Cost Item Setup

VIDEO | Cost Item Management

Cost Item Creation

While typically most of your structure imports from your estimating system, you may need to revise the CBS to reflect the way the work will be performed in the field. You may also encounter contract changes or new work. To accommodate these needs, you can add, edit and arrange cost items as needed.

If you need to build additional structure from scratch, you can create new level one cost items as needed. If needed, this would allow you to create an entire new structure from scratch on a blank project, giving you the flexibility to create a complete project structure within Control.

The New cost item window includes a section where you can add multiple cost items. Newly added cost items become positioned at the bottom of the CBS hierarchy. As part of the cost item creation process, you can quickly create multiple cost items and then click Save when you are finished.

The following steps walk you through how to create cost items.

Create New Cost Items

  1. From the project’s home page menu, select Control.

  2. Select Control > Workspaces on the left side of the Main menu.

  3. Select the CBS tab to open the CBS register of your project.

  4. Select the Add Cost Item icon on the top left of the page.

  5. Select Create a new blank cost item, then click Yes.

    • This opens the Cost item details page where you can enter the pertinent information for the new cost item


  6. On the Details tab, enter the following information:

    • Description: [enter a cost item description]

    • UoM: Lump Sum

    • Cost Segment: Direct Cost

    • Allow as-built: All

  7. Click Add new cost item on the new cost item list in the left-side panel to add an additional cost item.

  8. Enter the following information:

    • Description: [enter a cost item description]

    • UoM: Lump Sum

    • Cost Segment: Direct Cost

    • Allow as-built: All

  9. Click Save.

    • Your new cost items are now created in the CBS

Create a New Subordinate Cost Item

  1. From the project’s home page menu, select Control.

  2. Select Workspaces.

  3. On the CBS tab, scroll down and find a superior cost item in the Tasks data block where multiple subordinate cost items exist.

  4. Right click the superior cost item to bring up the options menu.

  5. Select New Subordinate Cost Item to create a subordinate cost item to your superior cost item.

  6. Select the Inherit data from parent cost item radio button, then click Yes.

    • This allows you to copy the parent item’s information and avoid entering common information a second time.

You can create a new cost item in two ways:

  • New Cost Item: This creates a new cost item with the next available number at the current hierarchy level that you selected. Example: If you select 1.6 it creates 1.7 if available.

  • New Subordinate Cost Item: This creates a new subordinate cost item with the next number available one level lower than the current level selected. Example: If you selected 1.6, it will create the next 1.6.x where X is the next number available.

Required Cost Items

The Required cost items feature lets you create standardized or commonly used cost items at the organization level, and then add them at the project CBS level. Changing any of the required cost items at the organization level, such as the account code or UOM, also updates the cost items at the project level.

When required cost items are added in Settings > Control > Others > Required cost items, the feature provides standardization across all projects for those cost items that are commonly used.

This feature can be a substitute for copying and pasting cost items from one project into another and ensures the same WBS phase code is being used regardless of the project a team member is working on.

Design Total Qty and Man-hours Columns in CBS

Control displays the sum of the Forecast T/O quantity from the associated InEight Design items against the attributed cost items. You can compare the Design total quantity and Design total man-hours to the Forecast (T/O) quantity and Forecast hours columns, to make sure the values match up with what is in Design.

Create Cost Items in InEight Change

You can also create cost items with resources in Change, and then have them created in Control upon the approval of a contract adjustment. This reduces the amount of extra steps needed for creating cost items in multiple areas.

Creating cost items in Change is performed by first creating an issue with your newly created cost items, then executing your change order.

In Control, go into the Change Register and click on the change order to review the new cost items that originated from Change.

Revise the change order to make any further adjustments, such as associating pay items to your cost items. Notice how the cost category assignments have all come over to Control that originated from the change document.

Approving the change order creates the new cost items with the resources specified in Change, and places them within the hierarchy specified in the contract adjustment, and if none is specified, then they are placed at the bottom of the CBS.

Cost Item Arrangement

As the project progresses, you may need to rearrange cost items to accommodate project changes.

Move a Cost Item

  1. On the CBS register tab, highlight the new subordinate cost item you created.

  2. Right click on the cost item of your choice.

  3. Click on Adjust CBS position.

  4. Click and drag your cost item and move it directly under the superior cost item you want it to go under.

  5. Click Save.

    • Your subordinate cost item should now be moved.

Viewing the CBS Grouped by Column

Navigating throughout the CBS can be difficult and tedious when searching for specific information, as data is spread across the entire CBS. Jobs can contain a lot of various data, and can be difficult to sort through and view the desired information, especially in a list format. The CBS Group by feature allows users to display the CBS in groups of "like" information. This feature allows you to drag and drop columns that you are interested in grouping.

The Group Columns by feature is invoked by selecting the Group Columns icon in the upper the right set of action icons, which opens up a gray bar above the CBS data blocks. Clicking the Group Columns icon a second time disables the feature.

Once you navigate away from the page, the groupings will still exist. Selecting a different view will retain the same groupings as well.

CBS Group by Column

  1. On the CBS register tab, select the Group Columns icon on the right toolbar.

  2. Drag the column header of a column and drop it into the grey bar area.

  3. Drag and drop a second column header into the grey bar area.

  4. Your project cost items are now grouped by both columns.

Cost Item Deletion

You can delete one cost item or multiple cost items by selecting the cost items, right clicking, and then selecting Delete Cost Item.

When deleting cost items from the CBS, deleting the forecast, clearing out the account code, or changing attributes to delete a cost item is not necessary.

You can also select a cost item and click the Delete icon on the left toolbar.

A cost item must meet the following conditions to be deleted:

  • Total Cost (To Date) = 0, MH (To Date) = 0, Eqp Hours (To Date) = 0, Qty Complete (To Date)=0

  • C B-Total Cost = 0, C B-Total MH = 0, CB-Total Quantity = 0, C B-Qty Remaining = 0

  • If the cost item is a parent item, all the subordinate cost items will also need to be checked to see if they can be deleted

If you are deleting multiple cost items and do not meet the following conditions for deletion, a downloadable file appears that lists all of the validations and why they failed.

Copying Cost Items with Resources

You can copy and paste entire cost items with resources from the CBS tab to any cost item you select.

When you copy a cost item, you cannot copy the current budget because the current budget must be approved in a contract adjustment or budget move.

Follow the step by step to copy a cost item.

Copy and paste cost items

  1. From the CBS tab, select one or more cost items that you want to copy that contain a resource.

    This can be checked in the Resources column. If the cost item has a 1 or higher, then a resource is attached to that cost item.

  2. Right-click your selected cost items.

  3. Hover over the Copy selection and select Copy cost item.

  4. Right-click on another cost item in the CBS tab.

  5. Hover over the option Insert copied cost items. You have three options as to where to place the copied cost items:

    • Insert above
    • Insert below
    • Insert as a subordinate

You can also view the pasted cost items in the Resources tab of the Cost item details slide-out panel.