Production Orders

From Insurance Document to Build Document

A production order is a document generated from the Xactimate estimate that lists specific materials, quantities, and labor tasks needed to complete a job - translating the insurance estimate into actionable work instructions for crews and suppliers. The estimate is an insurance document - full of line items, pricing codes, and depreciation columns that mean nothing to the crew on the roof. The production order strips out the insurance language and converts everything into materials, quantities, and labor tasks.

What a Production Order Includes

A complete production order covers materials, quantities, specifications, and labor tasks for every trade on the job. It pulls directly from the Xactimate estimate data, so accuracy in the estimate translates to accuracy in the field.

Section	What It Contains	Who Uses It
Material list	Product names, quantities, colors, specifications	Supplier / material coordinator
Labor tasks	Work items by trade group, sequenced by phase	Crew lead / project manager
Measurements	Square footage, linear footage from Sketch	Crew lead / QC
Special instructions	Code requirements, carrier-specific specs	Everyone on site

Why Production Orders Prevent Costly Mistakes

Material shortages on job day are expensive. A crew standing idle while someone runs to the supply house costs labor hours, pushes the timeline, and frustrates the policyholder. A well-formatted production order, generated directly from the Xactimate estimate, ensures the right materials are on site before the crew arrives.

Production orders also reduce change orders. When the crew knows exactly what the scope of work includes before they start, they are less likely to discover surprises mid-job. And when surprises do appear - rotted decking under the shingles, damaged flashing behind the step - the production order gives you a clean baseline to document the additional work for a supplement.

Getting Production Orders Right

The production order is only as good as the estimate it comes from. If the Sketch measurements are wrong, the material quantities are wrong. If the waste factor is set too low, you are short on shingles. If line items are missing from the estimate, they are missing from the production order.

Review every production order against the actual property before ordering materials. Compare the Xactimate quantities to your field measurements. Flag any discrepancies before materials ship - not after the crew is standing on the roof wondering why they are three squares short.