Plan the stages around one customer
Create a project with a customer, scope, start date and due date. Add tasks for the stages the office needs to coordinate, assign responsible users and identify the tasks that represent billing milestones.
An HVAC installation might contain a site assessment, installation and commissioning. A task can link to an existing work order for the same customer. The project gathers the stages; the work order continues to hold the job details, field activity and amounts used for billing.
Complete prerequisites before starting dependent work
A new task can depend on existing tasks in the project. Activate the project before progressing tasks from pending to in progress and then completed. Prerequisites must be completed before a dependent task can proceed.
If a task links to a work order, complete that job before marking the task complete. A task cannot be reopened after it has been invoiced or after dependent work has started. These checks help prevent the project view from contradicting the commercial and field records already created.
Invoice completed milestones from the linked job
A billing milestone must be marked complete and linked to a completed job. Generating its invoice uses that job’s existing invoice workflow and recorded amounts. If an invoice already exists for the job, the milestone reuses it.
For staged installation billing, create appropriately scoped jobs for the billable stages and link each to its milestone. This implementation does not calculate percentage-complete claims, retention or arbitrary milestone amounts. Repeating the milestone invoice action does not create a second invoice.
Review completion before closing the project
Complete every project task before marking the project completed. The office can cancel a project or reopen an appropriate project when further coordination is needed. Linked job and invoice records remain the source for their respective workflows.
Evaluate this with a small installation that your team already understands. Check prerequisite handling and one milestone invoice. WorkOrderPro is aimed at service and trade project coordination; it is not presented as BIM software, a construction programme scheduler or a replacement for specialist contract accounting.