Saturation 3.0 keeps fringe definitions in a dedicated Library panel. You can maintain reusable fringes at the workspace level, add them to a project, and apply one fringe or a group of fringes to a budget line.
What are fringes?
Fringes are costs added to a crew member's base pay. Non-union fringes can include employer payroll taxes, workers' compensation, or insurance. Union fringes can include pension, health, and other benefits required by an agreement.
A fringe can be a percentage of a line's base amount, a fixed amount for each unit, or one fixed amount for the line. Saturation calculates the selected fringes and includes them in the budget total.
How to add and manage fringes in Saturation
1. Accessing the fringe table
To manage fringes for the current project:
Open the project's Budget.
Select Library in the budget toolbar.
Select Fringes.
You can also open the menu on an estimate phase's Fringes column and select View all fringes.
To manage fringes that can be reused across projects:
Go to Projects.
Select Library.
Select Fringes.
The Workspace Fringes table stores reusable source fringes. The Project Fringes table stores project-only fringes and project copies of workspace fringes. When you add a workspace fringe to a project, Saturation creates a project copy. Changes to that copy do not change the workspace fringe or copies already used by other projects.
Members with edit access can add, change, or delete fringes. Viewers can open the table but cannot edit it.
2. Setting up fringes
In Workspace Fringes, select Add. In Project Fringes, select Add > Add new fringe. Complete the new row using these columns:
Column | What to enter |
Name | A short name that is easy to find in the budget, such as FICA or P&H. |
Description | What the fringe covers. |
Rate | The percentage or fixed amount to calculate. Enter 7.65 for a 7.65% fringe. |
Calc | How Saturation applies the rate. |
Cutoff | The maximum base amount used to calculate a Percent fringe. This field is unavailable for fixed calculations. |
Groups | One or more groups that include this fringe. |
Color | A color used to identify the fringe in the table and budget. |
The Calc column has these options:
Calculation | Result |
Percent | Applies the rate as a percentage of the line's base amount, up to the cutoff if one is entered. |
Fixed Per Unit | Multiplies the fringe rate by the line's Qty and X values. |
Fixed | Adds the fringe rate once to the line. |
Changes save when you confirm the cell or leave it. There is no separate Save button.
Organize fringes into groups
A group lets you apply several related fringes in one selection. For example, a Union Crew group could contain the pension, health, and training fringes required by an agreement.
In the workspace or project Library, open Fringes and switch from Fringes to Groups.
Select Add and enter a name. Add a color if needed.
Switch back to Fringes.
In each fringe's Groups cell, select the groups that should include it.
You can create a group from a Groups cell by typing a new name and selecting the create option.
Add a workspace fringe to a project
Open the project Library and select Fringes.
Select Add.
Search for the workspace fringe and select it.
The fringe is copied into the project table, where you can change its rate or other settings for this project.
To remove a fringe, right-click its row and select Delete. Deleting a workspace source does not delete project copies that were created from it.
3. Adding fringes to your budget
Open the project budget and expand an estimate phase if its detail columns are hidden.
Select the line's Fringes cell.
Search for a fringe or group. Groups show a folder icon and the number of fringes they contain.
Select the fringe or group. Repeat to add more than one.
Review Breakdown to see each effective fringe amount and the total for the line.
Press Enter or Tab, or select outside the editor, to confirm the change.
Select the remove icon on a fringe or group to remove it from the line. Removing a group removes the group assignment, not the fringe definitions in the Library.
If the fringe does not exist, type its name and select Create “name”. Saturation creates and selects a new project fringe. Open View all fringes afterward to enter its rate, calculation type, and other details.
Selecting a workspace fringe directly from a budget cell also creates a project copy. The line refers to that copy, so future changes to the workspace source do not change the project's budget.
The Fringes column menu controls how the column appears:
Fringes shows the selected fringe and group names.
Amount shows the calculated fringe total for each line.
The total at the bottom of the Fringes column shows the phase's fringe cost.
Choose where fringe costs appear
Open the Fringes column menu and select Fringe settings. Choose where Saturation separates and collects fringe costs:
Topsheet places them on the topsheet.
Account places them in each account.
Subaccount places them in each subaccount.
This setting applies to every phase in the project. If the new level would leave fringe assignments above their collection row, Saturation warns you that those amounts will stop counting in budget totals. Cancel the change or move the assignments to rows below the selected level before continuing.
When to use fringes in Saturation
Use fringes whenever a cost is calculated from labor or needs to be added consistently to selected budget lines. Common examples include:
Employer payroll taxes and statutory labor charges
Workers' compensation and payroll-related insurance
Union pension, health, training, or vacation contributions
Per-unit kit fees, allowances, or similar fixed charges
Keep standard company rates in Workspace Fringes. Copy them into each project, then adjust the project copies for the production's agreements, locations, and payroll assumptions. Use groups when the same set of fringes applies to several lines.