Takeoff and estimating software refers to programs that help estimators extract useful material data from blueprints and IFB files. Some software will assist with generating material cost and labour estimates.

Typically, the software will support most file types for blueprints, such as PDF, DWG, SVG, DXF, XLSX, PNG, and other types of files.

With the suite of tools offered by the software, estimators can measure, calculate, and compile information quickly with fewer errors.

Features & Functionality

TAKEOFF

• Tools for Counts, Areas, Lengths, and Volumes – The essential utility of takeoff software is the ability to extract materials, quantities, and requirements from digital files supplied by the project owner.
• Collaborative & Team Takeoff – Having your takeoffs and estimates synchronized to allow for collaborative work is crucial for a large team where conflicting edits may happen. Most cloud-based services offer collaborative takeoff features.
• RFI Creation & Management– In the event that insufficient information has been supplied or there are conflicting requirements in the project, an RFI will need to be issued to rectify the conflict. Some programs allow you to create, store, and compare RFI’s in a useful layout and dashboard.

ESTIMATING

•  Activity Tracking – Knowing who did what on which bid is critical to a good estimating management process.
•  Audit Trail – An audit trail is a step-by-step record which provides evidence of the history of document changes to its source and is useful to see who made changes to a document.
•  BIM – Some advanced estimating software suites include BIM (Building Information Modelling). The purpose of BIM is to provide both a high-level overview of the project, as well as critical details, to ensure that the right information is included in the estimate.
•  Cost Database – Most estimating software allows you to import your database of supplier costs, which is critical in building an accurate estimate that is suited for your local market.
•  Customizable Reports – Management wants to see not only the results of a bid, but how you got there. You can build reports that compare similar projects, subcontractor pricing, typical amounts spent on previous projects vs current, and just about anything else you can imagine.
•  Historical Database – Having a database of past projects that you can refer to and learn from is an estimating best practice, especially when you can compare estimated vs actual costs with the job cost report of the project you are comparing your current bid with.
•  Project Templates – Pre-built project templates are useful when you are estimating projects that are similar to ones you have completed before. A 50,000 sq. ft. 3-storey CRU may have similar project requirements as a 60,000 sq. ft. 2-storey CRU, and you can save hours of work by reusing the template (with careful consideration of the project’s differences).
•  Project Workflow & Schedule – Project scheduling is the process of listing tasks, milestones, critical path items, and subcontractor requirements with a planned start and finish date.
  Scheduling is often the most critical component of a project where you need to work closely with the operations team to ensure you are setting realistic deadlines and building optimal process flows. Proper scheduling ensures the project is completed on time and within budget.
•  Projections & Forecasting – Estimating software helps you improve budgeting and forecasting estimates by aggregating cost requirements, benchmarking, and project forecasting.  Proposal Generation
•  Subcontractor Management – During the bidding phase of a project, the GC needs to source a multitude of estimates from subcontractors. The more subcontractors and suppliers you involve in the process, the more risk and exposure the bid gets to failing specifications, inaccurate scope coverage, and inability to perform. Knowing which subcontractors are right for the project (not too large, not too small) is critical to the success of the project.
•  Task Management Software – Historical task data can help you with process control and productivity when estimating new projects. When you have a reliable track record of successful estimates and bids, you can build new processes and analyze the historical information to help you create better estimates and more accurately predict resource requirements during the estimating process.
•  What-if Analysis – A What-If analysis can be a time-consuming process of creating variations of the original project and analyzing the effects those variations have on the total project cost & construction time.
  What-If analysis replaces the painful process of learning by trial and error. If a predictable process or critical path breaks down during construction, the cost to fix, reorganize, or rebuild can carry additional costs and impact the schedule of the project. Using What-If analysis, you can create scenarios in which your operational team can quickly adjust to changes in the construction process or schedule, keeping the project within budget and scheduling requirements.

BIDDING

•  Approval Process Control – Estimating software should allow you to customize and control the information each user can see and edit depending on their role in the organization. After the bid is completed, there should be an approval process that triggers it for review and submission to the client.
•  Automated Quoting & Proposal Generation – Manual quoting processes are slow and inefficient in today’s world. Having a time-consuming quoting process scales poorly with your business, as the time it takes to produce winning bids is increased with each additional estimating hire. Using automation allows you to send out more bids in less time, keep track of incoming requests, and update data.
•  Bid Management – Managing the different versions of your bids often includes making revisions to your takeoffs and estimates. Keeping track of changes and how they impact linked tasks helps you modify bids in an optimal way.
•  Calendar Management – Everyone needs a calendar to track deadlines, milestones, and submission dates. The integrated bid calendar should show you which projects are due on what date, bid priority in the case of opportunities exceeding the bidding capacity of the estimating department, and tasks remaining until bid completion.
•  Contact Management – Contractors submitting multiple bids to different clients will find a contact management system incredibly useful. 
•  Customer History – Seeing the past projects that you have bid to a client is useful, especially if the Business Development team has made notes on successful or unsuccessful bids with actionable items that may improve your chances of winning the next bid.
•  Customizable Reports – Some estimating software comes with integrated sales features that include useful reporting for operations and BD, such as insights into the sales funnel, characteristics and data on winning bids, and estimated times to complete bids.
•  Digital Signature Software – In today’s world, people want low-friction and easy-to-use ways of doing business. The old way of printing off documents, taking them to the client, and having them sign is being phased out. Digital signature features often includes add ons such as open-tracking (being notified when your client opens the bid) and use-analysis (how long they had the document open, where they dropped off, where they spent the most time, etc.)
•  Projections – Creating projections for the project schedule and budget is essential for the operations team to stay on track and understand how delays and cost-increases impact the project further down the schedule.
•  Subcontractor Portal –  A subcontractor portal helps you communicate essential information, share project documents, and manage bid revisions with trades that are invited to bid on the project.