Module Overview

Purpose

The Atlas Construction Management module transforms Odoo into a comprehensive construction project management system. It provides specialized tools for:

  • Job Costing: Track actual costs vs. budgeted costs by phase and category

  • Budget Management: Create, track, and analyze project budgets

  • Change Order Management: Process and approve change orders with budget impact tracking

  • Progress Billing: Bill customers based on completed work milestones

  • Daily Reporting: Field teams log work, weather, safety incidents, and progress

  • Customer Selections: Track material and finish selections with budget impacts

  • Purchase Order Integration: See committed costs before invoices arrive

  • Project Scheduling: Visual Gantt charts for task management

  • Geographic Tracking: Map-based project location management

Target Users

This module is designed for construction companies of all sizes:

Small Residential Builders

  • Simple budget tracking

  • Change order management

  • Progress billing

  • Customer selections

  • Basic daily logs

Medium Commercial Contractors

  • Detailed phase/category cost tracking

  • Multiple concurrent projects

  • Complex budget templates

  • Purchase order commitment tracking

  • Field reporting with photos

Large General Contractors

  • Enterprise-scale project management

  • Advanced cost code structures

  • Multi-tier approval workflows

  • Comprehensive analytics

  • Integration with existing systems

Key Concepts

Projects vs. Jobs

In this module:

  • Project: An Odoo project (project.project) represents a construction job

  • Construction Job: When is_construction_job is enabled, additional construction features become available

  • Job Number: Unique identifier for each construction project

The module extends Odoo’s standard project management with construction-specific functionality.

Phases and Categories

Job costs are tracked using a two-dimensional matrix:

Phases (Vertical)

Sequential stages of construction work:

  • Site Work

  • Foundation

  • Framing

  • Rough-In (Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC)

  • Insulation & Drywall

  • Finishes

  • Final / Punch List

Cost Categories (Horizontal)

Types of costs within each phase:

  • Labor

  • Materials

  • Subcontractors

  • Equipment

  • Other

This creates a detailed cost matrix:

               Labor  Materials  Subcontractors  Equipment  Other
Site Work        ✓        ✓           ✓             ✓        ✓
Foundation       ✓        ✓           ✓             ✓        ✓
Framing          ✓        ✓           ✓             ✓        ✓
Rough-In         ✓        ✓           ✓             ✓        ✓
...

Each cell in this matrix is a Job Cost Line (budget line) that tracks:

  • Budget amount

  • Actual costs (from timesheets, vendor bills)

  • Committed costs (from open purchase orders)

  • Variance (budget vs. total cost)

Budget vs. Actual vs. Committed

Budget

The planned cost for a job cost line. Set during project setup.

Actual Cost

Money already spent:

  • Vendor bills that have been posted

  • Timesheet labor costs

  • Expense reports

Committed Cost

Money obligated but not yet spent:

  • Open purchase orders (confirmed but not received)

  • Shows future costs coming

Total Cost

Actual + Committed = Complete budget picture

Variance

Budget - Total Cost = Amount over/under budget

Architecture

Data Model

Core Models

project.project

Extended with construction-specific fields:

  • is_construction_job

  • job_number

  • contract_amount

  • job_type_id

  • Cost summary fields

atlas.job.cost.line

Individual budget line tracking:

  • Links to project, phase, category

  • Budget amount

  • Actual and committed costs (computed)

  • Variance tracking

  • State management

atlas.job.phase

Construction phases:

  • Name (Foundation, Framing, etc.)

  • Sequence for ordering

  • Used across all projects

atlas.job.cost.category

Cost categories:

  • Name (Labor, Materials, etc.)

  • Sequence for ordering

  • Used across all projects

Supporting Models

atlas.change.order

Change order requests:

  • Links to project

  • Line items with costs

  • Approval workflow (draft → submitted → approved/rejected)

  • Integrates with sales orders

atlas.billing.milestone

Progress billing milestones:

  • Percentage-based or fixed-amount

  • State tracking (pending → ready → billed)

  • Invoice integration

atlas.daily.log

Field reports:

  • Date, weather, temperature

  • Work completed

  • Crew information

  • Photos, delays, safety incidents

atlas.project.selection

Customer material/finish selections:

  • Selection categories

  • Options with pricing

  • Approval tracking

  • Budget impact calculation

atlas.job.budget.template

Reusable budget structures:

  • Template lines with percentages

  • Apply to new projects

  • Speed up project setup

Integration Points

Purchase Orders

  • Links PO lines to job cost lines

  • Tracks committed costs

  • Updates when PO is received/billed

Sales Orders

  • Created from change orders

  • Generates customer-facing quotations

  • Tracks change order revenue

Vendor Bills

  • Can link to job cost lines

  • Updates actual costs when posted

  • Three-way matching with PO

Timesheets

  • Employee time tracked to projects

  • Labor costs calculated and allocated

  • Links to job cost lines (if configured)

Module Dependencies

Required Modules

  • project - Base project management

  • sale - Sales orders for change orders

  • purchase - Purchase order integration

  • account - Financial tracking

Optional Modules

  • hr_timesheet - Labor cost tracking

  • stock - Inventory management

  • mrp - Manufacturing/assembly

  • web_gantt - Enhanced Gantt charts

Workflow Overview

Typical Project Lifecycle

  1. Project Setup

    • Create project with contract amount

    • Select job type

    • Apply budget template (or create budget manually)

    • Configure phases and categories

  2. Budget Management

    • Review and adjust budget lines

    • Set phase sequencing

    • Establish cost tracking structure

  3. Execution

    • Create purchase orders linked to cost lines

    • Track daily field progress

    • Log work, photos, incidents

    • Monitor actual vs. budget

  4. Cost Control

    • Review variance reports

    • Track committed costs from open POs

    • Adjust budgets as needed via change orders

  5. Change Management

    • Customer requests changes

    • Create change order with line items

    • Submit for approval

    • Update budget upon approval

  6. Progress Billing

    • Mark milestones as complete

    • Generate invoices

    • Track payment

  7. Project Closeout

    • Complete final work

    • Submit final invoices

    • Archive documentation

    • Analyze final costs vs. budget

Tip

Use budget templates to speed up project setup. Create templates for common project types (e.g., “Single Family Home”, “Kitchen Remodel”) with typical phase/category distributions.

User Roles

The module defines several security groups with different permission levels:

Job Cost User

Can:

  • View project budgets

  • View actual costs

  • View daily logs

  • View change orders

Cannot:

  • Edit budgets

  • Approve change orders

  • Create/edit cost categories or phases

Typical users: Field supervisors, estimators (read-only access)

Job Cost Manager

Can:

  • Everything Job Cost User can do

  • Create and edit job cost lines

  • Manage project budgets

  • Create change orders

  • Manage daily logs

  • Configure customer selections

Cannot:

  • Approve change orders (requires specific approval rights)

  • Configure system-wide settings

Typical users: Project managers, office managers

Job Cost Admin

Can:

  • Everything Job Cost Manager can do

  • Configure phases and cost categories

  • Create and manage budget templates

  • Configure module settings

  • Manage all projects company-wide

Typical users: Construction managers, system administrators

Additional Groups

  • Scheduling User: View project schedules

  • Scheduling Manager: Edit project schedules

  • Billing User: View billing milestones

  • Billing Manager: Create invoices from milestones

  • Change Order User: View change orders

  • Change Order Manager: Approve change orders

  • Daily Log User: Create daily logs

  • Daily Log Manager: Edit all daily logs

See Security & Permissions for detailed permission matrices and configuration instructions.

Benefits

For Project Managers

  • Real-time visibility into project costs

  • Early warning when budgets are at risk

  • Accurate tracking of committed vs. actual costs

  • Streamlined change order management

  • Data-driven decision making

For Field Teams

  • Simple daily log entry

  • Photo documentation

  • Weather and delay tracking

  • Safety incident reporting

  • Mobile-friendly interface

For Accounting

  • Accurate job costing

  • Work-in-progress tracking

  • Progress billing automation

  • Integration with AR/AP

  • Financial reporting by project

For Executives

  • Portfolio-level visibility

  • Project profitability analysis

  • Resource allocation insights

  • Cash flow forecasting

  • Historical data for estimating

Next Steps