Marine Services
We track parts, labor, and subcontractors by job. Stop guessing which repairs actually make money.
The Industry
An engine rebuild comes in. You quote $6,200 based on what it ran you last time. Except this time the impeller housing was corroded and you had to overnight a replacement. Your lead tech spent four extra hours because the engine compartment was tighter than expected. You called in your electronics guy to check a wiring issue while you were in there. When the owner picked up the boat, you collected $6,200 and felt fine about it. Actual margin was probably $800 after you account for everything. But you don’t know for sure because the costs weren’t tracked to the job.
Marine services run on projects with variable parts costs, labor hours that depend on access and conditions, and subcontractors for specialized work. Some jobs happen in your shop and some happen at the dock. Without tracking by job, you see total revenue and total expenses for the month but have no idea which repairs made money and which ones quietly lost it.
Who This Covers
Who This Covers
Boat repair shops, mobile marine mechanics, marine electronics installers, bottom painting and hull maintenance services, engine and outboard specialists, yacht maintenance operations, and marine canvas shops across San Diego County.
What Complicates It
What Complicates It
Project-based work with unpredictable duration. Expensive parts ordered for specific jobs. Subcontractors for electronics, upholstery, and specialty work. Mobile service at marinas with unbillable travel time. Warranty callbacks that eat into margins. Seasonal fluctuations in workload.
What We Handle
Job costing means every dollar gets tied to a specific boat and project. Parts purchased for that engine rebuild get coded to the job instead of lumped into a general parts expense. Labor hours tracked to the vessel. The subcontractor invoice for electronics work allocated to the same project. When the job closes, you see exactly what it cost versus what you billed. Historical data makes future quotes accurate instead of hopeful.
Beyond job tracking, marine services need proper handling of subcontractor payments for 1099 compliance. Payroll for your techs with hours that vary week to week. QuickBooks configured to track jobs and generate profitability reports by project type. Tax prep that captures vehicle expenses for dock calls, tool depreciation, and the specialized equipment that marine work requires.
Job Costing and Parts Tracking
Job Costing and Parts Tracking
Every expense coded to the specific vessel and project. Parts, labor, subcontractor invoices all tracked to the job. Compare quoted price to actual cost on every repair. QuickBooks set up for job-based tracking with reports showing profitability by job type. Historical data that makes estimates reliable.
Payroll and Subcontractor Compliance
Payroll and Subcontractor Compliance
Weekly or bi-weekly payroll for your crew with varying hours handled correctly. W-9 collection and 1099 preparation for subcontractors including electronics specialists, canvas shops, and paint contractors. Tax returns that capture vehicle mileage, tool purchases, and equipment depreciation.
Common Problems
You quoted $4,800 for a job and collected $4,800. Feels like a win. But the parts cost more than you estimated because you had to source a specific fitting from a specialty vendor. Your tech spent three hours longer than planned because the access was difficult. You made a warranty visit three weeks later when the customer reported a small leak. Real profit was less than half what it looked like. Without job costing, that loss hides inside your monthly totals and you bid the next similar job at the same rate.
Subcontractors get paid cash or with quick checks and nobody collects W-9s until December when it’s time to file 1099s. Mileage for dock calls goes untracked because logging it feels like a hassle. Tool purchases hit the credit card and get expensed as general supplies instead of depreciated properly. Come tax time, you leave money on the table and scramble for documentation that should have been collected all year.
No Job-Level Visibility
No Job-Level Visibility
Revenue and expenses tracked as monthly totals. No way to tell if outboard work is more profitable than electronics installs. Warranty callbacks buried in labor costs with no connection to the original job. Estimates based on memory instead of what similar work actually cost last time.
Missed Deductions and Compliance Gaps
Missed Deductions and Compliance Gaps
Tool and equipment purchases expensed immediately instead of depreciated properly. Vehicle costs for mobile work not tracked consistently. Subcontractor payments made throughout the year without W-9s on file. Tax season becomes a scramble to reconstruct what should have been recorded all along.
What Changes
Job profitability becomes visible. You see that engine work averages 32% margin while electronics jobs run closer to 18% because of subcontractor markup. Warranty callbacks get tracked to the original job so you know the true cost of quality issues. Bids get based on historical cost data for similar work instead of rough estimates that miss hidden expenses.
Operations get cleaner. Subcontractors have W-9s collected when you first work with them instead of a year-end chase. Tax prep captures vehicle expenses, tool depreciation, and shop equipment costs. When you need a loan for new equipment or you want to show financials to a potential buyer, the numbers are there and verifiable.
Better Quotes and Smarter Job Selection
Better Quotes and Smarter Job Selection
Historical job data shows what work actually costs. Quotes become accurate because they’re based on real numbers from similar projects. You can identify which job types are worth pursuing and which customers consistently turn profitable work into margin-killing headaches.
Clean Records and Confidence
Clean Records and Confidence
Books ready for tax time with all deductions captured. Subcontractor documentation in place for 1099 filing. Financial statements that show actual business performance. When the bank asks for records or someone wants to buy your business, you have numbers you can stand behind.
San Diego's Small Business Bookkeeper
The Next Step:
A Short Conversation
A quick call to tell us about your business. We'll listen, answer your questions, and give you a clear price quote.
