Help CenterPurpose
The Estimations feature enables organizations to create, structure, calculate, and analyse commercial cost estimations for potential projects, products, or services.
An Estimation can range from a simple commercial calculation to a detailed delivery plan containing:
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Work Items and timelines
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Service requirements
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Effort planning
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Cost and selling-rate calculations
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Markup and margin rules
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Additional estimated costs
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Supporting documents
This provides visibility into the expected cost, selling price, profitability, effort, and delivery structure before a formal Proposal or Project is created.
💡Important: All names, companies, currencies, amounts, dates, work items, rates, and percentages shown in this article are illustrative examples. Available fields, options, and statuses depend on the organization’s configuration.
Relevant configuration may include:
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Control Center → Sales Management → Estimations
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Control Center → General → State Machine Contexts
Access Path
Sales Management → Estimations
1. Estimations Landing Page
The landing page provides an overview of all Estimations and their current lifecycle status.
1.1 Status Summary
The cards at the top of the page show the number of Estimations in each configured status.
| Status | Description |
|---|---|
| Worksheet | Estimation currently being prepared or edited. |
| Submitted | Estimation submitted for review or validation. |
| Validated | Estimation reviewed and validated. |
| Approved | Estimation formally approved. |
| Closed | Estimation process completed and closed. |
| Cancelled | Estimation discontinued or cancelled. |
Status availability and transitions depend on the configured state machine.
1.2 Estimation List
The list displays the Estimations available to the user.
Default columns include:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Name used to identify the Estimation. |
| Work Items | Indicates whether the Estimation contains a Plan/Timeline. |
| Status | Current lifecycle status of the Estimation. |
Additional columns may be available through Columns, depending on the platform configuration.
1.3 Available Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Add Estimation | Opens the form for creating an Estimation. |
| Refresh | Reloads the information displayed on the page. |
| Filters | Filters the Estimation list using the available criteria. |
| Export | Exports the displayed information. |
| Columns | Defines which columns are displayed. |
| View | Opens an existing Estimation. |
| More options (…) | Provides additional actions for the selected Estimation, when available. |
Pagination controls and the number of records displayed per page are available at the bottom of the list.
2. Creating an Estimation
Select Add Estimation from the landing page.
The initial form defines the Estimation’s basic identification, organizational scope, currency, and planning model.
2.1 Field Descriptions
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Estimation to Import | Creates the new Estimation using an existing Estimation as its starting point or template. |
| Name* | Required name used to identify the Estimation. |
| Companies | Defines the company or companies under which the Estimation is created and available. |
| Fronting Company | Identifies the company commercially presented as responsible for the future offer or engagement. |
| Currency* | Required currency used for cost, price, margin, and profitability calculations. |
| Work Items | Determines whether the Estimation is created with a Plan/Timeline containing detailed Work Items. |
2.2 Work Items Toggle
Enable Create Estimation with a Plan/Timeline when the Estimation requires:
- Detailed Work Items
- Start and end dates
- Parent-child structures
- Dependencies
- Service requirements
- Effort planning
- A Gantt timeline
When it is not enabled, the Estimation can be used without a detailed Work Item plan.
2.3 Available Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Save | Creates the Estimation and opens its record. |
| Save and New | Creates the Estimation and opens another blank creation form. |
| Cancel | Discards the entered information and closes the form. |
3. Estimation Record
After creation, the Estimation record displays its identification, commercial settings, calculated KPIs, planning information, costs, and documents.
The current status appears next to the Estimation name.
3.1 Header Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| History | Displays the history of changes made to the Estimation, when available. |
| Activities | Opens the activities associated with the Estimation. |
| Delete | Deletes the Estimation, subject to permissions and business rules. |
4. Header Information
The Estimation header contains the principal commercial, organizational, and ownership fields.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name* | Name used to identify the Estimation. |
| Currency | Currency used for all financial calculations. |
| Type | Defines the calculation method applied to the Estimation, such as Fixed Markup. |
| Fixed Markup | Markup percentage applied when the selected Estimation Type uses a fixed markup. |
| Account | Customer Account associated with the Estimation. |
| Contact | Customer Contact associated with the Estimation. |
| Companies | Company or companies responsible for the Estimation. |
| Fronting Company | Company commercially presented in the future engagement. |
| Owners | Users responsible for managing the Estimation. |
| Financials | Users responsible for reviewing or managing its financial information. |
The fields displayed and their available values may depend on Control Center configuration and user permissions.
5. Estimation KPIs
The KPI cards provide a consolidated financial and effort overview.
| KPI | Description |
|---|---|
| Total Cost | Total calculated cost of the requirements included in the Estimation. |
| Total Sell Price | Total amount calculated for sale to the customer. |
| Total Profit | Difference between Total Sell Price and Total Cost. |
| Margin | Profit expressed as a percentage of the Total Sell Price. |
| Total Effort | Total effort calculated from the included requirements. |
| Blended Cost Rate | Average cost rate per effort unit across the Estimation. |
| Blended Sell Rate | Average selling rate per effort unit across the Estimation. |
The KPIs are recalculated as the Work Items, requirements, effort, pricing, or other calculation components are updated.
6. Estimation Tabs
The Estimation record is organized into four main tabs:
- Summary
- Work Items
- Costs
- Documents
6.1 Summary Tab
The Summary tab consolidates the financial results of the Estimation by Work Item and requirement.
It allows users to understand how each component contributes to the overall cost, selling price, profit, margin, markup, and effort.
Displayed Information
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Total Cost | Total cost calculated for the Work Item or requirement. |
| Total Sell Price | Total calculated selling price. |
| Total Profit | Difference between Total Sell Price and Total Cost. |
| Margin Percentage | Profit expressed as a percentage of the selling price. |
| Markup Percentage | Percentage applied to the cost to calculate the selling price. |
| Effort | Total calculated effort. |
The hierarchy can be opened to display the requirements associated with each Work Item.
Use Expand All or Collapse All to manage the level of detail shown.
6.2 Work Items Tab
The Work Items tab is available when the Estimation was created with a Plan/Timeline.
It presents the Estimation’s delivery structure in a Gantt-style timeline, showing Work Items against their planned dates.
Available Timeline Controls
The timeline provides controls for:
- Zooming in
- Zooming out
- Zooming to fit
- Expanding the hierarchy
- Collapsing the hierarchy
Adding a Work Item
Select Add Work Item and choose one of the following options:
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| From Scratch | Creates a new Work Item specifically for the Estimation. |
| From Existing Work Item | Reuses an existing Work Item as the basis for the new entry. |
7. Adding a Work Item
The Add Work Item form is divided into:
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Overview
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Requirements
7.1 Overview
The Overview tab defines the Work Item’s identity, schedule, structure, and dependencies.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name* | Required name used to identify the Work Item. |
| Dates | Defines the Work Item’s planned start date, end date, and calculated duration. |
| Parent | Assigns the Work Item beneath another Work Item, creating a hierarchical structure. |
| Predecessors | Defines Work Items that must precede or influence the scheduling of the current Work Item. |
| Include | Specifies whether the Work Item is included in calculations and whether it is imported into the resulting Project. |
The Include option is particularly important: a Work Item may remain visible in the Estimation structure while being excluded from calculations and future Project import when the toggle is disabled.
Available Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Adds the Work Item and closes the form. |
| Add and New | Adds the Work Item and opens a new blank form. |
| Cancel | Discards the entered information. |
7.2 Requirements
Requirements define the services, effort, cost, and selling values associated with a Work Item.
The Requirements tab provides actions for:
- Adding a Requirement
- Exporting the Requirements list
- Selecting displayed columns
The list may display:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Name of the Requirement. |
| Service | Service associated with the Requirement. |
| Total Effort | Calculated effort for the Requirement. |
| Total Cost | Calculated total cost. |
| Net Sell Price | Calculated net selling price. |
8. Adding a Requirement
The Add Requirement form is divided into:
- Pricing
- Effort
8.1 Pricing
The Pricing tab defines the Requirement’s service and commercial calculation.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Service | Service represented by the Requirement. |
| Name* | Required name used to identify the Requirement. |
| Code | Internal or external code associated with the Requirement. |
| Unit Cost | Cost per unit in the Estimation currency. |
| Exchanged Unit Cost | Unit cost converted into the Estimation currency when currency conversion applies. |
| Margin Percentage | Margin calculated between the cost and selling price. |
| Markup Percentage | Percentage added to cost to calculate the selling price. |
| Net Unit Sell | Net selling value per unit. |
| Total Effort | Total quantity or effort used in the calculation, including its unit. |
| Total Cost | Total calculated cost of the Requirement. |
| Net Sell Price | Total calculated selling price of the Requirement. |
Some values may be automatically calculated according to the selected Estimation Type and configured pricing rules.
8.2 Effort
The Effort tab defines how effort is distributed throughout the Requirement’s planned period.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Effort Type | Defines the method used to distribute or calculate effort, such as Effort per Day. |
| Effort per Day | Default effort allocated to each applicable working day. |
| Days of the Week | Defines which weekdays are included in the effort calculation. |
| Calendar | Displays the Requirement period and allows daily effort values to be reviewed or adjusted. |
The calendar supports a more precise effort distribution when the same amount is not required on every day.
Available Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Adds the Requirement and closes the form. |
| Add and New | Adds the Requirement and opens another blank Requirement. |
| Cancel | Discards the entered information. |
9. Costs Tab
The Costs tab records additional estimated costs that may not be represented directly by service requirements or effort.
Examples may include:
- Travel
- Transport
- Meals
- Accommodation
- External expenses
- Other project-related costs
9.1 Total Estimated Cost
The top of the tab displays Total Estimated Cost, representing the sum of the cost records listed in this area.
This value is presented independently from the Estimation’s main Work Item calculation KPIs.
9.2 Cost Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Name or description of the estimated cost. |
| Code | Code used to identify or classify the cost. |
| Estimated Cost | Expected monetary value of the cost in the displayed currency. |
9.3 Available Actions
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Add New | Creates a new estimated cost manually. |
| Import From Cost Center Template | Imports a predefined cost structure from a Cost Center Template. |
| More options (…) | Provides actions for an individual cost record. |
| Expand All | Expands the displayed cost structure, where applicable. |
| Collapse All | Collapses the displayed cost structure. |
Cost Center Templates help standardize frequently used expense structures and reduce repeated manual entry.
10. Documents Tab
The Documents tab stores supporting files associated with the Estimation.
Examples may include:
- Cost spreadsheets
- Scoping documents
- Work breakdown structures
- Statements of Work
- Technical specifications
- Internal review documents
- Supporting commercial documentation
Files can be uploaded using:
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Drag & Drop
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Browse
This keeps the commercial calculation and its supporting evidence centralized within the Estimation record.
11. Estimation Lifecycle
An Estimation may progress through the configured state machine:
Worksheet → Submitted → Validated → Approved → Closed
An Estimation may also move to Cancelled when it is no longer required.
The exact transition rules, permissions, validations, and mandatory steps depend on the configured State Machine Context.
12. Editing and Managing an Estimation
Subject to its current status and user permissions, users may:
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Update the Estimation’s header information.
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Associate an Account and Contact.
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Assign Owners and Financials.
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Change the Estimation Type or markup settings.
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Create or reuse Work Items.
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Define Work Item hierarchies and dependencies.
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Add service Requirements.
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Configure pricing and effort.
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Add supplementary estimated costs.
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Upload supporting documents.
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Review recalculated KPIs.
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Consult the Estimation’s History.
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Create and manage related Activities.
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Delete the Estimation where permitted.
Once an Estimation reaches a controlled status, such as Submitted, Validated, Approved, or Closed, editing may be restricted according to the configured workflow.
13. Recommendations
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Use clear Estimation, Work Item, and Requirement names.
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Select the correct currency before entering financial values.
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Confirm the appropriate calculation Type and markup rule.
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Associate the relevant Account and Contact when the Estimation relates to a specific customer.
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Use Work Items when delivery structure, dependencies, effort, or timeline validation is required.
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Use parent and predecessor relationships to create a realistic delivery plan.
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Confirm that the Include toggle is correctly set for every Work Item.
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Validate cost rates, selling rates, margins, and markup percentages before submission.
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Use Cost Center Templates for recurring expense structures.
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Attach the supporting calculation and scope documents.
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Review Total Effort and blended rates to confirm delivery and pricing feasibility.
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Review all information before progressing the Estimation through its lifecycle.
14. Summary
The Estimations feature combines commercial pricing with delivery planning.
It supports:
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Estimation creation and lifecycle management
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Customer and organizational assignment
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Markup and margin calculations
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Profitability analysis
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Work Item and Gantt planning
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Hierarchical and dependent Work Items
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Requirement-level pricing
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Calendar-based effort planning
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Additional estimated costs
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Cost Center Template imports
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Document management
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History and activity tracking
By combining cost, price, effort, and timeline information, Estimations provide a structured basis for evaluating commercial and operational feasibility before progressing further in the sales process.
Related Articles
Sales Management – Proposals
Sales Management – Opportunities
Sales Management – Accounts
Sales Management – Contacts
Project Management – Work Items
Project Management – Costs