What system defaults do
System defaults set the starting values that Project Commander pre-fills when you create new projects and documents. Setting sensible defaults saves time and reduces the chance of someone forgetting to enter a value.
Configuring system defaults
Navigate to Settings > Configuration > System Defaults. The page is divided into three cards.
General defaults
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Default Project Type | The project type pre-selected when creating a new project. Populated from your project types list. |
| Default Billing Method | How projects are billed by default — either Applications & Payment Notices or Direct Invoices. |
| Default VAT Rate | The VAT rate pre-selected on new line items. Populated from your VAT rates list. |
| Default Retention/MCD Method | The order in which retention and MCD (main contractor's discount) are calculated. Options: MCD, Retention — Retention, MCD — MCD & Retention on Gross. |
| Default MCD Percentage | The MCD percentage pre-filled on new projects. |
| Default Retention Percentage | The retention percentage pre-filled on new projects. |
Variation markup defaults
These values pre-fill when creating Variation Order (VO) items:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Default Material Markup | Percentage markup applied to materials |
| Default Labour Markup | Percentage markup applied to labour |
| Default Subcontractor Markup | Percentage markup applied to subcontractor costs |
| Default Labour Rate (Per Hour) | Hourly labour rate in GBP |
Daywork markup defaults
These values pre-fill when creating Daywork (DW) items. The fields are identical to the Variation defaults but apply to Dayworks specifically.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Default Material Markup | Percentage markup applied to materials |
| Default Labour Markup | Percentage markup applied to labour |
| Default Subcontractor Markup | Percentage markup applied to subcontractor costs |
| Default Labour Rate (Per Hour) | Hourly labour rate in GBP |
You can override any default on a per-project or per-document basis. Defaults are starting points, not fixed values.
Saving your changes
Click Save Defaults at the bottom of the page. The new values will apply to all projects and documents created from that point forward. Existing projects and documents are not affected.
Next steps
- System Prefixes — configure document number prefixes and auto-numbering.
- VAT Rates — manage the VAT rates available in the system.
- System Notes — set up predefined notes for different document types.