Software contractor bids

As a web-based system, all co With iSqFt, contractors of any size can streamline their entire pre-construction process and bid effectively.

Designed to address the unique challenges of general contractors, design-build firms, and construction managers, iS Explore Construction Bidding Software Category overview. Construction Software. Construction Bidding Software. Alternative Medicine. Arts and Crafts. Broadcast Media. Building Materials. Business Supplies and Equipment. Capital Markets. Civil Engineering.

Commercial Real Estate. Computer Hardware. Computer Networking. Computer Software. Consumer Electronics. Consumer Goods. Consumer Services. Education Management. Environmental Services. Events Services. Executive Office. Facilities Services. Financial Services. Fine Art. Food Production. Government Administration. Government Relations. Graphic Design. Health, Wellness and Fitness. Higher Education. To create these estimates, the contractors and their subcontractors must determine the quantities and cost of all of the materials, equipment, and labor, for their work, which usually begins with generating a takeoff list using information found in the bid package.

Takeoff also construction take off or take-off refers to the quantities and amount of labor required to complete a construction project. Gathering this information uses a process in which estimators use project blueprints to determine the amounts and types of each material and the labor necessary for each section of the project they are responsible for. The takeoff list is then used to create the cost estimate and the project bid.

To save time and money, contractors, builders, and anyone who frequently makes cost estimates for projects or bids on construction contracts can use technology to manage the estimating and bidding process.

This portion of the guide will provide an overview of this software and how it can be used in the construction bidding, estimating, and takeoff processes.

Construction estimating software is cloud or desktop technology designed to streamline and improve the process of creating cost, material, and labor estimates for construction projects. Construction estimating software is available in many varieties, ranging from simple spreadsheet templates to online collaborative software with many features that optimize much more than the estimating process.

Contractors should also consider that some software is also designed with specific subcontractor trades in mind, including capabilities that are specific to electricians or HVAC contractors, for example.

Other products may be designed for general contractors or with no specific trade in mind. As we covered above, the bidding, estimating, and takeoff processes are all very closely related and intertwined. Recall: contractors and subcontractors use project blueprints and bid documents to perform takeoff and then use that information to create construction cost estimates.

These estimates are then used to create project bids, or work proposals. Most often, however, these products are separate tools, offered by different companies. Typically, software providers will brand themselves in the following terms:.

Which type of tool fits your business needs depends on how you manage the bid process and whether certain elements of the process need specific improvement.

Estimating software companies can give customers access to their technology in one of two ways—either by 1 installing the software on computers or servers that the buyer owns, or 2 providing access to the tool online, via web browsers and mobile devices. The installed products are often referred to as on-premise. These tools are either downloaded on each computer that will use the product or installed on company servers that distribute the program to employees.

Many companies these days, however, are starting to offer software that is accessible online with web browsers. These products may sometimes be called cloud or web-based. There are many benefits to choosing an online estimating software, particularly for convenience of access. Software that is served to users online can be accessed on any device with an internet connection.

Some advanced products will even allow offline access via local applications, which sync data when an internet connection is available. Unless your business has a reason to choose an on-premise estimating solution, we prefer tools that are accessible online because of the convenience they provide. Rather than needing to be at your office or on a device with a connection to your company servers, you can connect via any device with a web connection.

Online products are also more easily updated than on-premise products. In fact, online products are automatically updated for every user whenever the estimating software developer updates their product. One inconvenience of using an on-premise estimating tool is that it will usually have to be manually updated either by re-downloading or by a technical representative of the company who produced it.

In most cases, it also means an additional annual fee to continue receiving updates from the provider. Even though online estimating software provides many conveniences, users should consider both and pay more attention to the specific features that the products provide than the way they are deployed. If your business has specific security needs, an on-premise product could be right for you. The power of an estimating software lies in the features that improve the estimating, takeoff, and bidding processes for users.

Not all users need a software loaded with features, but rather just want a product that helps tackle a few specific challenges. This section reviews the most important features that contractors should consider when choosing between estimating software companies.

Different software companies will package and design these features differently, so buyers should ask company representatives about the details when certain features are critical. Above, we detailed the different steps of the bidding process: takeoff, estimating, and bidding. Here, we cover some of the features that software can offer to improve the takeoff process for contractors and subcontractors. Often, digital takeoff capabilities are sold in separate software packages from the estimating tools because they are advanced capabilities that not everybody needs.

As such, these features can also add a significant amount of cost to the software. These features all focus on improving the efficiency involved with digital takeoff:. Once takeoff has been performed, the next step is to use that data to create cost estimates for materials, supplies, and labor for the project. The following list briefly covers the features that help contractors and subcontractors more efficiently create project estimates:. Putting together and submitting a bid is a different process from estimating, and thus, software companies have added features to help manage the intricacies of construction bidding.

Here is a list of some of the most common features software makers provide to optimize the bid management process. Aside from specific takeoff, estimating, bidding, and unique trade-specific features, wise buyers should search for tools that play nicely with their existing technologies. Many companies integrate nicely with Microsoft Excel. Some tools will also go above-and-beyond in their reporting and analysis tools.

Companies who provide this type of analytic review of your estimating and bid data can add a tremendous amount of insight and help to create meaningful changes in the way you manage your business. So the reporting and analysis features of your top estimating and bidding options are worth a careful review. Cost estimating, takeoff, and bidding are necessary in most of the specialty trades of subcontractors, such as electrical work, plumbing, and HVAC. Many software providers make solutions that are specific to the different specialties of subcontractors.

These software solutions may include trade-specific cost databases and other useful features unique to each area. The following list shows what to look for in specialized estimating, takeoff, and bidding solutions if you are a contractor in one of the these areas:. Electricians must use estimating tools to gather lengths for conduits, wiring, and cables, as well as the number of switches and receptacles in order to determine the costs and to estimate labor.

But electricians should also look for tools that include formulas for electricians, which calculate voltage drops, electrical loads, fault currents, and counts for conduit, boxes, and wiring. HVAC contractors should seek products that provide formulas that assist in calculating the heating and cooling needs of each room in the project plans. Estimating for plumbing installation, requires contractors to know takeoff counts for fixtures and fittings, as well as the linear measurements of CPVC, drainage, and supply piping.

Estimating software for plumbers should include pricing databases for plumbing parts and predefined plumbing assemblies. Three-dimension takeoff formulas or features should help contractors who frequently work on landscaping projects. Construction estimating software is typically a very affordable piece of technology, especially compared to enterprise software solutions.

These tools save significant time compared to manual methods of calculating and totalling costs of construction. Often, the pricing model will vary between software providers, but the cost is usually dependent on three key things:. Not all software companies price their products the same, so ask before diving into a contract how the software is priced. The free program lets you create an estimation and then print it out, ideal for those who are pressed for time and want to quickly make an estimation without having to spend a lot of money on premier software.

Estimator lets construction companies create estimates for a host of construction projects, including concrete structures, earth work, masonry, plastering, and more. Overview: STACK offers free construction software aimed at firms looking to streamline the bid process and accurately estimate materials, equipment, and labor. It generates an estimate based on your input of how much of each material will be needed and what labor, equipment, and overhead will be involved.

The software is cloud-based and therefore can be accessed from anywhere there is an internet connection. It is also compatible with all types of platforms, from smartphones to desktop computers. STACK also includes training with the software for free. A full-featured version is available for purchase.

Open source construction estimating and takeoff platforms are also free, but they have an additional wrinkle: the original source code is available. There are some benefits and drawbacks to this you should be aware of. The benefits are that in addition to being free, you will be able to customize and adapt the software to fit your individual business. Lack of technical ability could become a problem if the software needs improvement down the road to fit your firm. Overview: 2-plan Team is a project management platform geared toward construction firms, and among its three PM tools is an open-source desktop system that can be used for multiple projects and teams.

It is mostly meant for managing the entirety of a construction project as opposed to just estimating and takeoff, but there are tools available for that purpose as well. The source code for 2-plan Team has been published at SourceForge, where you can download it for free. Free and open source estimating software is a great stepping stone for many small construction firms—especially those using software for the first time. But as job volume increases, paid software often becomes the better choice.

Higher job volume and company growth means more people, processes, and training are necessary to estimate and complete projects. Fortunately, there are affordable estimating and takeoff products that also offer free trials. When you opt for free and open source platforms, you get what you pay for a lot of the time.

Construction estimating software provides standard processes to build cost models for executing job-based work. While used most commonly in the construction industry—it can also apply to other industries that conduct work on a project basis and need to determine likely costs of completing the work. Construction takeoff refers to functions that let the user extract material counts and estimates from digital blueprints. Information can then be pulled from the digital blueprints that help calculate quantities and measurements.

A capable estimating program allows you to easily use blueprints to identify the scope of the project. The same process works in relation to labor costs. Digital takeoff capabilities will perform these complex equations to arrive at the accurate quantities needed.

A what-if scenario is a speculation about how a specific job or project might be handled. With regards to construction estimating, it can better help prepare you for the best-case and worst-case scenario when it comes to determine the price of a construction job. By reviewing each stage of the project lifecycle, project managers should be able to better predict the outcome of a proposed construction project. What-if scenario analysis can improve project management by evaluating possible outcomes and helping your business make more informed decisions and actions.

The goal in doing so is to reduced uncertainty, or better preparing your business when it needs to respond to different situations. With improved project predictability, your business should have a better grasp on both simple and complex factors to expect with your upcoming projects.

For example, there may be a scenario where a construction business is bidding on road construction. They have the measurements of the road but may want to present the customer with a choice of materials. A flexible construction estimating program will help create two different scenarios showing the cost of each, not just in labor and materials, but also maintenance over the life span. In another scenario where a kitchen is being remodeled, the ability to quickly swap in and out different cabinet styles, countertops, appliances, etc—without redoing the whole bid—allows both the flexibly adapt to changing customer demands and to do so quickly.

Keeping records of your historical cost data can save time in preparing new estimates for similar work. Cost estimators can turn to regularly published construction cost data for comparative cost analysis. Alternatively, your business can look into your own historical efforts to determine estimates. This comes in handy when doing work for the same client, or doing the same type of construction jobs over and over. Construction estimating software will include a computerized database of previous estimates and bids.

The most basic of options will have a built in historical database can allow you to reference quantities, costs, crew and machine productivity data from previous projects. Both construction and manufacturing projects can be priced via process costing or job costing. Process costing will assign a costs to every step involved in a manufacturing project based on historical data. Job costing breaks down the specific labor, materials, equipment, and subcontractor costs needed and their associated calculated costs.

Process costing works best in industries with more uniform costs, while job costing tends to be more accurate due to using more historical data and less guesswork. This is why job costing is more prominently found in the world of construction estimating. Dedicated job cost software can help save time on job-costing calculations doing via manual processes such as spreadsheets.

Most estimating software will also tie in with job cost processes and help your business better price jobs accurately, submit timely estimates, calculate realistic profit margins, and track costs in real-time. A good estimating program will give you an analytical foundation to understand your costs in different areas within the job.