Cobra Components

Learn about the Cobra calendar, codes, rates, resources, and classes and cost sets.

When you first set up Cobra, you need to configure the system to reflect some of your basic business related standards such as your calendar, resources, rates, reporting and so on. After they are set up, you can associate these components with each new project you create.

In this section we describe these components in more detail so you can get a sense of how flexible they are and how they affect your project. If you really want to understand the components in detail, access the links that are included in the various component topics.

Calendars

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The first step is to create the primary calendar with calendar periods. The date and time spans determine how budget is spread across reporting periods, how costs are summarized, and how the information is displayed in reports. The calendar periods can be different lengths as long as they span the entire duration of the project. When you add information to a project, it is stored in the calendar period buckets defined by the calendar. It is a best practice to extend your calendar beyond the expected finish date, to account for potential slippage. You can create a new calendar by clicking New and selecting Calendar. Use the Calendar Edit tab options to generate calendar periods, calculate hours, and edit the calendar properties, among other things.

Learn more about... Calendars Calendar Sets Edit Tab of the Calendar View Calendar File Properties Dialog Box How to ... Create a New Calendar Add Holidays to a Calendar Add Calendar Sets

Codes

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Codes are used to view information in different ways. You can use them to filter, group, and aggregate data for reporting purposes. For example, you might want to know how many contractors you have working in New York, or you might want to see the structural design costs in the Design department. Some additional examples of code files might include a list of managers, a list of charge numbers, or a hierarchical structure such as a work breakdown structure (WBS). You can use codes for projects, control accounts, work packages, resource assignments, and ancillary data. After creating a code file and assigning it, the codes are included in pick lists and accessed during data entry.

Learn more about... Codes Code Files Codes and the Report Wizard Code File Property Dialog Box Code Assignments Tab of the Project Properties Dialog Box Variance Thresholds Report Wizard How to ... Create a New Code File Assign Codes to a Project Enable a User to Access a Code File

Rates

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Rates Rates are used in resource calculations to define how costs are calculated. Since rates may change over time, you create a rate set which is a list of rates and the date each one goes into effect. The rates defined in a rate set can represent direct unburdened hourly rates, overhead rates, currency exchange rates, or any other type of multiplier whose value can be predicted over time. Rates are always defined before resources because you need to select a rate when you create the resource. Rate File A collection of rate sets is called a rate file. Different rate files typically include the same rate sets but with different rates. You can use multiple rate files in a project.

Learn more about... Rates Rate Sets Rate Files Example Rate File Rate Sets Rate File Properties Dialog Box How to ... Add a Rate to an Existing Rate Set

Resources

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Resources are the people (labor), material, and other related costs such as travel, subcontractors, and so on, that are assigned to work and in turn produce the costs associated with the project scope. The list of resources can be a flat list or it can be hierarchical to roll up for reporting purposes. The icon next to each resource indicates where resource calculations occur. Most often, the list of resources does not include names. For example, it is more typical to create a resource titled Engineer than a resource titled John (who is an Engineer). This makes it easier to maintain the project without having to keep up with personnel changes.

Learn more about... Resources Define Costs for Resources Calculations Tab of the Resource View Resource Components How to ... Create a New Resource File Add a Resource to a Resource File Add Calculations to a Resource Copy Calculations from Another Resource

Classes and Cost Sets

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There are four types of cost sets in Cobra that you use to define different types of costs: Budgets Earned value Actuals Forecasts For budgets, actuals, and forecasts, you can define different cost classes to group related costs together for reporting. For example, you can distinguish between different funding sources when budgeting, or distinguish between accounting, invoiced, or incurred actual costs. Cobra also allows you to create custom budget, forecast, and actual cost classes for special-purpose cost tracking. Some examples might include items such as funding profiles, alternative forecasts, and budgets.

Learn more about... Classes and Cost Sets Class Overview Custom Cost Classes How to ... Create a New Class Create a New Cost Set