What it is
A Material is whatever the truck hauls — sand, stone, asphalt, dirt, mulch. Each Material is a record with a name, code, UoM, and rate. Most customers pull the master list from their accounting system so codes match invoices.
Why it matters
Materials drive the line items on every invoice and the cost codes on every export. Wrong code, wrong invoice. They also carry the Prevailing Wage (PW) flag — the field that decides whether a load gets paid at PW rates on a public-works job.
How Tread models it
- Material — name, code, UoM (tons, cubic yards, loads), default rate.
- Source — typically imported from QuickBooks, Sage, Vista, Foundation, or Spectrum so codes match the books.
- Prevailing Wage flag — per Material. Independent of any project setting.
- Material Rates — can be set per Customer, per Site, or globally. See Rates, Add-Ons & Fuel.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|
| Name | Yes | What dispatchers and drivers see |
| Code | Yes | Must match accounting export |
| UoM | Yes | Drives how loads are counted |
| Prevailing Wage flag | No | Set per material, not per project |
Common pitfalls
Prevailing Wage is per Material, not per Project. A project flagged PW does not auto-flag its materials. If asphalt is not flagged PW, drivers hauling asphalt on a PW job get standard rates. Walk the materials list before a PW go-live and flag every material that qualifies.
Pull your Materials list from accounting on day one. Re-importing later means matching old codes to new ones across thousands of historical tickets.
