Mobile appDeltek Costpoint Agent view

How to add a mobile app to Deltek Costpoint

Short answer

Start by checking what Deltek's own mobile offerings cover, then fill gaps with a thin mobile client over a backend service that talks to Costpoint through supported interfaces. Timesheets, approvals and barcode receiving are the common targets. Offline support and device security decide the design.

Get this built on your Deltek Costpoint

Costpoint is browser-based and was not designed as a phone-first system. Deltek has offered mobile and time-entry options over the years, though the exact products, names and what they cover depend on your release and licensing. Teams still end up asking for the same few things on a phone: enter or approve time, approve a requisition, receive material with a scanner, and look up a project.

Manufacturers using the Costpoint manufacturing modules add shop-floor needs: labor reporting against work orders, material moves, and inspection results. Those usually need a ruggedized device with a barcode scanner rather than a personal phone.

The right answer depends on who the user is. Office staff are well served by approvals and lookups. Field and site staff need offline timesheets. Warehouse staff need fast scanning with immediate validation.

What teams use it for

Offline timesheet entry for site staff

Employees on customer sites or remote locations enter hours against allowed charge codes, store them on the device and sync later, with validation against valid project, task and labor category.

Approvals for managers

Approve timesheets, requisitions and expense reports from a phone with the context needed: who, how much, which project.

Barcode receiving

Scan PO barcode and item labels to receive material, flag overages and capture lot numbers.

Shop-floor labor and job reporting

Start and stop work on operations with badge or barcode scans, feeding labor into project or work order costs after supervisor approval.

Inventory moves and cycle counts

Move parts between locations and count with a handheld, writing differences to a staging area for supervisor review.

Deltek Costpoint integration surface

Deltek mobile and time entry options: check your license for Costpoint mobile or related time products before building anything new.
Costpoint web services where licensed: the cleanest backend for timesheet, approval and receiving transactions; confirm object coverage.
Costpoint import utilities: a controlled fallback for batch-style submission of time or receipts.
SQL Server read access (on-prem): suitable for lookup data such as valid charge codes, PO lines and locations in a read-only cache.
SSO via your identity provider: required so the mobile app uses the same identity as the browser client.

How it works

1
Inventory what Deltek already provides
Ask your reseller about mobile time entry and approvals for your version. Use it where it fits; build only the gaps.
2
Choose the client style
A progressive web app is quick for office roles. A native or cross-platform app is better for scanning, background sync and device management.
3
Build a backend for mobile
A service that authenticates users, caches reference data, validates entries, and speaks to Costpoint. Do not expose Costpoint directly to the internet.
4
Design offline sync
Queue entries with timestamps and unique IDs, resolve conflicts on server side, and show clear status for each entry.
5
Integrate scanning and device features
Use camera or hardware scanners with immediate local validation against cached PO lines or locations.
6
Deploy with device management
Use MDM for enrollment, remote wipe and app distribution, especially for contractors handling controlled data.

Example flows

Offline timesheet sync

Trigger: A technician enters hours with no signal on a remote site.

App checks hours against locally cached valid charge codes.
Entry is saved with a unique ID and queued.
On reconnect the backend validates and submits to Costpoint.
App shows accepted or rejected with the reason for each line.

Result: Time is captured daily without waiting for connectivity, and rejections are fixed while memory is fresh.

Dock receiving with scanner

Trigger: Receiving clerk scans a PO barcode.

App fetches open lines from the backend cache.
Clerk scans items and enters counts; overages trigger a warning.
Submission creates a receipt for posting after any required inspection hold.

Result: Receipts happen at the dock in real time with fewer keying errors.

Keeping data on-prem

A mobile backend can sit in your DMZ or inside your network with a VPN or zero trust access for devices, so Costpoint never faces the internet. For cloud-hosted Costpoint, only the backend needs reach to the supported interfaces. If you add voice or natural language entry, use a locally hosted open-weight model, since utterances can contain project and program names. Offline caches on devices should be encrypted and wiped on logout or MDM command.

Security checklist

Authenticate with your identity provider and short-lived tokens; do not store passwords on devices.
Encrypt local storage, require device PIN or biometrics, and support remote wipe through MDM.
Cache only reference data the user is allowed to charge or see, not the full project list.
Validate every submission server-side; a modified client must not bypass charge code rules.
Log device ID, user and time for each transaction to support labor audit requirements.

Ways to get it done

Deltek-provided mobile time or approvals

Effort: Configuration and rollout, usually weeks.

Standard timesheet and approval needs on supported releases.

Third-party mobile time or scanning product

Effort: Weeks, plus license; verify connector support.

Teams needing barcode or labor capture with a vendor connector to Costpoint.

Custom app built with Netray or your team

Effort: Typically 8 to 16 weeks for a first release, depending on scope.

Specific workflows, offline needs and on-prem model features.

Pitfalls

!Letting employees enter time against any project because the cache is too broad.
!Building offline mode without conflict rules, causing duplicate timesheet lines.
!Exposing Costpoint directly to mobile networks.
!Ignoring MDM and allowing unmanaged personal devices to hold project data.
!Underestimating review: DCAA-style labor audits expect time to be entered contemporaneously and approved.

Frequently asked questions

Does Deltek Costpoint have a mobile app?

Deltek has offered mobile and time-entry options in the past, and the details depend on your version and licensing. Ask your Deltek representative or reseller what is available for your release, then decide whether a custom app is needed for the gaps.

Can we capture time offline?

Yes with a custom or third-party client that caches valid charge codes locally and syncs later. You need clear conflict handling and a rule that time is validated again on the server before it reaches Costpoint.

Can a phone act as a barcode scanner for receiving?

For low volume, yes with the camera. For heavy dock or warehouse use, rugged handhelds with hardware scanners are faster and more reliable. The backend logic is the same either way.

Is a mobile app allowed for controlled-program data?

Only with proper controls: managed devices, encrypted storage, authenticated access and a policy that matches your contract obligations. Many teams limit mobile to time, approvals and logistics data.

How do mobile entries reach Costpoint?

Through a backend that validates entries and submits via supported web services or import utilities. Writing directly to the database is discouraged because it bypasses Costpoint's rules and audit fields.

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Deltek Costpoint Private AI Layer Blueprint Generator

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Generate an architecture plan for a private AI assistant on on-prem Deltek Costpoint: SQL replica, web services and import interfaces, organization and project permissions, local GPU model and audit.

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Main use cases

Data that must never leave the site

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Deltek Costpoint Private AI Layer Blueprint Generator

Private AI Layer Architecture Plan: Deltek Costpoint

Company: Acme Precision Ltd Deltek Costpoint version: Costpoint 7.1 Database: SQL Server Hosting: on-prem server Named users: 400 across 2 site(s) Target go-live: 2027-03-01

1. Context and goal

Acme Precision Ltd runs Deltek Costpoint and wants an AI assistant that answers questions and drafts work without moving data off its own infrastructure. The assistant is read-only by default and shows the query or API call behind each answer.

Main use cases: Order and stock status questions, shortage summaries, supplier email drafts, and answers from procedures and certificates.

Typical Costpoint questions cover project cost to date, funding remaining, labor by project and variance explanations, and many answers cite long contract or policy documents.

2. Components

Component	Design for Deltek Costpoint	Notes
Data access path	Read-only replica with an ai_read view schema over PROJ, ORG, ACCT and ledger summary tables; Costpoint web services for single records	Views built from your own data dictionary
Retrieval index	Vector and keyword index over contracts, SOWs, rate approvals and policies inside the same boundary	Access controls copied as metadata
Model serving	vLLM or Ollama on 1 x 48 GB GPU, hosted on-prem server	Model sized for 400 named users
Tool server	Named read tools; drafts only for anything that touches accounting	No model-posted entries
Identity and permissions	Directory user mapped to Costpoint user; organization and project access applied	Labor and personnel data restricted
Audit	Prompt, tool call, SQL or web service request, answer, approver	Retained inside the boundary and available to assessors

3. Security controls mapped to your inputs

Requirement from your inputs	Control	Verification
Data that must never leave the site: Customer pricing, drawings, personnel data and any export controlled or contract data.	Model and index run on-prem server; no outbound inference calls; egress blocked at the gateway	Firewall rule review and test with outbound traffic blocked
Named users: 400	Directory sign-in; every call carries the asking user; rights applied as filters or by the system API	Test with users of different rights and confirm different answers
Database: SQL Server	Read-only replica or reporting copy; no write access for the assistant account	Attempt a write with the assistant login and confirm it fails
Sites: 2	Site and company limits applied to every tool call	Cross-site test queries
Writes	Only via supported APIs with named human approval; no direct database writes	Review the approval log for a sample period

4. Three-phase rollout

Phase	Scope	Exit criteria
Phase 1: read-only	Questions on core transactions, with the query shown. Pilot group first. GPU: 1 x 48 GB GPU.	Answer accuracy checked against reports on a sample set; no permission leaks
Phase 2: drafts	Draft emails, summaries and transaction payloads; nothing sent or posted automatically.	Users accept most drafts with light edits; audit log complete
Phase 3: approved actions	Narrow set of low-risk actions through supported APIs with approvers. Accounting entries are never posted by the model; drafts are submitted by a person through standard screens or import interfaces.	Rollback procedure tested; approvers named per action

5. Open questions for IT

1. Which environments and companies or folders are in scope? 2. Can a read-only replica be created on SQL Server, and who owns it? 3. Which directory provides identity, and how are users mapped to Deltek Costpoint users? 4. Where do documents and attachments live, and who controls their permissions? 5. Is 1 x 48 GB GPU confirmed, and who hosts and patches the model server? 6. Which logs go to the SIEM, and how long are they kept? 7. Who approves each write action, and what is the rollback plan? 8. Does the plan need to be added to a security or compliance boundary before go-live on 2027-03-01?

Approvals

Prepared by / Date

IT lead / Date

Security officer / Date

Business owner / Date

Planning document, not a design guarantee. Model size, GPU count and index size must be validated with your own prompts and data. Verify table, API and version details against your Deltek Costpoint documentation.