Eliminating Double Entry: How Integrated Field Data Saves Thousands

In most construction companies running Foundation Software, the same data gets entered at least three times before it produces a paycheck. A foreman writes it on a paper timecard. An administrator types it into a spreadsheet. A payroll clerk enters it into Foundation. Each handoff is a chance for errors, delays, and wasted labor — and the cumulative cost is far higher than most companies realize.

The Double Entry Chain

Here’s how it typically works, step by step:

1. Foreman completes a paper timecard with employee names, hours, and cost codes.
2. Timecard requires manual signature approval — a wet signature from the superintendent or project manager.
3. Paper is delivered to the office — typically a one to two day delay while timecards travel from job sites.
4. Admin enters data into a tracking spreadsheet — errors are introduced through misread handwriting, transposed numbers, and missed entries.
5. Payroll re-enters data into Foundation — the same information is keyed in a second time, compounding the error rate.
6. Corrections and reconciliation happen weekly — someone has to find and fix the discrepancies between what was recorded in the field and what ended up in the system.

Every step in this chain costs time, and every manual handoff introduces risk.

The Financial Impact of Manual Processes

The costs break down across several categories:

• Data entry errors — Industry studies consistently show that manual data entry errors cost 1–3% of total payroll. On a $5 million annual payroll, that’s $50,000–$150,000 in misallocated costs.
• Administrative overhead for processing — The staff time dedicated to entering, verifying, and correcting timecard data runs $25,000–$75,000 per year for mid-size contractors.
• Duplicate data processing — The fully loaded cost of processing the same information multiple times represents $25,000–$150,000 per year in avoidable waste.
• Lost field productivity — Foremen spending 30+ minutes per day on paperwork instead of managing crews directly impacts project throughput.

What the Integration Handles Automatically

The Rhumbix and Foundation Software bidirectional sync eliminates re-entry across the board:

Foundation to Rhumbix

• Projects and budgets
• Cost codes
• Employee information (trade, classification, union affiliation)
• Equipment data
• Materials
• Client information

Rhumbix to Foundation

• Hours worked (for payroll processing)
• Production data
• Field notes and documentation

No spreadsheet intermediaries. No duplicate keying. No weekly reconciliation cycles.

What Users Are Saying

“Overall my experience with Rhumbix has been good — way better than our previous time keeping software. I really like the ease of entering projects, the ability to customize, sync between the accounting software, and the fact it is accessible anywhere at anytime.”
— Foundation Software Customer

The ROI Math

Here’s a straightforward framework for estimating the return:

• Average foreman time saved: 30 minutes/day × 250 working days = 125 hours/year per foreman
• Admin time saved on payroll: 2–3 days/week = 100+ hours/year
• Error reduction: 90%+ accuracy improvement over manual processes
• Reported ROI: 500–800% across the Rhumbix customer base

For a mid-size contractor with 10 foremen and a dedicated payroll team, the annual savings in time alone exceed the cost of the integration many times over — before accounting for the value of eliminating errors and improving cost data accuracy.

Stop Paying for Double Entry

Every dollar spent re-entering data that already exists in digital form is a dollar that could be improving margins, training crews, or winning new work. The Foundation Software and Rhumbix integration makes double entry a thing of the past.

Calculate Your Potential Savings — Talk to a Rhumbix Specialist