Purchasing and subcon claims for a fit‑out contractor.
How an interior fit-out contractor in Kuala Lumpur sees each job’s margin while it’s on site, and only pays subcons for work that’s done.
Purchase requests
To approve4OrderedGypsum board 12mm × 60 pcs
- Project
- Brickfields office, L12
- Asked by
- NVNavin · supervisor
- Needed
- Tue 13 Oct · loading bay B
Over budget
PR-319 · Sri Hartamas café · Harpreet
On screen: Every PO and subcon claim checked against the budget.A real project. The business isn’t named, and names and figures on the screens are changed.
- Business
- Interior fit-out contractor, Kuala Lumpur
- Team
- About 35 staff and 11 regular subcontractors
- Projects
- 5 to 8 at a time: offices, cafés, clinics
- First version
- 4 weeks
- Project size
- Business system, from RM 15k
How buying worked before.
Eight jobs at once, materials ordered on WhatsApp, and each budget kept in the owner’s head.
Supervisors ordered materials by WhatsApp, straight from the supplier. The office saw the invoice weeks later.
Quotes were compared when there was time, which was rarely.
Nobody knew how much of a project’s budget was already spent until the job was finished.
Four checks between a request and a payment.
Supervisors still ask on the phone, and suppliers still get a PO on WhatsApp. Everything in between is checked.
Supervisors request materials on the phone.
The supervisor picks the project, items and date, and sees the usual supplier, price and budget left before sending.
Order materials
Ceiling and partitions · Navin
Quotes compared, and every PO checked against the budget.
Within budget, the office approves it in one click, and over budget, the owner decides on his phone.
PR-318 · compare quotes
Quotes3History| Supplier | Per piece | Total | Delivers | Last paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Siling Awan SupplyLowest | 28.50 | 1,710.00 | Tue 13 Oct | 28.50 |
| Papan Tiga Trading | 29.80 | 1,788.00 | Wed 14 Oct | 29.20 |
| Kelip Board Supply | 31.00 | 1,860.00 | Mon 12 Oct | – |
Subcon claims checked against the site, before paying.
Each claim sits beside the supervisor’s recorded progress, waits if they don’t agree, and has back-charges taken off first.
Subcontractor claims · October
This month5Needs a look2| Subcontractor | Claims | Site says | This claim | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ukiran Halus JoineryBrickfields office, L12 · carpentry | 52% | 50% · Navin, 8 Oct | 18,400 | Claims more than site |
| Cermin Tenang GlassBrickfields office, L12 · glazing | 40% | 40% · photos 7 Oct | 9,800 | Approved |
| Datar Ceiling WorksSri Hartamas café · ceiling | 100% | Done · photos 7 Oct | 11,900 | Approved · less RM 1,850 |
| Kilat Arus ElectricalKuchai Lama clinic · wiring | 30% | 30% · Nithya, 9 Oct | 12,600 | Approved |
| Lantai Sejuk FlooringWangsa Maju retail unit · vinyl | 30% | Not started | 6,420 | On hold |
Every project’s margin, while there’s still time to act.
The owner sees a cost code running out while the job is still on site, not after the final account.
Project cost · Brickfields office, L12
By cost codeBy month| Cost code | Budget | Committed | Left | Used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceiling and partitionsBoards and studs, 3 suppliers | 96,000 | 87,580 | 8,420 | 91% |
| CarpentryUkiran Halus Joinery, and boards | 168,000 | 117,200 | 50,800 | 70% |
| GlazingCermin Tenang Glass | 58,000 | 42,500 | 15,500 | 73% |
| ElectricalSuis Terang Electrical | 88,000 | 64,200 | 23,800 | 73% |
| FlooringCarpet tiles, 3 suppliers | 50,000 | 38,900 | 11,100 | 78% |
| PaintingPaint, 2 POs | 24,000 | 9,880 | 14,120 | 41% |
| Site and preliminariesHoarding, protection, cleaning | 34,000 | 18,600 | 15,400 | 55% |
| Contingency4 small changes | 30,000 | 12,400 | 17,600 | 41% |
| Total | 548,000 | 391,260 | 156,740 | 71% |
Each part is a feature with its own fixed price, agreed before we start. See how this project was priced or get a fixed quote for yours →
From the supervisor’s request to the owner’s margin.
Navin asks for boards from site at 9 am. Logeswari has the quotes by noon, and Eric only sees what runs over budget.
- ×4Site supervisors
Navin and the other supervisors request materials and record progress for subcon claims.
- LSPurchasing · Logeswari
Compares quotes and sends POs, all in one place.
- ANProject manager · Anand
Sees each project’s budget and what’s already committed.
- VSAccounts · Vasanthi
Pays approved subcon claims and supplier invoices, already in AutoCount.
- ECOwner · Eric
Approves anything over budget, and sees every project’s margin.
- No more orders the office didn’t know about.
- No subcon claim paid before the site agrees.
- Every project’s margin known while the job is on site.
Purchasing first, then subcontractors.
Requests, quotes and POs went live after four weeks. Subcon claims and project cost were added once buying ran through the system.
Requests, quotes and POs
Subcontractors and project cost
Want purchasing and subcon claims checked like this?
Questions about this system.
What did this project cost?
Business system, from RM 15k. Every feature had a fixed price, agreed before work started, and the first 3 months of hosting and care were included.
Do suppliers have to use the system?
No. They receive the PO on WhatsApp or by email, as they do today. Quotes can be uploaded by the office.
Can subcontractors submit claims themselves?
Yes, through a simple page with their packages. Or the office records the claim they send, whichever suits them.
Does it work with AutoCount?
Yes. POs, supplier invoices and subcon payments go into AutoCount, so nobody types them twice.
Who owns the system?
You do. You get the source code, your data, the documentation and admin access.
Another question? 
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