Construction Business Intelligence: Job Cost, WIP and Backlog on One Screen
A contractor's month-end turns on three questions: which jobs are losing margin, whether billing is ahead of or behind the work, and how much work is lined up once current jobs finish. The answers sit in accounting, project management and payroll, rarely in one place.
Construction business intelligence brings a contractor's accounting, project management, payroll and equipment data into one model, so that job cost, work in progress, backlog and equipment use are reported the same way every week. Lightray Solutions builds construction BI in Power BI, and Edward Pinela, MBA, scopes and builds each project himself, remotely.
The reports do not replace your controller's judgment or your CPA's year-end schedule. They put the inputs those people rely on, cost to date, estimated cost to complete and billings, on one screen, with the jobs that moved most since last week at the top.
The first step is a free 30-minute strategy call with Edward; send the form below or phone. A build is quoted in writing after a short discovery of your systems, and changes after launch can run on Power BI Flex Support, from $2,500 for 20 hours.
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What should construction BI report first?
The work-in-progress schedule, because it ties the other reports together. A WIP schedule compares each open job's earned revenue, usually based on cost to date against estimated total cost, with the amount billed so far. The difference shows over-billing or under-billing, and it moves your balance sheet as much as your profit.
From the WIP schedule the rest follows. Job cost by cost code explains why a job's estimated margin moved; backlog shows the contract value still to be earned; equipment reports show whether owned machines are paying their way. The table below lists what each report needs and the question it answers.
| Report | Data it needs | Question it answers |
|---|---|---|
| WIP schedule | Contract value, approved change orders, cost to date, estimated total cost, billings to date | Which jobs are over-billed or under-billed, and by how much |
| Job cost by cost code | Budget by cost code, posted costs, committed costs, labor hours | Where a job's margin is fading, and since when |
| Backlog | Signed contracts, revenue earned to date, expected schedule by job | How much work is lined up, and when crews will need the next job |
| Equipment use | Hours by machine from timesheets or telematics, ownership and repair cost | Which machines earn their cost, and which would be cheaper to rent |
| Cash and retainage | Receivables by job, retainage held, payables and payroll timing | When cash arrives compared with when it is owed |
How is work in progress calculated, and why do methods differ?
Most contractors estimate earned revenue by percentage of completion: cost to date divided by estimated total cost, applied to the revised contract value. Some use completed contract for short jobs or when estimates are unreliable. Which method applies is an accounting decision for your CPA; the BI model should reproduce it exactly, not choose it.
Accounting software itself offers several options. Microsoft's Business Central documentation on WIP methods lists cost value, cost of sales, sales value, percentage of completion and completed contract, the last described as useful when estimates of cost and revenue are highly uncertain. Whatever system you run, we document the formula your controller signs off and test it against last quarter's schedule.
The weakest input is nearly always estimated cost to complete. A report can flag a project manager's estimate that has not changed in weeks while costs kept arriving, which is often the first sign a job is in trouble.
What does a job cost report need before anyone trusts it?
Consistent cost codes, timely posting and committed costs. If one project manager codes concrete forming as labor and another as materials, cost-code comparisons mislead. If subcontractor invoices post weeks late, cost to date looks healthy until it suddenly doesn't. Committed costs from purchase orders and subcontracts close that gap before the invoices arrive.
Cleaning up cost codes is usually a one-time job done with the controller, and the model keeps a mapping table so old jobs and new jobs can still be compared.
- Budget, revisions and change orders. Original estimate, approved changes and pending changes kept apart, so margin fade can be traced to its cause.
- Labor hours and cost. Payroll hours by job and cost code, with productivity compared to the estimate.
- Committed cost. Open purchase orders and subcontract balances, so cost still to come is visible.
- Retainage. Billed and held amounts by job, because retainage ties up cash long after the work is done.
How do contractors report on backlog and equipment?
Backlog is signed contract value not yet earned, shown by the month it is expected to burn, which tells you when crews will run short of work. Equipment reporting compares hours used with hours available and with the cost of owning each machine, which answers the rent-or-own question with your own numbers.
Backlog depends on a realistic schedule for each job; equipment hours come from timesheets or telematics. Microsoft's Power Query connector list includes connectors for Autodesk Construction Cloud, Samsara and Smartsheet, and data from systems without a connector arrives through scheduled exports or a database view.
To see how an interactive Power BI report behaves before committing, open the construction dashboard demo. It is a sample built to show the format, not a client project. If the question is AI rather than reporting, such as reading submittals or drafting RFIs, see AI consulting for construction companies.
How does a construction BI project run, and what does it cost?
In four steps, starting with the WIP schedule your controller already prepares, because matching it proves the data. The project is quoted at a fixed price after discovery; the number of systems and companies involved sets most of the price, not the number of report pages.
Because it is a Power BI build, the Power BI guarantee applies to that work: if you don't like working with us within the first 4 hours, you get your money back. It covers the working relationship, not job margins. Edward brings 20+ years and 200+ delivered projects, and Lightray's Google rating is 4.9. Every BI service is listed on the business intelligence consulting hub, and the report-building side on its own is covered under Power BI dashboard development.
- 1. Discovery. Systems, cost-code structure, WIP method and the reports rebuilt by hand each month.
- 2. Model and reconciliation. Accounting, project and payroll data joined, then matched to last quarter's WIP schedule and job cost reports.
- 3. Reports. WIP, job cost, backlog and equipment pages reviewed with the controller and two or three project managers on screen share.
- 4. Rhythm. A refresh schedule timed to your posting cycle, and access set so each project manager sees their own jobs.
Further reading: Microsoft Learn — WIP methods for project progress.
Want your WIP schedule without the spreadsheet?
Book a free 30-minute call with Edward Pinela, MBA. You get an honest read on what to fix first — and if we are not the right fit, you will hear that on the call.
Frequently asked questions
What does construction business intelligence cost?
A build is quoted at a fixed price after a free strategy call and a short discovery; the number of systems and companies drives the price. Later report changes can be paid from a prepaid Power BI Flex Support block, $2,500 for 20 hours, billed at $100 to $125 an hour, and unused hours never expire.
How long until the first WIP report is ready?
A first WIP and job cost view on one accounting system often takes a few weeks, most of it spent reconciling to a schedule your controller already trusts. Inconsistent cost codes or several companies add time, and discovery tells you how much before the quote.
Does any of this require us to host you at the office or on a job?
No. Every session happens over video and screen share, and the model lives in your own Microsoft tenant, so nothing leaves your control. A recorded walkthrough of how costs, timesheets and change orders move from the field to accounting gives Edward the context he needs.
What do we need to provide?
Read access to your accounting or construction ERP, or exports of job cost detail, billings and contracts; payroll hours by job; your last two or three WIP schedules; and, if equipment matters, hours from timesheets or telematics. An hour with the controller is the most valuable input.
Our accounting software already has job cost reports. Why add BI?
Keep using them for transactions. BI earns its place when the answer needs several systems at once, such as payroll hours beside committed costs, or when the WIP schedule is still rebuilt in a spreadsheet every month. If your software already answers your questions, the call will say so.
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