Job costing that shows the margin before the job is finished.
SETRA is job costing software for job shops and smaller manufacturers. Every open job shows what you quoted, what it has cost so far and what that leaves, while there is still time to act.
Most job costing happens too late to help.
A spreadsheet after the invoice tells you a job lost money. It can't tell you on Tuesday that the job on machine three is eating its margin. By the time the numbers are in, the job is gone, and the next quote repeats the mistake.
What you see in SETRA.
Margin Radar
| Order | Jobs | Sold for | Quoted margin | Margin so far | Erosion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SO-1052 | PRJ-1052 | €8,400 | 22.0% | 9.5% | 12.5pp |
| SO-1048 | PRJ-1048 | €12,000 | 20.0% | 13.8% | 6.3pp |
| SO-1061 | PRJ-1061, PRJ-1063 | €31,500 | 18.0% | 21.4% | on track |
Margin, PRJ-1048
- Expected margin
- €2,400
- Margin so far
- €1,650 13.75%
- Cost so far
- €10,350
Job cost
- Costed at
- €9,600
- Spent, expenses
- €220
- Spent, materials
- €6,180
- Spent, time
- €2,240
- Spent, ordered not arrived
- €180
- Spent, machine
- €840
- Spent, work sent out
- €690
- Actual total
- €10,350
Quoted against so far, on every job
The margin you quoted next to the margin left after what the job has cost to date.
Where the money went
Material, labour, machine time, work sent out and expenses, each on its own line.
The jobs that need you first
The Margin Radar lists open jobs with the ones slipping furthest at the top.
Job costing questions.
What is job costing?
Job costing tracks the cost of each job separately: material, labour, machine time, outside work and expenses, set against what the job was sold for. It tells you which jobs make money and which don't.
How is this different from job costing in a spreadsheet?
The costs land on the job as the work happens, so you see the margin while the job is still open. A spreadsheet usually gets filled in after the invoice, if at all.
Does material that's ordered but not yet delivered count?
Yes. Material ordered for a job counts against it before it arrives, so a job doesn't look healthy just because the supplier's invoice hasn't come in.
Who sees the costs and margins?
You decide. Your team sees the work in front of them. Prices, costs and margins stay with you and whoever you choose.