Construction purchase order software by job and cost code
On a construction job, materials are ordered by one person, delivered to a site where someone else signs for them, and invoiced to an office that saw neither. Procurer connects the three. Every purchase order is coded to a job and a cost code, the site team records what arrived (including partial and split deliveries) from a phone, and the invoice is matched to the PO and the delivery before anyone pays it.
Why construction purchasing leaks money
Construction companies lose margin in the gap between the field and the office:
- Materials ordered by phone with no PO, so the office learns the price from the invoice.
- Orders charged to the wrong job, which makes job cost reports wrong until someone recodes them.
- Deliveries short by a few pallets, with an invoice for the full quantity.
- Price increases on the invoice that nobody agreed to.
- Project managers who find out a job is over budget on materials when it is too late to change anything.
Each of these is a missing link between the PO, the delivery and the invoice.
Purchase orders by job and cost code
Every request in Procurer carries the job (as a project) and the cost code, set up from your list or imported from a CSV. A superintendent requesting 40 sheets of drywall and 12 boxes of screws picks the job, the cost code for interior finishes and the supplier. From Business, budgets can be set per project and per GL account, so the request shows the remaining budget for that job before approval, including what is already committed on open POs. Approval rules can use the project as a condition: requests on a job go to its project manager first, and anything over a set amount goes to the operations director. See budget control software and purchase order approval software.
- One PO can carry lines for several cost codes on the same job.
- Change orders on a PO are versioned and can require approval again.
- Recurring orders (rentals, portable toilets, dumpsters) can be set as blanket POs with releases against them.
Partial receiving on site
Deliveries on a job site rarely arrive all at once. The site lead opens the PO on a phone and records what came today: 30 of 40 sheets of drywall, all 12 boxes of screws, and a photo of the signed delivery ticket. Next week, the remaining 10 sheets are received against the same line. Each receipt has a date, a person and the quantities, so the office knows exactly what the job has, and the job cost report reflects receipts as they happen. Receiving is included on every plan.
A materials order through matching
A contractor orders ready-mix concrete for a slab: 60 cubic yards at 165 USD, PO total 9 900 USD, job 24-118, cost code 03-300. Two trucks deliver 54 yards on day one; the pour needs 4 more yards the next morning, and the site lead records both receipts, 58 yards in total. The supplier invoices 60 yards at 171 USD, 10 260 USD. From Business, the three way match holds the invoice with two reasons: 2 yards invoiced but not received, and a unit price 3.6 percent above the PO. The project manager asks the supplier for a corrected invoice for 58 yards at 165 USD, 9 570 USD, which clears the match and syncs to accounting coded to the job and cost code.
Suppliers, documents and insurance
Construction suppliers and subcontractors come with paperwork: W-9s, certificates of insurance with expiry dates, lien waivers, rate sheets. The supplier record keeps documents on every plan. On Scale, supplier onboarding collects the W-9, insurance certificate and bank details before the first PO, reminds suppliers before insurance lapses, and the supplier portal lets them confirm POs and upload invoices against them. With up to 5 legal entities on Scale, companies that run separate entities for regions or divisions can purchase across them. See vendor management software and supplier portal software.
Which plan fits a construction company
Team, at 149 USD per month, covers POs, approvals by amount, department budgets and partial receiving for up to 25 user accounts and 250 POs a month. Most contractors with several jobs running choose Business, at 299 USD per month: project and GL budgets with commitments, approval rules by project, three-way matching and up to 100 user accounts and 1 500 POs a month. Scale adds unlimited POs, 5 legal entities and supplier onboarding. See pricing.
What is construction purchase order software?
It is software for creating purchase orders coded to jobs and cost codes, recording deliveries on site and matching supplier invoices to what was ordered and received, so job costs are right and only delivered materials are paid.
Can we code POs to jobs and cost codes?
Yes. Jobs are set up as projects and cost codes as a field on every line, imported from a CSV or typed in. From Business, budgets and approval rules can use the project.
Can the site team receive deliveries from a phone?
Yes. The site lead opens the PO on a phone, records the quantities received and attaches a photo of the delivery ticket. Partial deliveries are received against the same PO line.
How are short deliveries handled on the invoice?
From Business, three-way matching compares the invoice with the quantities received. An invoice for more than was delivered is held with the reason until it is corrected or the rest arrives.
Does it replace our construction accounting system?
No. Procurer handles requests, POs, receiving and matching, and sends approved bills with job and cost code coding to QuickBooks Online or Xero on every plan and to NetSuite or Sage Intacct on Scale. Other systems can import the CSV export.
Every delivery matched to its PO and its job
Create your account and put every job's materials on a purchase order the site and the office both see.