View Current Forecast Page
Fields and Buttons
The fields and buttons located on this page are:
- Print: Click this button to print the forecast.
Forecast Details
- Project: This field displays the name of the project this forecast belongs to.
- Name: This field displays the name of the forecast.
- Description: This field displays the description for the forecast as entered by the user.
- Last Modified: This field displays the date this forecast was last modified and by whom.
- Forecasted Commitments: This field displays the total sum of forecasted commitments.
- Estimate At Completion: This field displays the estimate at completion, which equals the sum [Projected Commitments + Forecasted Commitments + Unallocated Reserve]. This column is equal to the Current or Projected Budget (initially) and then reflects real life circumstances (Forecasted Commitments) once the forecast is entered.
- Unallocated Reserve: Displays the dollar amount of unallocated reserve. This figure indicates the forecasted expenditures that are not yet tracked in a commitment.
The formula is as follows:
Unallocated Reserve = the Maximum of 0.00 OR (Current Budget + Σ (Detail Items that are not Budgeted) - Projected Commitments - Σ (Detail Items that are not Committed) ).
For every detail (forecast) item that you enter under a budget item, you can check the “Budgeted” and/ or “Committed” check boxes to indicate that those detail items are either “budgeted” (when checked) or “committed” (when checked). The formula therefore adjusts the unallocated reserve for each budget item upwards by the sum of detail items that have “Budgeted” box unchecked, and adjusts the unallocated reserve downwards by the sum of detail items that have the “Committed” box unchecked.
- Forecasted Over/(Under): Displays the amount you forecast is above or under your budget. If the value is positive it means the project is currently over budget. If the value is negative, then you are projected to meet or beat your budget.
Forecast Tab
- Expand/Collapse All (Toggle Hyperlink): Click the Collapse All link to collapse all the budget line items to display just the cost summary dollars. Click the Expand All link to display the cost summary dollars and each forecast item associated with the line items. Tip
Click the Collapse All link after entering all your forecast items to see the bottom line dollar amount.
- Group By (drop-down arrow): Click drop down menu to group the line items by different segmentation.
If your account code structure does not display more than one grouping, there will not be any additional Group By options. The Forecast utility has two modes: Detail Mode and Adjustment Mode.
- Switch to Adjustment Mode/ Detail Mode (Toggle Button): Click this button to toggle back and forth between Detail and Adjustment Modes. You may or may not be able to switch between Detailed and Adjustment modes, depending on account settings; for more information, see Forecasting Settings.
- Detail Mode: For each budget line item, a list of forecasted commitments is recorded. Each item represents a future commitment that is not represented as a commitment or commitment change within the cost module. In addition to the description, assumption and forecast amounts there are check boxes for each forecast item that indicates whether or not the item is captured in the budget or in in commitments.
- Adjustment Mode: Each time the forecast is updated in adjustment mode, the cost manager is evaluating, on a budget line item basis, the unallocated against the amount of work left on the job and adjusting the reserve up or down as necessary.
- Account Code: Displays the account code or budget line item code.
- Description: Displays the description of the account code.
- Budget: Displays the current or projected budget. The current budget equals the original (approved) budget + approved budget changes. The projected budget equals the original (approved) budget + all pending, projected, and approved budget changes. Typically, a budget is the likely expenditure/ receipt of revenue.
- Current Commitments: This is the amount of all approved commitment changes plus original commitments, and approved general invoices. The formula is as follows:
Current Commitments = (approved commitment changes) + (original commitments) + (approved general invoices).
- Projected Commitments: This total is the sum of current commitments, pending commitments, pending commitment changes and projected commitments.
When cost items are pending or projected, a vendor is identified. These items are part of your overall forecast.
- Actuals Approved: Depending on account settings, this column may or may not display. This is the amount of all approved invoices.
- Forecasted Commitments: Displays the list of specific scope items with Forecasted Commitment amounts. Note that the figure includes only those forecasted commitments with the Committed check box cleared. If your forecasted commitment is more than your budget and the unallocated reserve check box is selected, the over/(under) will be the difference of the two. For example, if your budget is $10 and your forecasted commitments is $20, your over/(under) will be $10.
- Unallocated Reserve: Displays the dollar amount of unallocated reserve. This figure indicates the forecasted expenditures that are not yet tracked in a commitment. The formula is as follows:
Unallocated Reserve = the Maximum of 0.00 OR (Current Budget + Σ (Detail Items that are not Budgeted) - Projected Commitments - Σ (Detail Items that are not Committed) ).
For every detail (forecast) item that you enter under a budget item, you can check the “Budgeted” and/ or “Committed” check boxes to indicate that those detail items are either “budgeted” (when checked) or “committed” (when checked). The formula therefore adjusts the unallocated reserve for each budget item upwards by the sum of detail items that have “Budgeted” box unchecked, and adjusts the unallocated reserve downwards by the sum of detail items that have the “Committed” box unchecked.
- Estimate at Completion (EAC): Displays the Estimate at Completion, which equals the sum [Projected Commitments + Forecasted Commitments + Unallocated Reserve]. This column is equal to the Current or Projected Budget (initially) and then reflects real life circumstances (Forecasted Commitments) once the forecast is entered.
- Forecasted Over/(Under): Displays the forecasted Over/(Under), which equals the difference between the Estimate at Completion and the Current or Projected Budget. So if the value is positive, if the project ended right at this given point in time, it would be over budget; if -0- or negative, you would meet or beat your targets.
- Documents Tab: This tab displays any files that have been attached to the forecast. From here you can also attach or remove documents from the forecast.
- Forms Tab: This tab displays any forms that have been attached to the forecast. From here you can also attach or remove forms from the forecast.
- Processes Tab: This tab displays any processes that have been attached to the forecast. From here you can also attach or remove processes from the forecast.