5 Generic Cost Manager Overview

Generic cost managers monitor cost-related activities for configurable shells. Unlike the Standard Cost Manager in Unifier, the data analyzed by a generic cost manager comes from the cost sheets of shells and sub-shells. The Standard Cost Manager is designed to accommodate business financing, which typically suits projects that proceed over a fixed time range. Generic cost managers, on the other hand, are well-suited for projects/shells of an ongoing nature, such as a building shell, where you would typically want to collect and analyze operating and maintenance costs for a specific building over the life of that building.

In designing a generic cost manager, you will be defining cost codes that will collect and analyze cost-related information for anything that exists under a shell. You can create cost codes for all the various projects or business needs you are likely to manage in any shell and include them in a single cost manager that will support all the various shells.

A generic cost manager works similarly to Unifier's Standard Cost Manager, but with the following differences.

Note:

  • You can create only one Generic Cost Manager. This manager can be used in all your shells.
  • You cannot use both a Standard Cost Manager and a Generic Cost Manager in the same shell.
Standard Cost Manager Generic Cost Manager
Is available for projects and shells Is only available for shells
Used for capital projects with limited life cycles Used for projects with extended life cycles
Uses a CBS code structure Uses a customized coding structure; it does not use CBS codes

Cost Sheet:

  • Has no time dimension
  • User creates columns and rows in the sheet itself
  • Enables forecasting adjustments via AFC and YTB values
  • Can be viewed in flat or tree format, but cannot be changed
  • Cannot modify the exchange rate; uses the rate defined in the shell properties
  • Cost transaction data is shown in the project currency at the project level, and in base currency at the company level
  • Accepts data entered manually, via business processes, from a worksheet, or generated by a formula

Cost Sheet:

  • Has a time dimension; user must specify time scale units by which to view the sheet
  • Has two components—sheet and structure; user creates columns and rows using the structure of the sheet
  • Does not offer forecasting
  • Can be toggled between flat and tree format views and offers default views of current shell, current shell and sub-shells, or sub-shells only
  • Can modify the exchange rate; can revert to the rate specified for the shell; user can view the exchange rate history
  • Cost transaction data is shown in the shell currency or the base currency
  • Accepts data entered manually or generated by a formula

Rolls up only currency amounts

Shells do not support any roll-ups from the Standard Cost Manager.
  • Rolls up quantity amounts as well as currency amounts
  • Rolls up to the Company Cost Sheet only line items with multiple codes, including leases, base/change commits, transfers, and general spends
Includes a Funding Sheet Does not support a Funding Sheet
Provides earned value and cash flow features Does not offer earned value or cash flow features
Base Commit BP creates a Schedule of Values (SOV) sheet Base Commit BP creates "Commitments Summary" rather than an SOV