Construction Estimating Software Top Ten List Of Must Haves #2

My Top 3

Your construction estimating software must allow you to estimate using sections.

Sections, which are also called tasks, classes and a number of other terms, are extremely important for four reasons:

1. They break the estimate and the takeoff process into small chunks that, typically, are done in the sequence that you do the work.  Sections are groups like foundations, framing, roofing, etc. This means it’s easier to visualize the part, like foundations, that working on rather than having a large conglomeration of items on the construction estimate sheet. Perhaps having a foundation item after, or before, a roofing item.

2. When your construction estimating software database is organized by sections it makes it easier find the specific items you’re looking for when you’re doing a take off. For example, if you’re working on foundations you’ll only have foundation items open. This makes your take off a lot easier because you’re not looking through thousands of items. You only have the foundation items to look through.

3. It’s easy to spot errors, missing items or extra items, in your construction estimate. Again, if you have a foundation item following a roofing item it’s difficult to spot missing items or you have a duplicate roofing item in the multi-page estimate.

4. Creating budgets in your accounting system from your construction estimating software by section makes it much easier to track your job costs because you can can capture your costs and easier to find where you’re doing well and where you’re not doing well. This means that you can adjust your estimating so you’re not making the same mistakes over and over again