rejected time entered against both project tasks and the project as a whole with no specific task selected.
Note:If this project is set to include CRM tasks, this total includes time entered against CRM tasks associated with this project. For details, read Including CRM Tasks in Project Totals.
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The Remaining Work field shows the time for work yet to be done on all project tasks. This is calculated as:
[All project task Estimated Work minus All project task Actual Work].
Note:For individual tasks, before work starts on a task, Remaining Work is the same as Estimated Work. When a task is marked Completed, this number is 0.
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The Percent Work Complete field shows the total percentage completion for all project tasks. Percent Work Complete is calculated as:
[Total Actual Work time for all project tasks divided by the total Estimated Work time for all project tasks].
The percentage is 100% when the status of all tasks is Completed.
Note:For individual tasks, calculations are affected by status as follows:
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When the task status is In Progress, percentage is determined by dividing Actual Work by Estimated Work. When the task status is Completed, this number is 100%.
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When task status is In Progress, this number represents the number of actual hours worked by the estimated time.
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Project Dates
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If you have used the forward scheduling method for your project, the Calculated End Date shows the anticipated end date for the project based on calculations from data on project task records.
NetSuite determines which task has an end date farthest in the future and uses that date as the end date for the project. This may not be the last task on the schedule.
If the project schedule changes, the calculated project end date can change.
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If you have used the backward scheduling method for your project, the Calculated Start Date shows the anticipated start date for the project based on calculations from data on project task records.
NetSuite determines which task has a start date farthest from the selected end date and uses that date as the start date for the project.
If the project schedule changes, the calculated project start date can change.
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The Last Baseline Date field shows the date when the last project baseline was set.
Financial
Under Estimates:
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The Estimated Labor Cost field shows the total amount expected to be spent on labor for this project based on labor costs for the tasks required. This amount is calculated as [Estimated Work * Cost] summed for all project tasks, as follows:
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First, NetSuite calculates the estimated cost of each task:
Estimated labor cost of a task
= [Estimated Work of Task * labor rate of resource assigned to task]
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Next, NetSuite combines the task costs.
Estimated Labor Cost of the project
= the sum of estimated labor costs for all tasks required on this project.
For example, you sell a Deluxe Widget Installation and create a project record to identify the three tasks to complete for this project, as shown below:
Deluxe Widget I
nstallation Task
Assigned Resource
Labor Rate
Estimated Work
Est. Labor Cost Calculation
Task 1
Smith
$20.00
5 hr.
(5 hr. * $20) = $100
Task 2
Jones
$15.00
5 hr.
(5 hr. * $15) = $75
Task 3
Franken
$10.00
5 hr.
(5 hr. * $10) = $50
Estimated Labor Cost for Project
($100 + 90 + 60) = $225
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The Estimated Labor Revenue field shows the total expected profit from labor on all project tasks. This amount is calculated from expected labor costs and revenue on each project task record as [Estimated work * Price] summed for all project tasks.
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The Estimated Gross Profit field shows the gross profit expected, as calculated below:
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For projects with the Job Costing and Project Budgeting feature, Estimated Cost and Estimated Revenue disabled:
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For Fix Bid projects: [Project Price - Estimated Labor Cost]
Note:Note: Fill in the project price.
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For all other cases: [Estimated Labor Revenue - Estimated Labor Cost]
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For projects with the Job Costing and Project Budgeting feature disabled, Estimated Cost, or Estimated Revenue enabled: [Estimated Revenue - Estimated Cost]
Note:The field that you do not use gets a 0 value.
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For projects with the Job Costing and Project Budgeting feature enabled: [Estimated Revenue - Estimated Cost]
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The Estimated Gross Profit Percent field shows the percentage profit expected, as calculated below:
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For Time and Materials projects: [Estimated Gross Profit / Estimated Labor Revenue]
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For Fixed Bid projects: [Estimated Gross Profit / Project Price]
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The Financial subtab also shows a list of service items associated with this project, and shows the following amounts for each item:
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Resource
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Unit Cost
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Unit Price
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Estimated Work
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Estimated Cost
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Estimated Revenue
Profit & Loss Subtab
If you use Job Costing and Project Budgeting, after you have saved the project record, a P&L subtab displays real-time information about the profitability of your project. The revenue, cost, profit, and margin are listed for project labor, expenses, and supplies. The categories listed are also used for defining budgets. For more information, see Setting Up Project Budgeting.
Budget
If you use Job Costing and Project Budgeting, after you have saved the project record, a Budget subtab is available to enter cost and billing project budgets. For more information, see Project Budgeting.
Communication
The Communication subtab enables you to track important communications about this project within NetSuite. Keeping all of this information in a single place gives you the ability to access any important project information right from the project record.
To enter communications for a project record:
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Go to Lists > Relationships > Projects and click Edit next to the project record you want to enter communications for.
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Click the Communications subtab.
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On the Phone Calls subtab, enter or log phone calls related to this project.
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Use the Tasks subtab to view and enter CRM tasks associated with this project.
For more information on tasks, read Working with CRM Tasks.
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On the Files subtab, you can select and add files from the File Cabinet that are associated with this customer. For example, you can attach a contract as a file associated with this project.
Select -New- to upload a new file to the File Cabinet.
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On the User Notes subtab, add and track notations about this project.
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When you have finished, click Save.
For more information, see Attaching Events, Tasks, and Calls to Records and Transactions.
A/P – A/R Details
If you use Sequential Liability, the A/P – A/R Details subtab is available so you can view payable and receivable transactions for the project. This subtab is only available when viewing the project record. For more information, see Sequential Liability SuiteApp.