Learning About the Right Choice in Construction Accounting Software

Maintaining accounts in a construction project often doesn't work the way it would do in any other sort of business. A venture such as this can have unique needs. Contractors at construction projects need to keep track of complex payrolls; they also need to keep account of the costs involved, in  very detailed fashion. There are dozens of vendors of construction accounting software who try to answer to these business needs. From simple software solutions for small construction businesses to fantastically complex versions that handle the needs of large civil contractors, these software titles cover the full range.

Construction accounting software is basically about job costing and payroll processing. Since construction projects usually involve keeping track of subcontractors and a large number of construction equipment units, these software titles usually offer modules that help with these functions as well.

In most construction accounting software, the job costing module is what you find at the center of the accounting model. The accounting staff at any construction firm allocate job costs in different ways – by CSI code or by job for instance. This is where software for construction accounting differs from software for general purpose accounting .

Many construction contractors will usually start out  using regular bookkeeping software like Peachtree or QuickBooks. Once they reach a certain stage of growth though – with four or five simultaneous projects and more than a couple of million dollars in annual revenue – they typically need to move to real construction accounting software.

Any well-designed software for construction businesses will include modules for payroll management and job costing, of course. They are also likely to have plenty of modules for purchase orders, inventory management, time tracking, equipment tracking and so on.

Typically, the beginner in construction contracting who uses something like QuickBooks, will upgrade to a first stage construction package such as Sage MasterBuilder, ComputerEase or JobPower. A service contractor, on the other hand, will choose Foundation Software, Jonas Software, or Penta.

It is important when you choose construction accounting software, to make sure that you understand what kind of platform you're buying into. You do want your software to meet the day-to-day needs of your business. You also want to make sure that your software is not built on proprietary database technology or obsolete programming languages that could lock you in.

Construction accounting is no longer just about keeping track of what you spend everywhere. It's supposed to give project managers a great deal of insight into how each project comes along. It is a business intelligence tool.