Key takeaways
- Invoice automation in Foundation Software means coding every invoice line to Foundation's job cost structure (job, cost code and cost type) before approval, not after posting.
- Validate each line against active jobs and cost codes before it reaches an approver. A cost code that exists on one job may not exist on another.
- Route approval by project ownership and dollar threshold, mirroring the signature authority you already have.
- Vergo posts AP transactions through the official Foundation AP API (v1), carrying job, cost code and cost type on each line. Access is customer-provisioned: your IT enables it once.
- Construction-specific requirements still apply: retention at the line level, lien waiver checks before payment, multi-job invoices and AIA G702/G703 pay applications.
Where should you go next?
- See the Vergo + Foundation Software integration
- Learn more about Vergo AP Invoice Automation
- Learn more about Vergo Expense Management
- Learn more about Vergo Employee Reimbursements
How do you automate invoice coding and approvals in Foundation Software, step by step?
- Enable API access. Foundation connects outside products through a secure API. For Vergo the access sits in your Foundation environment, so your IT or Foundation administrator enables it once and Vergo does the rest.
- Centralize intake. One AP email address for suppliers, subcontractors and rental companies, so field offices stop holding paper.
- Code every line. Each line gets a job, a cost code and a cost type (labor, material, subcontract, equipment or other in most Foundation setups), or a GL account for overhead.
- Validate against live job data. Flag lines coded to a closed job, an inactive cost code, or an amount that pushes a cost type over budget, before anyone approves.
- Route by project and amount. The project manager on the job approves; a second approver joins above your threshold; subcontract invoices over the committed amount escalate whatever their size.
- Post to Foundation. Approved invoices go into Foundation as AP transactions with the job cost lines intact, with the invoice image kept for audit.
- Reconcile against commitments weekly. Compare open invoices with POs and subcontracts so the WIP schedule is ready for bonding and lender reporting at month end.
What makes invoice automation different in construction?
Generic AP tools are built around two- or three-way PO matching for product businesses. Construction invoicing is different: a single subcontractor pay application can span dozens of cost codes across phases, retention is withheld line by line, and one supplier may bill five active jobs on one invoice. Foundation's job cost structure adds a dependency on live project data, because the valid combinations of job, cost code and cost type change as jobs open and close. Automation that works from a stale copy of that structure produces posting errors that someone corrects by hand.
What construction-specific requirements should the workflow handle?
Retention comes first: subcontractor invoices carry retention per contract terms, and it belongs in a retention payable, not folded into the gross amount. Lien waivers come next: many general contractors require a conditional waiver before releasing payment, so the process must hold payment until it arrives. Multi-job invoices are routine for material suppliers and equipment rental companies, so one invoice has to split across job numbers without creating duplicate vendor records. AIA pay applications arrive as G702 summaries with G703 schedule-of-values continuation sheets, so extraction has to read structured forms as well as ordinary PDFs.
What does one invoice look like end to end?
A general contractor receives a subcontractor pay application across three cost codes on one job. Vergo reads the G703 lines and proposes the Foundation job, cost code and cost type for each, based on how the company has coded that subcontractor's work before, and shows the reasoning next to each line. One line takes cumulative billing past the subcontract amount, so it is flagged. The invoice routes to the project manager for the job. Once approved, it posts to Foundation as an AP transaction with all three job cost lines, and the original document stays attached for audit. Payment then runs in Foundation, or through whatever payment process the company already uses.
How do Foundation's own products fit?
Foundation Software sells its own add-on products alongside the accounting system, including FOUNDATION Pay (corporate card, bill pay and online payments) and Vendrix expense management, as listed on its integrations page. Teams comparing options should decide whether they want payments and a card program from Foundation, or want to keep their current cards and bank and add AI coding on top. Vergo is the second kind.
How does Vergo handle this?
Vergo proposes the coding by inference from your own accounting structure and history: no rule library to build, no keyword lists to maintain, and new vendors are coded on first sight. Vergo reads the invoice itself, line by line, and predicts the job, the cost code and the cost type from what was actually bought, not just the vendor name on the header. Every coding shows why it was chosen, so a reviewer confirms in seconds instead of re-coding by hand. Approval workflows are optional: route by GL account, by amount or by project, or skip approval flows and let policy flags catch only what breaks a rule.
Coded card spend, reimbursements and AP invoices post to Foundation through the official Foundation AP API (v1), each carrying job, cost code and cost type. Card spend, employee reimbursements and AP invoices run through one coding model, with one reconciliation. Vergo captures, codes, approves and syncs invoices; it does not pay them, so payment stays on the rails you already use.
Related questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I automate invoice approvals in Foundation Software?
Put every invoice through one intake, code each line to job, cost code and cost type, validate against live job data, then route to the project manager on the job with a second approver above your threshold. Approved invoices post to Foundation as AP transactions through its API, so nobody re-keys them.
Does Foundation Software have an API for AP automation?
Yes. Foundation describes connecting products through a secure API, and Vergo posts AP transactions through the official Foundation AP API (v1) with job, cost code and cost type on each line. Access is enabled in your own Foundation environment.
Is 'Foundations' the same as Foundation Software?
Yes. Contractors often say 'Foundations', but the construction accounting system is FOUNDATION from Foundation Software. It is unrelated to other products called Foundations.
Does Foundation Software have built-in AP automation, or do you need a third-party tool?
Foundation includes AP entry, PO matching and job cost posting, and Foundation Software sells FOUNDATION Pay for card, bill pay and online payments. Contractors add a coding and approval layer when invoice volume and line-level job cost coding outgrow manual entry.
How do you handle retention in an automated AP workflow for Foundation?
Calculate retention at the line or invoice level from the subcontract terms, and post net payable and retention payable separately. Retention is released later in its own payment run, after the milestone or closeout conditions are met.
What approval routing rules are most effective for construction invoice workflows?
Combine dollar thresholds with project role. Invoices under a set amount go to the project manager; larger ones add a division manager or CFO. Subcontract invoices over the committed value escalate automatically, whatever their size.
How does automating AP in Foundation affect month-end close for job costing?
Invoices are coded and posted through the month instead of in a batch at close, so Foundation job cost reports show current actuals and the WIP schedule needs fewer late adjustments.
Can Vergo handle multi-job invoices when automating Foundation AP?
Yes. Vergo reads the invoice line by line, so lines for different jobs get their own job, cost code and cost type, and the invoice posts to Foundation with a job cost line for each.
What data does an AP automation platform need to integrate with Foundation Software?
Read access to jobs, cost codes, cost types and vendors, and write access for AP transactions. The job and cost code data must be current, or coding cannot be validated against active projects before approval.
