Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/105134
Contract Billing & Getting Paid Firsthand Accounts from Birmingham Restaurant Supply's Accounting & Contract Departments on AIA and Avoiding Delays By Stacy War d, Man agin g Editor fedastacy@ izon .n et ver etting paid for contract work can be G tricky. Writing about it is even trickier.There are no easy answers. Every job is different, and comes standard with a new contractor, that contractor's list of preferences and a set of unknowns that could delay payment for an additional 30 days. Curveballs are part of the job, says Gloria Dille, who was recruited by Birmingham Restaurant Supply, Inc. (BRESCO) nearly two years ago for her knowledge of the AIA billing process. Along with co-workers Nita Trantham and Jessie Cason, Dille handles the billing for 40 plus jobs, in addition to other accounting duties."Every contract is different," she says, "so everyone is kind of green on any new projects. Even Nita and I have problems sometimes.We deal with several contractors and each one may have a different person working on different projects. People may know their part of the job like the back of their hand, but you throw in something outside of those lines and it causes mass confusion and can delay orders and billing. "Just last week, for example, we had an issue with a supplier that refused to send product because the customer did not require the general contractor to get a performance bond. That sent the job into a tailspin. After many confusing calls and emails between BRESCO, the customer, and the contractor, our owner [George Tobia] agreed to just purchase a payment bond to make the supplier happy and send out the items. This threw a wrench in the process and all had to drop everything and get it handled in order to get the job installed on time." That's what makes the billing and collections process challenging—not necessarily filling out an AIA form, according to Dille. Developed by the American Institute of Architects continued on page 12 "BRESCO's been in business for almost 40 years and contract billing and collections has gotten a lot more complicated," says Vice President of Finance Anne Shiller. "Every contract is different. Some require lien releases, others require we bill only our cost until the items are actually installed or on the jobsite. There are jobs where we can invoice for stored materials at the contract price. Insurance certificates are almost always required; certified payrolls are sometimes required. Thankfully, we have many team members because it's a very large portion of our business with significant dollars involved." 1 0 FEDA New s & View s