Unbilled change orders hiding in email
Added scope often starts as a casual reply. The leak happens when nobody turns that thread into an owner decision or formal change-order action.
Where the leak starts
A field condition, coordination request, or scope change often appears first in an ordinary email. If the message never becomes an action item, the work may get done without the money following it.
The Money Leak Report searches the approved inbox scope for language that looks like added work, schedule impact, owner direction, or work outside the original expectation.
Signals to flag
- Requests to move, add, revise, or rework installed scope.
- References to field conflicts or owner-requested changes.
- Replies saying work was handled, but no change-order number is visible.
- Threads where the PM asks for pricing but no follow-up appears.
What the action should be
A flagged thread is not automatically billable. The owner or PM still decides whether the work is covered, disputed, or worth pursuing.
The useful output is a source-cited packet: what happened, where it was said, who needs to decide, and what follow-up should happen next.
Related
Educational resource. AECdesign.ai drafts and organizes contractor operations follow-up; your team reviews and approves outbound work. Not legal, financial, or engineering advice.