SAM · Guide
Understand parts, labour and subcontracted job costs
EnglishUpdated Sep 13, 2026
Job costing helps managers compare what a job earns with what it costs the workshop. A selling price is not the same as a cost, and an estimated cost may differ from the final result.
Review a job's cost
- Open the relevant job order and review the available costing summary.
- Check the parts quantities and whether any are backordered.
- Review technician time and the labour-cost basis with an authorised manager.
- Check any additional cost lines and compare the result with the relevant profitability report.
Parts cost can use the purchase stock allocated to the job. A shortfall may be valued using an estimate, so a saved job is not proof that its entire cost is final. Package costing includes its consumed parts and recorded work.
Labour cost can be derived from an employee's salary and working-time settings or their hourly cost override. Staff without employee-pay access may see parts cost while labour cost, overall cost and margin remain withheld.
Record subcontracted or internal costs
Where your plan and permissions expose job cost lines, select the appropriate kind and enter its description and cost. A subcontracted Sublet line requires either the supplier or a vendor name, not both, and can include a customer selling price and paid/pending status.
A sublet can create a linked expense. Check for that linked record before entering another expense manually. An internal cost line is for internal job tracking; it does not itself create an expense or account movement.
What happens next
Cost information supports pricing and management review. It does not automatically collect money or prove that every reported margin includes every business expense.
Troubleshooting
If a linked sublet expense is already posted, its cost or vendor cannot simply be changed; the authorised finance user must review the void-and-correct process. If cost information is hidden, request the appropriate access rather than replacing it with guessed values.