Free Manufacturing Project Management Software
Catalystk is free project management software for manufacturing and engineering companies. Link every project to its bill of materials, job orders and work orders, track milestones and costs, manage engineering reviews and approvals, and bill as work completes, online or on mobile. Free download of project reports in Excel and PDF.
- 100% free
- BOM, job & work orders
- Costing & margin
- Engineering approvals
- Excel & PDF download
How manufacturing project management works in Catalystk
A custom order moves from enquiry to final invoice through five linked records.
- 1
Register the order as a project
Capture the customer, value, unit, cost centre and the delivery window agreed with the buyer.
- 2
Cost the job
Build a costing, check the margin and turn it into the quotation the customer accepts.
- 3
Define what gets made
Set up the bill of materials and plan raw materials with MRP.
- 4
Release production
Issue job orders and work orders so the shop floor knows what to build and how much.
- 5
Invoice by stage
Bill design approval, dispatch or commissioning as milestones and export reports to Excel or PDF.
Project management software for manufacturing
Make-to-order manufacturers rarely run one identical product line. A special machine, a fabricated structure or a batch of custom panels behaves like a project, with its own customer, price, delivery date and payment terms. Catalystk is project management software for manufacturing that treats each such order as a project, while the production records stay in the free manufacturing module of the same account.
Each project carries a code such as PRJ-0001, the customer, the business unit and cost centre, the contract amount in any currency and the planned start and finish dates. Payment stages like advance, design approval, dispatch and installation become milestones you can bill. Planners, buyers and accounts look at one record instead of trading spreadsheets about a job that is already on the shop floor.
- One project per customer order or contract
- Multi-currency values for export orders
- Milestones for advance, dispatch and installation
- Production records in the same free account
Project management software for engineering companies
Firms that design, fabricate and install equipment juggle drawings, approvals and long lead times. Catalystk gives engineering companies a free place to hold each contract: the signed agreement or customer PO uploaded to the project, the terms and conditions that apply, and the named people who must check the work before it moves on to the next stage.
Milestones follow the way engineering contracts are usually paid, for example drawing approval, factory acceptance, delivery and commissioning. Enter a percentage or an amount for each one and the other value is filled in from the project total. The project list shows every contract with its status, value, dates and milestone count, so a manager sees which jobs are waiting and which are running.
Link projects to bills of materials, job orders and work orders
The project tells you what the customer is paying for; the manufacturing records tell the factory what to build. Define the components and raw materials in a bill of materials, then release a job order for the item the project needs. Everyone on the order works from the same structure instead of a hand-written parts list.
When production is ready, create a work order from the BOM so the shop floor has exact quantities. Because the project, the BOM and the orders sit in one free system, planners move from the customer commitment to the production instruction without re-entering part numbers, and accounts can bill the matching milestone once the goods are ready for dispatch.
Project costing for manufacturing jobs
Pricing a custom job too low can wipe out the profit on the whole order. Catalystk lets you create a costing for the job, giving it a number, a date and a name and linking it to the deal in the CRM. Attach the costing to the project and you can see the total estimated cost alongside the margin against the contract value.
Once the figures look right, convert the costing into a quotation so the customer receives a price built on real numbers. If you are new to the module, read how costing works. For budgets, billed amounts and margin across all your projects, see free project cost tracking software.
Material planning for manufacturing projects
A late bearing or a short sheet of steel can hold up an entire order. Catalystk includes MRP material planning, which uses the bill of materials to work out the raw materials and components production will need. Running MRP before releasing job orders gives the purchase team time to order long-lead items, rather than finding gaps when the work order reaches the floor.
Shortages can then go to purchasing as purchase requests, RFQs and purchase orders, with goods receipts recorded as material arrives and stock kept in inventory. Planning, buying and storing happen in the same free account as the customer project, so the buyer and the project manager look at the same order. See free procurement software for the buying side.
Engineering reviews and approvals for each project
Design errors are cheapest to fix before metal is cut. Assign reviewers to every manufacturing project, such as the design lead or quality engineer, and approvers, such as the plant head or managing director. The project starts as a draft, goes to review and then approval, and once approved its commercial details are locked, ready for production to begin.
Reviewers and approvers are listed on the project dashboard next to the contract value, invoiced amount, work done and days remaining. That makes accountability visible: if a job has not started, you can tell whether it is waiting for an engineering review or for the customer's advance. Project details can be previewed, printed or emailed ahead of a review meeting.
Free download: manufacturing project reports in Excel and PDF
Customers buying engineered equipment often expect a formal status update with each payment request. Catalystk lets you download the project, its milestones and reports in Excel and PDF for free, as often as you like. Attach the PDF to an email for the buyer, or print it for a factory review with the production and quality teams.
The Excel export suits production meetings and finance: sort milestones by due date, see which stages are invoiced and which remain, and combine several orders into one sheet. Nothing is locked behind a paid tier, and the same downloads are available to every user you add to the account.
Manufacturing Project Management: frequently asked questions
Is Catalystk free project management software for manufacturing?
Yes. Projects, milestones, costing, BOM, MRP, job orders, work orders, approvals and Excel and PDF downloads are all part of the free-forever plan, with no credit card and unlimited users.
Is it suitable as project management software for engineering companies?
Yes. Engineering firms can upload the contract, assign design and quality reviewers, set milestones such as drawing approval or commissioning, and invoice each stage. The project list shows every contract with its status and value.
Can I link a project to a bill of materials, job orders and work orders?
Yes. The BOM, job orders and work orders are created in the free manufacturing module of the same account, so each project and its production records sit together. Our guides explain how to create a BOM, a job order and a work order.
How does project costing work for manufacturing jobs?
Create a costing for the job, link it to the project and see the total cost and margin against the contract value. When the numbers are right, convert the costing into a quotation for the customer.
Does it help with material planning for manufacturing projects?
Yes. MRP material planning uses the bill of materials to work out what production needs. Shortages can be bought through purchase requests and purchase orders, and received stock is tracked in inventory.
How do engineering reviews and approvals work?
Add reviewers, such as a design lead or quality engineer, and approvers, such as the plant head. A project moves from Draft to In Review, In Approval and Approved, and each step is recorded in its activity log. The dashboard shows who is on the team.
Can I download manufacturing project reports in Excel or PDF?
Yes. Download the project, its milestones and reports in Excel or PDF free. You can also preview, print or email a project from its screen, on the web or the Catalystk mobile app.
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