Managing Variations in Mastt

Objective

By the end of this guide, you'll be able to:

• Create and categorize contract variations
• Manage variation approval workflows
• Record preliminary and approved variation amounts
• Track time extensions (EOTs) through variations

Prerequisites

• Access to a Mastt project
• Existing contracts in the Cost Module
• Basic understanding of contract variations

Video Walkthrough

 

Step-by-Step Variation Management

Creating a New Variation

1. Accessing the Variation Module

• Click on Plus Add Variation in the top left corner
• The variation form will open

2. Basic Variation Information

• Enter a variation name
• Select the contract being varied
• Choose a variation category from the dropdown

3. Setting Variation Status

• Select the appropriate status:
  • Forecast: Preliminary estimate, uncommitted in financial reports
  • Pending: Under consideration, uncommitted in financial reports
  • In Principle: Agreed but not formalized, uncommitted in financial reports
  • Approved: Formally approved, committed in financial reports
  • Rejected: Denied variation, not visible in financial reports
  • Withdrawn: Cancelled variation, not visible in financial reports

4. Additional Reference Fields

• Under Additional Fields, enter relevant reference numbers:
  • Variation Number
  • Variation Price Request Number
  • Reference Number
  • Variation Order Number
  • Variation Approval Number
  • Clause
• Use these fields based on your project's governance requirements

Entering Variation Details

1. Contract Line Items

• The system displays the contract breakdown
• You can vary existing line items or add new variation items

2. Varying Existing Line Items

• Enter the variation amount against the specific line item being varied
• This modifies the existing contract line item

3. Adding New Variation Items

• Use the Contract Variation line item at the bottom
• Enter the variation amount for new items not associated with existing line items

4. Recording Preliminary Amounts

• Toggle on Submitted Amount to record initially requested amounts
• Enter the preliminary amount (what was initially requested)
• Enter the variation amount (what was approved)
• This helps document negotiated savings

5. Extension of Time (EOT)

• Record both Preliminary EOT and Variation EOT
• Similar to cost, this tracks both requested and approved time extensions

6. Completing the Variation

• Click Add to create the variation
• The variation appears in the Variation Module list

Managing Variations

1. Generating Documentation

• Click the three dots next to a variation
• Select Variation Approval PDF to generate formal documentation
• Download and circulate as needed

2. Changing Variation Status

• Click the three dots next to a variation
• Select Edit
• Update the status as the variation progresses through approval workflows

3. Deleting Variations

• Click the three dots next to a variation
• Select Delete
  
• Only delete variations created in error

Understanding Variation Status Impact

1. Financial Impact by Status

• Forecast/Pending/In Principle:
  • Appears in the "Uncommitted" column in the Cost Module
  • Not available in the Payments Module
• Approved:
  • Appears in the "Variation" column in the Cost Module
  • Available for payments in the Payments Module
• Rejected/Withdrawn:
  • Only visible in the Variation Module
  • Not included in financial calculations

2. Reporting Impact

• All variations appear in the variation tables on dashboards
• Filtering by status allows focused reporting

Common Pitfalls and Solutions

• Issue:  Variation not appearing for payment
  • Solution: Check that the status is "Approved"
• Issue: Can't find variation in financial reports
  • Solution: Verify the status and its impact on the financial columns
• Issue: EOT not working
  • Solution: Ensure original completion dates are set in the contract
• Issue: Preliminary vs. Variation amounts
  • Solution:  Only variation amounts affect financial calculations

Next Steps

Now that you understand how to manage variations, explore the Forecast Management guide to learn how to create and manage cost forecasts in Mastt.