Payment Application Business Process

Use the Payment Application business process to submit and approve payments to a commitment with a vendor (Contract). Usually only one Payment Application record for a specific Contract can be in process at any time.

Special Behaviors

For more information about using this business process (BP), such as working with Base Commits and Change Commits or importing and exporting information, see Payment Application Business Processes.

Characteristics

This is a Project-level business process with a workflow, provided in the system template.

Record Statuses

Status Resulting State
Approved terminal
Canceled terminal
Rejected terminal
Awaiting_Review non-terminal
Pending_Approval non-terminal
Sent_for_Revision non-terminal

Workflow

The default workflow for the Payment Application business process is set up in a certain way; however, it may be used differently by your organization. Typically, a user with the necessary permissions can create the record and either move it directly to the end step or send it to others for review or approval. The recipients in the second step can approve or reject the record or send it on to others.

Creating a Payment Application Record

Create a Payment Application record by navigating to Actuals / Payment Application on the Project/Shell tab, or from the Tasks log on the Home tab or relevant Project/Shell tab. Act on an existing Payment Application task that has been assigned to you from the Tasks log.

Complete the Payment Application form and attach related documents, if needed. After completing the form, select Send, and select an action in the Workflow Actions list to determine the next step in the workflow. Select Send to route the form to the next assignee.

Note:

You must enter a value in all required fields (*) before you can save the form.
  1. Go to your Project tab, and switch to User mode.
  2. In the left Navigator, select Actuals, and then select Payment Application.
  3. On the Payment Application page, select Create. Refer to the tables below to complete the form. You can select Save at any time to save a draft version of the form. Draft versions are stored under Drafts.
  4. To add attachments, go to the Attachments tab, and select Attach Files"".
  5. After completing the form, select Send.
  6. On the Workflow Action Details tab, select who should receive this BP.
    • If permitted, you can add users to the CC list. These users will receive a notification about this BP but are not assigned a task.
    • If permitted, you can select lists of members in the Contact List section. These members also receive a notification about this BP but are not assigned a task.
    • If permitted, you can adjust task due dates for all users, or set individual task due dates for each assignee.
  7. Select Send.
  8. In the Notification window, review the content, and select OK.

    The record moves to the next step in the workflow.

Completing the Payment Application Form

Key Information

Key information about this Payment Application is provided below.

Field Name Access Description
Title Required Enter a title for the record.
Reference Commit Required Select the reference commitment (Contract) for this transaction.
Vendor Pay App No Required The vendor Payment Application number
Amount Read-Only Amount of this record or line item
Due Date Editable Target completion date for this record. A default duration has been set by your administrator but can be overridden here for this record.

Payment Application Details

Details about this Payment Application.

Field Name Access Description
Invoice Date Required Indicates the last date of the billing period covered by the payment application (also known as the Period To)
Payment Due Date Editable The date the payment is due
Period Start Editable The start date for the Payment Application being billed
Period End Editable The end date for the Payment Application being billed
Payment Application Version Editable This field is optional. If a previous Payment Application has been rejected or canceled, you can increment the version in this field.

Financial Summary

Financial snapshot of the Contract and the impact of this Payment Application. It will be updated after the Payment Application Lines are updated.

Field Name Access Description
A. Original Commitment Read-Only The amount of the original contract
B. Total Approved Change Orders Read-Only The total amount of all approved Change Orders
C. Revised Commitment (A+B) Read-Only The revised Contract amount
Percentage Complete to Date (D / C) Read-Only The Total Completed and Stored to Date divided by the Revised Commitment
D. Total Completed and Stored to Date Read-Only The Payment Application total value for the Completed and Stored to Date, including the line items
Work Retainage % Read-Only The percentage retained for work or services. The default value is set in the project setting. Can be changed at the Contract level or Contract line-item level.
E. Total Work Retainage Read-Only The Payment Application total value for the Work Retainage, including the line items
Stored Materials Retainage % Read-Only The percentage retained on stored materials. The default value is a project setting. Can be changed at the Contract or Contract line item level.
F. Total Stored Materials Retainage Read-Only The Payment Application total value for the Stored Materials Retainage, including the line items
G. Total Retainage (E + F) Read-Only The Payment Application total value for the Retainage, including the line items
H. Total Earned Less Retainage (D - G) Read-Only The total amount that is earned, after subtracting the retainage
I. Total Previous Payments Read-Only The total of all previous payments against this contract
J. Current Payment Due Read-Only The current payment due date, from the line items of the Payment Application
K. Balance to Finish Including Retainage (C - I - J) Read-Only The balance to finish, including the retainage for this Contract

Description

Enter the description of this Payment Application. This information might appear in any formal printouts of this Payment Application.

Field Name Access Description
Short Description Editable Enter a description of 250 characters or fewer.
Detailed Description Editable The detailed information about the short-description field. The field size can be expanded.

Reference Contract Details

Details about the referenced contract are shown below.

Field Name Access Description
Contract Number Read-Only The unique number for the contract, which might come from a corporate financial system
Vendor Name Read-Only The name or nickname for this vendor. This field must be unique to each vendor. This name will be the primary way this company is identified in the system.
Contract Type Read-Only The type of contract
Payment Terms Read-Only The payment terms (in days) for this contract
Original Contract Completion Date Read-Only The target completion date of the original contract, prior to any change orders
Revised Contract Completion Date Read-Only The latest contract-completion date, based on all approved change orders

Change Order Details

Summary of the Change Orders against this Contract

Field Name Access Description
Add Change Orders Read-Only The sum of any positive Change Orders since the last Payment Application
Deduct Change Orders Read-Only The sum of any negative Change Orders since the last Payment Application
Previous Add Change Orders Read-Only The sum of previous positive Change Orders
Previous Deduct Change Orders Read-Only The sum of previous negative Change Orders
This Period Add Change Orders Read-Only The sum of the Add Change Orders minus the Previous Add Change Orders
This Period Deduct Change Orders Read-Only The sum of the Deduct Change Orders minus the Previous Deduct Change Orders

Vendor Information

Details of the Vendor for this Payment Application. If the Vendor has Unifier users, be sure to select them here so that they can see the contract.

Field Name Access Description
Legal Vendor Name Read-Only Lists the legal vendor name if the vendor name is different from the vendor full legal business name, the vendor has a name longer than 50 characters, or both.
Vendor ID Read-Only If Unifier is integrated with an external system, this field contains the ID that corresponds to the vendor in the external system. Populates based on the selected Vendor. If not integrated with an external system, leave blank.
Vendor a Unifier User? Required Indicates whether or not the vendor should be CCed when the contract is approved. CCing the vendor allows the vendor to see the contract, with some restrictions, as well as to access the contract when creating Change Orders, Payment Applications, or other business processes.
Vendor User Editable Indicates whether the vendor is a user in the system
Vendor Contact First Name Editable First name of the main vendor contact
Vendor Contact Last Name Editable Last name of the main vendor contact
Vendor Contact Phone Editable Phone number of the main vendor contact
Contact Email Editable Contact email address for the main vendor

Vendor Address

Vendor address from the Contract

Field Name Access Description
Address Read-Only The street address, P.O. box, apartment, suite, unit, building, floor, and so on. Do not include contact name
City Read-Only City
State/Province Read-Only The state or province
State/Province - Other Read-Only If selecting a country without defined states, provinces, or regions, this field provides additional information.
Country Read-Only Country
Zip/Postal Code Read-Only ZIP Code or postal code

MWBE Tracking

Tracks the Minority/Women-owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) eligible amount for this Payment Application

Field Name Access Description
Eligible Designations Read-Only MWBE designations eligible for this contract
MWBE Eligible Amount Editable Amount eligible for MWBE designation

Payment Processing

Information about the actual payment to the Vendor. This information might come from a corporate financial system.

Field Name Access Description
Payment No. Editable Indicates the payment number, which might include the check number, wire number, electronic funds transfer (EFT) number, and so on.
Payment Date Editable Date of the payment
Payment Processed Date Editable Date the payment was processed by the finance department

Record Information

System information about this record

Field Name Access Description
Record Number Read-Only System-assigned record number
Status Read-Only Record status for a workflow BP record is based on the workflow action preceding the current workflow step.
Creator Read-Only Creator of this record
Creation Date Read-Only Date that the record was created
Record Last Update Date Read-Only Date that the record was last updated
Business Process Record URL Read-Only A shareable link to this record, for anyone with the necessary permissions
Project Number Read-Only Unique Project Number
Project Name Read-Only Name of the project

Currency

If the currency of this Payment Application is different from the project currency, specify it here.

Field Name Access Description
Transaction Currency Editable If there are multiple currencies defined, use this field to specify a currency other than the project currency.
Rate in Project Currency Read-Only Exchange rate that will be used to calculate the Project Currency Amount. This will be set after the record is saved, submitted, or sent forward in the workflow. After it is set for a record, it cannot be changed.
Project Currency Amount Read-Only This field shows the amount of the transaction, according to the project currency.

Completing the Payment Application Lines tab

Primary Section

Lists all the key information typically needed on a Payment Application continuation sheet.

Field Name Access Description
B1. Description (from Commitment) Read-Only The description of this Payment Application
C. Scheduled Value Read-Only The scheduled value of this Payment Application. This comes from the original contract and includes any adjustments coming from approved change orders.
D. Work Previously Completed Read-Only The sum of completed work covered by the previous payment application (columns D & E from the previous application). Values from column F (Materials Presently Stored) from the previous application may have been automatically moved here.
E. Work Completed this Period Required The work performed during the current pay period, including the value of materials incorporated in the project that were listed on the previous payment application under Materials Presently Stored (column F).
F. Materials Presently Stored Editable The value of materials presently stored for which payment is sought. This value covers both materials newly stored for which payment is sought and materials previously stored that are not yet incorporated into the project. Mere payment by the Owner for stored materials does not result in a deduction from this column. Only as materials are incorporated into the project is their value deducted from this column and incorporated into column E.
G1. Tot Compl & Stored to Date (D+E+F) Read-Only The total value of all previously completed work, work completed this period, and materials presently stored
G2. Percentage Complete (G1 / C) Read-Only The Total Completed and Stored to Date divided by the Schedule of Value (SOV)
H. Balance to Finish (C-G1) Read-Only The Schedule of Value (SOV) minus the Total Completed and Stored to Date (column G1)
Work Retainage % Editable The percentage retained for work or services. This value is inherited from the SOV and should only be changed with approval from the Owner.
Stored Materials Retainage % Editable The percentage retained on stored materials. This value is inherited from the SOV and should only be changed with approval from the Owner.

Retainage Details

Information about the Retainage on this Payment Application line item

Field Name Access Description
Total Retainage to Date Read-Only The total Retainage to date, including this transaction (Work and Stored Materials)
Previous Retainage Released Read-Only The retainage previously released, from the Schedule of Value (SOV)
Retainage Released (This Period) Editable Total value of retainage being released in the current Payment Application
Retainage Balance Read-Only The sum of the Total Retainage to Date minus the Total Retainage Released, including this period

Additional SOV Data

Remainder of the SOV fields

Field Name Access Description
Total Earned Less Retainage Read-Only The sum of the Total Completed and Stored to Date minus the Retainage Balance
Total Previous Payments Read-Only The total Previous Payments against this Contract, from the Schedule of Value (SOV)
Current Payment Due Read-Only The current payment due date, based on the Total Earned Less Retainage minus the Total Previous Payments
Balance to Finish including Retainage Read-Only The balance to Finish including Retainage, based on the Scheduled Value minus Total Earned Less Retainage

Remarks

Additional remarks about this item.

Field Name Access Description
Additional Comments Editable Any additional comments about the payment being requested this period

Owner Information

Information used by the Owner to track costs.

Field Name Access Description
Cost Code Required For owner use only. Enter a cost code for this line item.
Code Name Read-Only Populates the code name of the selected cost code
Change Order # (Manual) Read-Only If not using the automatically numbered change orders, tracks a change order number here.
Effective Date Required Enter the date this record takes effect.
Breakdown Editable Any breakdowns provided at the SOV level for each referenced Contract line item

Stored Materials Moved / Not Moved

Displays whether any stored materials were automatically moved over to Work Previously Completed, based on the "Keep Stored Materials" setting.

Field Name Access Description
Stored Materials (Moved) Read-Only Displays the value of Materials Presently Stored (column F) from the previous period that were automatically moved to the Work Previously Completed (column D) in this period.
Stored Materials (Not Moved) Read-Only Displays the value of Materials Presently Stored (column F) from the previous period that were carried over to the current period. The value of any materials that have been incorporated into the Project should be manually deducted from Materials Presently Stored (column F) and added to Work Completed this Period (column E).