How Contracts are Made

NOTE-- In 2000 we retired all parts of MacNail construction software, and replaced it with Goldenseal, which is a complete software package for Macintosh and Windows. Goldenseal handles contract writing, plus accounting, construction estimating, and project management, It uses a similar process to build contracts from Contract Clauses, specifications text, plus header and footer text from the Contract record itself

Assembling a Contract

Once you have told Spec Writer what pieces to use, it will open whatever files it needs, and assemble the text into a contract. The text in headers, footers and stock clauses will be added directly to the contract, while Specifications clauses will be created using 'Smart Grammar.'

NOTE: Spec Writer automatically adds a copyright notice to each contract (see page 29).

The contract-writing process may take anywhere from a few seconds up to an hour, depending on the speed of your computer, the amount of text that needs to be assembled, and the file type you select.

If you are making a contract from an estimate created in the MacNail construction estimating software, you'll be asked whether to make a project list from it first. Saying 'yes' will make the process go quicker, although any notes that you entered into the estimate will not be included in the contract.

If you are making a contract from a schedule created by the MacNail construction management software, no prices will be displayed, since the schedule contains no labor prices. Allowances will still be listed, but all will be treated as a 'materials only' allowance, since materials are the only costs available in a schedule.

HINT: If it's important to include costs or labor-and-materials allowances, make the contract from an estimate or a project list instead.

If you turned on the Include Division headings option in Contract Options (see page 45), and you're getting specs from an estimate, project list or schedule, the name and code number of each cost category will be listed in front of the items included in that category.

If any problems occur during the creation of the contract, an error message will be given.

WARNING: If Spec Writer is interrupted while it is making a word processor contract, and you then try to make another contract with the same name from the MacNail project management software, you may be warned that the contract is already open. To fix this problem, save the contract under a different name.