Sunburst Software Solutions Inc

Determining the cost-per-hour for each piece of equipment that your company owns and uses on a job site is a great tool for understanding, and even eventually, recouping the actual cost of the equipment itself.

Equipment cost-per-hour rates are calculated by adding together three (3) distinct pieces of information.  Download this article to find out what they are.

The Equipment Cost Calculator is an Excel spreadsheet which has been designed to calculate the ACTUAL hourly rate it costs you to have a specific piece of equipment on the jobsite using the formulas that are outlined in the article "Determining Quipment Costs per Hour ". 

From the June 2010 edition of the QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.  

Most anyone will tell you that completing a certified payroll report on a weekly basis is a time-consuming, error-prone, and frustrating task!  The U.S. Department of Labor's Form WH-347 and WH-348 is one of the simplest forms to complete, however, they estimate that it will take 1 hour to complete a form containing information about eight employees for a single job.

You need to realize that a weekly certified payroll report is only one of the many possible reports that, you as a contractor working on Federal, State, or ARRA funded construction projects, will have to submit -- other required forms, such as Fringe Benefit Reports, EEOC/Work Utilization Reports, and ARRA Reports; are an important piece of your overall cash flow management.  When you screw up your certified payroll reports, bad things happen; none of which put you in good standing with the Project Owner/General Contractor, Department of Labor, etc. and can damage the overall cash position of your company.

From the March 2010 QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.  5 pages, .PDF format.

Most anyone will tell you that completing the AIA G-702 and G-703 forms by hand is frustrating and difficult.  To fill out one correctly, you pretty much have to:

• forget about any basic accounting principals you've ever learned
• ignore change orders that have been submitted or approved, but not processed
• ignore money that is still outstanding from previously submitted applications for payment

You need to realize that the payment applications that you submit are an important piece of your overall cash flow management.  When your payment applications get screwed up --- bad things happen; none of which put you in "good standing" with the General Contractor or Project Owner, and can ultimately damage your company's overall cash position.

The point is - you have NO choice except to learn how to fill out the AIA forms correctly!

This training file (zip file) is to be used in conjunction with the "What Is AIA Billing " page on our website.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  To avoid confusion the instructions contained in this articles are instructions for MANUALLY completing an AIA Billing form and HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE USE OF OUR AIA BILLING SOFTWARE.

The current economic situation has dealt a serious blow to both homebuilders and commercial contractors.  Like all downturns to the economy, this too shall pass; but, experts predict that it will take quite awhile for everything to stabilize.

However, all is not lost.....

Public Works construction could thrive.  If you listen to the news and read construction trade newsletters you hear that part of President-Elect Obama’s economic stimulus plan includes investing in our country’s infrastructure; which means public works construction projects.

4 pages, PDF format.  From the December 2008 Newsletter.

Whether you currently use QuickBooks or are thinking of using QuickBooks for your construction accounting package you need to be aware that QuickBooks, while a great software program, is a "generic" accounting program and will not do evrything that you may need it to for your business by itself, unlike more expensive construction specific software.

If you are like most contractors, you probably do not think of yourself as a "computer hardware/software expert' and turn this type of project over to someone else.  This unfortunately, is one of the major reasons that this type of project fails.

Read the complete article to find how you can make your project succeed!

6 pages, PDF Format.  From the October 2008 QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.

As a busy business owner it is quite easy to fall into the habit of simply turning over your business's accounting to someone else; because your time is best spent in the field and not in the office doing paperwork.  Not only is this a bad habit, it can also become a dangerous situation.

While it is fair to say, most people don't steal, embezzlement does happen; we hear about it or read about it in the newspapers all of the time.  This article contains some simple ideas that you can implement in order to reduce your chances of becoming a potential victim.

5 pages, PDF Format.  From the October 2008 QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.

Identity theft occurs when a thief uses your personal information without your permission to commit crime or fraud.  

This article contains tips that you can use to protect yourself, your business, and your employees.

3 pages, PDF Format.  From the October 2008 QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.

With computer technology becoming more complex and sophisticated, many business owners are hiring indeendent computer/IT conultants to update their existing computer systems and ensure that their business has the tools and training needed to run smoothly and efficiently.

The question is, as a business owner who is confused about more complex and sophisticated computer hardware and software -- HOW do you find a GOOD computer/IT consultant?

3 pages.  From the March 2008 Newsletter.

In Part 1 of our series on Email Etiquette (a series of articles that were done for another group) we'll talk about the importance of making a good first impression with your email communications.  After all, we only get one chance to meet a person for the first time - and first impressions do count!

3 pages.  From the January 2008 Newsletter.