Overview
Time and materials (T&M) billing is commonly used for work with an undefined scope. T&M bills for what actually happened, so you don't have to guess a fixed price and absorb the cost if the job runs long.
The T&M Calculation Breakdown (T&M Calc) is how Aspire works out what a customer is charged on a T&M invoice. It lives on the work ticket and determines both the invoice amount and how materials and labor are priced.
Key terms
Term | Definition |
|---|---|
T&M (time and materials) | A billing method that charges customers for actual labor time and material costs, plus markups. |
T&M Calc | The Calculation Breakdown on a work ticket that shows how each T&M line was priced. |
Item catalog | The central list of items and their standard prices in Aspire. |
One-time item | An item that isn't in the item catalog. It's added to a single estimate or purchase receipt and doesn't carry over to future work. |
Purchase receipt | A record of the actual vendor cost for purchased items. |
Warranty hours | Time entries logged after a work ticket's Completed Date. They're excluded from T&M billing. |
Requirements
To create purchase receipts in the Purchasing module and from the quick menu, you need Add Receipt added to your user role.
To edit items in your estimate, you need Edit Estimate Items added to your user role.
Where to find the T&M Calc
On the work ticket, go to the Revenue section and select the T&M Calc link.
Calculation breakdown for items
Column | Description |
|---|---|
Item Name | Each item line allocated to the work ticket. |
Quantity | The total quantity of the item allocated to the work ticket. |
Unit Price | The price applied to each unit of the item. |
Pricing | The pricing source that was used: Estimate, Catalog Price Override, Price List, Catalog, or Receipt. |
Calculated total | The amount that flows to the invoice. |
How item price is determined
When applying a markup to T&M items, Aspire checks the pricing sources in the order listed below and uses the first one that applies.
Priority | Source | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
1 | Estimate | The item is on the estimate, and a price override was applied. Aspire doesn't use the service markup. |
2 | Catalog Price Override | The item is in the item catalog and has a price override. When the item isn't on the estimate, Aspire uses this override instead of applying the service markup. |
3 | Price List | The item is in the item catalog and has a price list cost, and the work ticket's branch is assigned to that price list. Aspire applies the markup to the price list cost. |
4 | Catalog | The item is in the item catalog. Aspire applies the markup to the catalog cost. |
5 | Receipt | The item is a one-time item created on the estimate or added manually to a purchase receipt. It has no catalog cost, so Aspire applies the markup to the receipt cost. |
Note: Catalog items (priorities 2–4) don't use purchase receipt cost, even when a purchase receipt is linked to the work ticket.
Example
Your crew completes a T&M irrigation repair. The opportunity has a 25% T&M material markup, and the work ticket's branch is assigned to a price list. Five items are allocated to the work ticket, and each one is priced by a different level of the hierarchy:
Item | Why this source applies | Pricing | Unit Price | Quantity | Calculated total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rotor head | It's on the estimate with a $30.00 price override. No markup is applied. | Estimate | $30.00 | 1 | $30.00 |
Valve box | It isn't on the estimate, but it has a $45.00 price override in the item catalog. No markup is applied. | Catalog Price Override | $45.00 | 1 | $45.00 |
PVC pipe | It's in the item catalog with a $6.00 cost on the branch's price list. The 25% markup is applied to $6.00. | Price List | $7.50 | 4 | $30.00 |
Drip emitter pack | It's in the item catalog at a $20.00 cost, with no price list cost. A purchase receipt for $24.00 is linked to the work ticket, but Aspire ignores it. The 25% markup is applied to $20.00. | Catalog | $25.00 | 2 | $50.00 |
Controller wire | It isn't in the item catalog. It was added as a one-time item on a $40.00 purchase receipt. The 25% markup is applied to $40.00. | Receipt | $50.00 | 1 | $50.00 |
The T&M Calc for these items totals $205.00. The drip emitter pack shows why receipt cost doesn't change what you bill for catalog items. Only one-time items, like the controller wire, are priced from purchase receipt cost.
Things to know
This hierarchy applies only to T&M services.
Catalog items are priced from the item catalog or a price list, never from purchase receipt cost. Receipt cost is used only for one-time items.
Using one-time items on purchase receipts doesn't change catalog prices.
T&M markups must be set on the opportunity or opportunity template, not in the Pricing Markups section in Administration.
Extra costs on purchase receipts aren't included in the T&M Calc.
Hours and materials allocated after the work ticket's Completed Date are considered warranty and aren't included in the T&M Calc.