The purpose of this article is to provide a guide on how to use Microvellum's Proect Costing Tools. A step-by-step tutorial is included in the attached video for a clearer and easier understanding of how to effectively use these tools.
The material file contains multiple types of costing data for each sheet stock material, solid stock, buyout item, edge band, and hardware item in the respective material file libraries. In the material file interface, you set the material cost for that material by the sheet, by a linear unit, or by the material unit (Each).
Please see the relevant material file fields and a short description of each below.
If you decide to enter and use a material file 'Labor Value' instead of the activity station 'Units Per Minute of Factory Time' for something such as material finishing or material handling, you must remember that the material labor value should be entered as a value representing 'Minutes Per Unit' (MPU) instead of 'Units Per Minute' (UPM). This is the inverse of the format required by the activity station's labor calculations.
Toolbox populates the data from the materials into the work order database parts, sheets, edgebanding, and hardware tables without alteration or re-calculation.
As the name implies, we use the activity stations to set the values for the time required for each labor operation or activity. The categories set up in the Activity Stations should reflect the various engineering, manufacturing, assembly, shipping, and installation processes in your shop. Every essential operation or group of operations that consume time in the process of producing a billable project can be assigned as an activity station. Configure each activity station with a time value and a labor rate if you want the report to display data for that operation in the reports.
As you process parts through various Activity Stations, some stations may require many minutes per part, and an activity interval assignment based on 'Units per Minutes' does not make sense for those stations. Here is another way to think about this that may make it easier to understand. Instead of 'Units per Minute' (UPM), think of the interval assigned as 'Minutes per Unit' (MPU). To determine 'Units per Minute' just divide the value of one by the minutes per unit that you determine each part will require in the activity station process to get the proper value (1/MPU).
In Figure 4, the Unit Type is 'Lineal Feet' (Linear). The value of 15 that is entered in the box Units Per Minute of Factory Time means that every minute the CNC machine associated with this processing station can route a distance equal to 15 feet. If the Unit Type is 'Each Parts' and the Units Per Minute of Factory Time is 0.2, the activities related to Part Assembly proceed at the rate of one part every five minutes.
See the table below for the default library values in the Component Cabinet version 50.5. This table can serve as a model for you as you set up your company data.
Toolbox populates the data from the activity stations into the factory database ActivityStations table without alteration or re-calculation.
Each software configuration contains an exclusive set of Activity Stations. Although the Activity Stations contain a section for default Processing stations, they are not defined by those stations, and it is not necessary to attach an Activity Station to a Processing Station. The Activity Station box located in the Processing Station setup screen is used for legacy purposes. It does not need to contain an Activity Station for the program to function correctly. On the other hand, if the Processing Station does contain an Activity Station in this box, nothing in the program is affected adversely.
In summary, the Processing Stations and the Activity Stations are separate entities and only connected because the button for accessing the Activity Stations is located in the Processing Stations tab of the Microvellum options.
We have set up the reports with the ability to tailor the output to your individual needs as the report contains multiple parameters in the header area of the report. Use these user input variables to display the report in the exact combination of predetermined formats you need. For example, open the Cost Based Estimating Report and notice that the header contains multiple parameters to which you add values or checkboxes ON or OFF to control the appearance of the report. These parameters also control the data to display on the report. The parameters for this report include whether you want to display the greyscale graphics bands, the markup percentage to apply to the report subtotal, the overhead percentage to apply, the finishing markup, and options to hide various costing categories on the rendered report.
We will now discuss the three report tabs we currently use with the Project Costing Tools in the Cost Based Estimating Report (Shop Quote, Shop Labor Quote, Customer Quote).
This report contains two main sections. The first section is Materials and contains the costs for the materials of all parts included in the work order. The second section is Labor and contains the cost of the labor necessary to design engineer and manufacture your products.
This report contains the cost of the labor necessary to design engineer and manufacture your products. This report draws its base labor values from the activity stations.
This report contains a list of products contained in the work order. It sums the material costs for all the parts of those products and the labor for the relevant activity stations, including tax. This report draws its base material cost values from the activity stations and the material file.
It also contains a legal statement of the Terms and Conditions that serves as a contract between the Customer and the Contractor.
This report contains the ability to export the report data via XML to external software. This requires the use of a plugin for functionality. The export page, when enabled, will be the last page of the report.
The reports are the main engine for calculating costing values in the Project Costing Tools. As noted elsewhere in this documentation, the values from the materials and activity stations are populated directly to the database without alteration. The reports take those values from the database and calculate the costs according to the user input variables set in the reports.