Cost Centre Properties dialog - Default Assignment tab
You use the Default Assignment tab of the Cost Centre Properties dialog to maintain default cost and income details of the selected cost centre. These defaults are applied to each allocation of the cost centre, and you can amend them for each individual allocation.
You also use this tab to specify whether the cost values of allocations of this cost centre should be constant throughout the duration of the allocation or whether they should vary, being calculated using a resource curve. If you want to assign a resource curve to allocations of this cost centre by default, you select the resource curve on this tab.
How to access the Cost Centre Properties dialog
To access the Cost Centre Properties dialog, right-click a cost centre in Library Explorer or the project view and select Properties.
Explanation of the fields on the dialog
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Specify whether allocations of the cost centre relate to cost or income by default. |
| Calculation type |
Specify the way in which cost or income is calculated for allocations of the cost centre by default - either as a fixed amount, or based on time or task work.
|
| Start type |
Specify whether allocations of the cost centre should start on a fixed date, or relative to the start or finish of the tasks to which they are allocated.
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| Start delay |
If the start of allocations is relative to the start or finish of the tasks to which they are allocated, enter any period by which the start of the allocations is delayed in relation to the start or finish of the task.
|
| Start date | If allocations should start on a fixed date, enter the date and time on which they should start by default. |
| Finish type |
Specify whether allocations of the cost centre should finish on a fixed date, or relative to the start or finish of the tasks to which they are allocated.
|
| Point spend |
Select this check box to specify that allocations of the cost centre should be milestones, indicating that the cost or income occurs at a single point in time, or clear the check box to specify that the cost or income occurs over the duration of a task.
You can use the Point spend appearance field to specify the default appearance of the cost centre's point spend cost allocations.
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| Finish delay |
If the finish of allocations is relative to the start or finish of the tasks to which they are allocated, enter any period by which the finish of the allocations is delayed in relation to the start or finish of the task.
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| Finish date | If allocations should finish on a fixed date, enter the date and time on which they should finish by default. |
| Cost |
Enter the amount to be allocated by default. The amount you enter here is allocated per time unit or per unit of task work if you have selected a Calculation type other than Fixed.
If you want to represent a negative cost or income, you can enter a negative value in this field.
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| Accounted for elsewhere | Select this check box to exclude the allocations' completed costs from any task cost calculations, including roll-up costs on parent tasks, or clear the check box to include the costs in such calculations. |
| Point spend appearance |
For each cost centre, you can specify a milestone appearance to apply by default to point spend costs and income. You may want to apply a different milestone appearance to each cost centre to help differentiate between the point spend costs and income from different cost centres. Select the shape to apply to point spend allocations of the cost centre by default.
If you select a different milestone appearance in this field, a dialog appears asking if you want to update all existing allocations of this cost centre to use the new milestone appearance, or to leave existing allocations unchanged. |
| Lead resource |
As an alternative to colouring tasks according to the codes that are assigned to them, you can configure Asta Powerproject to colour them with the appearance of the lead resource that is assigned to them. Despite the name "lead resource", both resources and cost centres can be considered as lead resources, which means that you can colour tasks according to the appearance of the lead resource, or the lead cost centre that is assigned to them.
Select this check box to specify that the cost centre should be considered the lead resource when it is assigned to tasks. If you select this check box, the Lead resource check box will be selected by default on the Details tab of the allocation's properties dialog and tasks to which this cost centre is assigned will be displayed with the same appearance as this cost centre, if you choose to colour tasks according to the appearance of their lead resource.
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| Linear | Click this radio button to specify that allocations of the cost centre should be flat - linear - ie that cost values should remain constant throughout the duration of the cost centre's allocations. |
| Resource curve |
Click this radio button to specify that the cost values for allocations of the cost centre should not be constant throughout the duration of the allocations, but that they should be calculated using a resource curve.
Select the resource curve to apply to allocations of the cost centre in the field to the right of the radio button; click |
to view and maintain details of the resource curve.How do I...
... specify default cost and income details for allocations of the selected cost centre?
- Specify whether allocations of this cost centre relate to cost or income in the Type field.
- Specify the way in which the cost or income is calculated by default in the Calculation type field.
- Specify the way in which allocations of this cost centre are connected to their tasks by default using the fields in the Start and Finish groups.
- If the cost or income is to be paid or received at a specified point in time by default, select the Point spend field. As a point spend has no duration, the other fields in the Finish group are disabled.
- Enter the default amount of the cost or income in the Cost field. If the amount is time based, you must also specify a time unit to give, for example, the cost per hour; if the amount is work based, you specify the cost per work unit.
- To exclude the completed cost and income from any task cost calculations, select the Accounted for elsewhere check box.
- Select the shape to apply to point spend allocations of the cost centre by default in the Point spend appearance field.
- Select the Lead resource check box to specify that the cost centre should be considered the lead resource for the purposes of setting task appearance when it is assigned to tasks, or clear the check box to specify that this cost centre should not be considered the lead resource.
... specify whether the cost values of allocations of the cost centre should be linear or nonlinear?
- Click the Linear radio button to specify that allocations of the cost centre should be flat - linear - ie that cost values should remain constant throughout the duration of the cost centre's allocations.
- Click the Resource curve radio button and select a resource curve in the field to the right of the radio button to specify that the cost values for allocations of the cost centre should be calculated using a resource curve.
Representing negative cost and income
Ways of calculating costs and income
Configuring cost centres to use nonlinear allocations by default