Service vs Project Work: Two Paths, Same Problem

Michael Intravartolo
Nov 6
2 min read

In the trades, no two days look alike. One team handles quick service calls; another manages multi-week projects.

But behind the scenes, both rely on the same suppliers, the same invoices — and the same hidden risks.

One HVAC contractor thought their service side was airtight because of smaller transactions. Another assumed their large projects were too structured to have billing issues. Both were wrong.

After running audits, they discovered the same pattern: supplier invoice drift quietly eroding margins from both sides of the business.

The Hidden Zone Between Quoted and Billed

The problem starts the moment a quote becomes an invoice.

In both service and project work, small inconsistencies sneak in:

Service Jobs: Quick orders, same-day deliveries, verbal quotes that never make it into the system.
Projects: Long timelines, multiple change orders, dozens of suppliers with evolving pricing.

In both cases, the billed price rarely matches the quoted one perfectly. And when you multiply that across hundreds of invoices, the leaks become serious.

You can’t fix what you can’t see — and most teams never see it.

How to Bring Accuracy to Every Job Type

3rd Armor’s system gives your accounting team visibility across every supplier, every invoice, and every type of work.

It automatically compares your supplier invoices to the original quoted prices and flags discrepancies instantly — whether it’s a single replacement part or a six-figure materials order.

The result?Accuracy across all work types, without slowing anyone down.