The Challenge
Project sales were hard to see from order to invoice!
Sales orders were not tied to projects at line level, so cost, sales and profit were hard to track, and invoices could not switch between a summary and full detail.
Reverse Standard Flow
Business Central invoices projects from planning lines, not from the sales order, so order-driven project sales needed customization.
Orders From Two Places
Some orders are raised directly and others arrive from Dynamics 365 Sales (CRM); both had to link to projects in the same way.
No Line-Level Profit
Cost, sales and profit sat in ledger entries and statistics, not on the planning and task lines where teams review projects.
One Invoice, Two Views
The same invoice had to print as a short summary or with full item detail, which standard layouts could not toggle.
Objective
What We Set Out to Achieve
Let project-based sales be managed from the sales order to the invoice in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. Link every order line, including orders from Dynamics 365 Sales (CRM), to its project and task; automate planning and resource lines; show cost, sales and profit on the planning and task lines; and print a brief or detailed invoice from one setting, all as an upgrade-safe extension.
Our Approach & Solution
How order-to-invoice project flow was delivered?
A per-tenant Business Central extension links orders to projects, automates planning and resource lines, adds line-level profitability, and delivers two invoice layouts with one toggle.
01
Sales-to-Project Linkage
Project and task fields with validation were added to the sales documents and carried through posting, so every order line, including CRM-originated orders, records against the correct project.
02
Planning & Resource Sync
Planning lines are created automatically for linked tasks, and resource lines are copied to the sales order at matching quantity and price, guarded so they are never duplicated.
03
Profitability & Invoicing
Cost, sales and profit fields were added to the planning and task lines and updated as postings occur, and two invoice layouts, brief and detailed, print from a single Yes/No setting.
Results & Impact
Project sales, visible and automated.
Sales, cost and profit are now tied to the project from order to invoice, with automation replacing manual re-keying.
Line
Cost, Sales & Profit View
Conclusion
The Bigger Picture
By linking every order line to its project and task, Business Central now carries the project from order to invoice. Planning and resource lines are created automatically, cost, sales and profit are visible on the planning and task lines, and the invoice prints as a brief summary or in full detail from one setting, with the Project Code and Name on the posted invoice. Delivered as an upgrade-safe extension, it removes manual re-keying, keeps profitability accurate, and speeds order-to-invoice.