This system map is part of the progress claim reconciliation guide. The guide is about what to inventory before a migration; this page maps where each record lives today and what holds them together.
Five systems that each hold one piece
A typical contractor spreads one claim across five places. None of them holds the whole story.
- Field measurement. Quantities, pour records, inspection dates and progress photos, captured by site engineers, sometimes in an app, often in workbooks.
- Project controls. Schedule of values lines with budget and percent complete; variations pending and approved.
- Claim workbooks. The submitted claim, version by version, usually exported from project controls and edited before sending.
- Document control or email. The client's certificate or payment schedule, with the reason for any reduction, plus surveyor queries.
- ERP. Progress invoices, certified amounts, receivables and retention.
The reason text in item 4 exists for a regulatory reason in some places. In New South Wales a payment schedule must state the scheduled amount and the reasons if it is less than the amount claimed, within the contract time or 10 business days, whichever is earlier. On U.S. federal fixed-price work, FAR 52.232-5 requires each payment request to be substantiated and certified, which pushes measured quantities into writing.
The map: system, record, linking key, owner
This is the page's evidence asset. Each row is a record class; the key column is what lets it join the next.
| System | Record | Linking key it carries | Owner | Common break |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Field measurement | Measured quantity, pour or inspection record | Line ID or cost code, measurement date | Project engineer | Kept in a personal workbook with no line ID |
| Project controls | Schedule of values line, percent complete | Line ID, contract or job number | Project controls manager | Codes renamed mid-project |
| Project controls | Variation register | Variation number, line ID once approved | Commercial manager | Pending variations claimed under a temporary line |
| Claim workbooks | Claim versions | Claim number and version, line IDs | Commercial manager | Earlier versions overwritten |
| Document control | Certificate or payment schedule | Certificate number, claim number | Commercial manager | Reason text only in a PDF, not indexed |
| ERP | Progress invoice and certified amount | Invoice number, job number, sometimes claim and certificate numbers | Financial controller | Invoice carries no claim or certificate reference |
| ERP | Retention and release | Job number, certificate number | Financial controller | Release events booked outside the job |
Retention needs its own row because its timing differs. FAR 52.232-27 makes progress payments due 14 days after a proper payment request is received, while retained amounts follow a separate timeline, so a job can be closed for billing and open for retention.
One variation joined end to end (Illustrative)
Illustrative; the contractor, project and figures are fictional. A 520-person civil and building contractor adds fire-stopping to a hospital car park after a design change. The work is instructed as variation 14 before it is priced.
| Step | System | Record | Key that joins it to the next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Project controls | Variation 14 registered as pending, temporary line V14 | Variation number |
| 2 | Field measurement | Fire-stopping installed on two levels, dated | Temporary line V14 |
| 3 | Claim workbooks | Claim 11 v1 includes V14 at the full quoted amount | Claim 11, version 1, line V14 |
| 4 | Document control | Payment schedule 11 certifies nothing on V14, reason "variation not yet approved" | Certificate 11 references claim 11 |
| 5 | Project controls | Variation 14 approved at a revised price; line V14 mapped to permanent line 7.4 | Mapping table V14 to 7.4 |
| 6 | Claim workbooks | Claim 12 v1 claims line 7.4 | Claim 12, line 7.4 |
| 7 | ERP | Invoice for claim 12 carries certificate 12 and job number | Certificate number |
Step 5 is the hinge. If the mapping from the temporary line to the permanent line was never recorded, steps 1 to 4 and steps 6 to 7 look like two unrelated events. The change order data page explains what the variation records themselves contain.
Scoring a client's map in one conversation
Ask the construction accountant and the project controls manager to rate each key. Record the rating, not the data.
| Key | Strong | Weak | Missing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Line ID or cost code | Stable, or renamed with a mapping table | Renamed, mapping in someone's head | Not used on measurements |
| Claim number and version | Every version saved | Final version only | Claims not numbered |
| Certificate number | On the ERP invoice | In document control only | Certificates filed by date |
| Variation mapping | Temporary to permanent line recorded | Recorded in email | Not recorded |
Two or more "strong" ratings, including the line ID, suggest a case can be joined without guesswork. Product export features differ by vendor and configuration, so do not assume them: ask the administrator whether superseded versions export, and ask finance whether invoices carry claim numbers. The general shape of instruction-to-output links is covered in recognizing linked task instructions and completed outputs, and accountants who run month-end close may recognize the same reference discipline from general ledger reconciliation.
Who confirms the map, and who decides
The project controls manager and financial controller confirm the keys; the commercial director knows which contracts have clean histories. The CEO decides whether a licensing discussion fits, with input from the CFO, and counsel reviews client confidentiality and government contract terms. For SourceX, an introduced company needs 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded), a documented operating history, rights to license and an authorized contact. Companies in the U.S., Canada and the EU qualify, as do companies in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, South Africa, Latin America, the UAE and Saudi Arabia when at least 90% of the data is in English.
What stays unknown until SourceX reviews it: buyer interest, the rights result, what must be removed and any offer. SourceX licenses approved business data directly from companies for AI training and evaluation, and manages the agreement, rights review, data preparation, delivery and payout. Partners sign the Channel Partner Agreement before submitting introductions; the first valid introduction within the 90-day window is credited when the company submits a verified application. For a single case read step by step, see the worked exception example; to hand the map's results to a decision-maker, use the referral brief template.
Next step
Refer a company. Earn up to $100,000. Default reward: 25% of Actual Supplier Payout, capped at $100,000 cumulatively per referred company. Eligibility and payment conditions apply, and a signed Schedule A or addendum can differ. A lead, meeting or signature alone does not trigger payment.
If a client's map scores strong on the line ID and at least one other key, register as a partner, check the contractor against who qualifies and read the program terms before the introduction.