project Numbers.... a discussion

It depends on how easily your filing/indexing system can store cross references to related projects.

For reference, we are using Carlson Survey, with work organized under project numbers. Our preferred method is to keep the survey working plan updated under the original job number, and save final drawings and PDF scans to a "Correspondence" folder using the new job number. A folder is created in the "Carlson Jobs" directory named "new# SEE old#" to help people quickly find the data. See the attached image, job numbers 25540 and 25569

I'd give some thought to privacy. The project number shouldn't let one person who sees it infer what other people connected with the property have been up to.

@ashton Oh, I did. In the example I shared, the certified plot plans (CPP in the folder name) are available as public records in the town building department. If someone want to find out, it's just an email away.

For Project #'s our accounting program refers to them as Job #s. Each Job # should be tied to an account. Do not add accounts # to the same Job #.?ÿ

Even if the account has a name change, say account John Smith is tied to Job # 2020-001 and has an ownership name change to John Smith LLC, do not change the account name for that account # (I know this cause I've done it, seemed like a good idea at the time, it wasn't) make a new account and do not use 2020-001 with John Smith LLC.?ÿ

A Job # can have many sub-jobs, but it needs to be the same client and account # and account name. If XYZ O&G (account # 12xxx) has you staking a pipeline (Job # 2020-xx1, SJ#6) and 1234 Engineering (account #10xx) hires you to topo a crossing for the pipeline then (Job # 2020-xx2, SJ#3).

Keep everything clean and separate. Keep good records, you may wish to use a GPS file from a job that has all the control, property corners, scale factor; nothing wrong with using the TBC file from Job # 2010-xxx for Job # 2020-001 as long as it's put in the job file and tracked.

It's all about keeping track from an accounting perspective, not from the field side although they should compliment each other, but the accounting side wins out when it comes to these questions.?ÿ

Can't stress it enough, to make life easier set-up projects and jobs orderly, that saves so much time doing billing, deposits, coding, taxes, ect.

We hand the accountant our records at the end of the year and taxes are simple for them.?ÿ?ÿ

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I picked up a habit at the highway department of assigning field work an SWO (survey work order) to any field work without consideration of the client.?ÿ My WO#s are chronological:?ÿ an example is 2010067.?ÿ The first two numbers are the year ('20), the next two are the month (October) and the last three are the count of the work orders that month...I've yet to log more than 999 jobs in any given month.

I maintain a file with nothing but W.O. folders.?ÿ The field work (and research) on any given project goes in that folder.?ÿ These are also maintained in a database cross-referencing section, township and range.?ÿ That has come in really handy over the years.

And for billing and correspondence I maintain a directory of clients and projects by names.?ÿ I copy over the field work to the client folder.?ÿ A developer named William Fold has a folder and each of his projects has a sub-folder listed by name.?ÿ Some clients have a hierarchy of folders by years and then project numbers.?ÿ

There are plenty of field work orders that get copied over into several other folders as a project progresses; sometimes through different client's.

It keeps my survey data clean and separate from client information.?ÿ If another surveyor ask me for info I can pass it on quickly without having to sift through it to see what's applicable.

I started this system in '99.?ÿ As screwy as it sounds, I don't think I could do it any other way after all these years.

Its kinda like an assessor's records. (Kinda as in until someone new gets elected and decides they want to do it differently, often mistaken as 'my way' I'm the elected official)

There is a master ID (unique ID) and that never changes.?ÿ This is just a database 101 process and simple is the only way to start.

Be it year, client or better yet just a class in a database that will be used to derive all the specific details and be able to be queried and isolated as you need the data.

My $0.02

If it's a new contract, it's a new job number.

My job folder names in widows are descriptive: Job Number Project-Client

For example: 19026 Ilani Garage-Swinerton

Project number 19026 (indicates the 26th project for 2019. If I look at a project, it gets a number, even if I don't propose or win the project.)

Project name is Ilani Garage

Client is Swinerton.

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For the same location I have multiple job number:

19034 ilani Warehouse topo - Swinerton

20023 ilani Warehouse-Swinerton

20025 ilani topo - HSW

20026 ilani celebration event - Ilani Corp

@tim-v-pls

Ours is similar only we separate out proposals first and then make a job if awarded.

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Ie.?ÿ

"P-20-0123 Client-Location-Brief Description" is the 123rd proposal of 2020.?ÿ If awarded, it takes the next available job number.

"Our Company Initials-20-0236 Client-Location-Brief Description"

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We use folder shortcuts in our root folder to link to other companies and departments (ie. structural, civil, mechanical, electrical, planning, landscape, etc.). Large projects are uploaded to OneDrive for department coordination.

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All info, time, expenses, and disbursements are entered and billed within Unanet A/E.

https://unanet.com/erp-for-a-e/erp-for-a-e-overview

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@tim-v-pls

We have a job card system, for each job and sub-job a job card is attached, with the location of the job by state, county, section, subdivision, ect.?ÿ

Under the job is a description of the job and each sub job if there is more than one. I do like your system of descriptive names, I can see where it could save some time since our system tends to get cobbled up with numbers of jobs and sub jobs attached to single clients.?ÿ

For years we've sort of had a dual filing system.?ÿ The paper folder and all the printouts go in the file cabinet filed by Tax Map and Parcel number.?ÿ This allows all the projects to be tied to a location.?ÿ The electronic files are tied to a chronological number.?ÿ Every client on the same site gets a different number.?ÿ?ÿ This cuts down on billing confusion.

We have a job number for the physical address. We have done multiple jobs on the same property for different clients many times. We just add a modifier to the original number to differentiate between clients, like 3200 is the original, then 3200.01, 3200.02, etc. Even things like the contractor is paying for layout after we did survey or permitting for the owner.

@paul-d?ÿ ?ÿI think that makes a lot of sense.?ÿ ?ÿthanks

I'd be afraid to sort my data using tax IDs.?ÿ In New England, tax maps are created and managed by towns and vary greatly.?ÿ NC's parcel IDs are, in theory, created by calculating the centroid of each parcel's polygon feature then combining the Grid coordinates: Parcel centroid = N:555555 E:1111111 ; Parcel ID = 1515151515151.

The problem is that we are a couple years away from a new datum and the coordinates will shift.?ÿ Will the state require counties to create new parcel IDs??ÿ Also, during the early years of GIS, there was little oversight of the typically younger GIS administrators.?ÿ I am aware of entire counties where the tax IDs have no practical connection to the centroid coordinate.?ÿ Will these counties eventually update the parcel IDs??ÿ?ÿ

If starting from scratch, I would avoid a filing system that is based on tax maps, addresses or anything that can be changed by others.

If I were to hang my own shingle, I would download a free copy of QGIS and enter most of my data there.?ÿ The query feature of any GIS gives a user multiple ways in which to search for data.?ÿ On the accounting end, you can (somewhat) easily combine spreadsheets with spatial data.

The firm I work for has a handful of landfills that weƒ??ve worked on for over thirty years.?ÿ On QGIS, this would mean that if I selected the landfill polygon a long list of all the project numbers associated with it would pop up.?ÿ Besides being able to see the extent of survey work separated by project number and?ÿ QGIS layer, you would also get a brief description of the work, the invoice, and links to digital files.?ÿ Remember, GIS is a tool that allows humans to better visualize spatial data.?ÿ?ÿ