COMMERCIAL ESTIMATING


In this estimating, more than one person can be working on the same Takeoff at once. The number of items such as types of conduit or wire etc., is unlimited. An unlimited number of fixtures and switchgear assemblies may be set up each with as many components as needed.


FUNCTION KEYS

F1 If you are in multiple levels of windows, for example, F1 will take you back to the previous window or previous level.
F2 When selecting a takeoff, pops up window of YOUR existing takeoffs

Option #1

Change Division selections
Option #2
Set up miscellaneous catalog items active for just this takeoff
Option #3
Set up miscellaneous catalog items active for just this takeoff
Option #4
Hot key takeoff window - available from any area, also tags items to the current section you are in, for example; if you are in Branch Feeder and you want to pick an item that is not in the Branch Feeder area, use option #4 and pick any item you want and it will tag it for that circuit
F3 Insert & Toggle On/Off key
F5 While taking off an assembly, this function key explodes the assembly and shows the details
END Get out of most areas
N In Division areas, use the "N" key for "NONE" - no division

**Other keys available to your are the HOME, PAGE UP, PAGE DOWN, and ARROWS. keys.

Always be sure to look at the "legend" at the bottom of your screen. This will give you the choices you want and which key to use for those choices.


FROM ESTIMATING MAIN MENU - CREATE OR SELECT A TAKEOFF

Number 1, put in Takeoff ID, project name, address, city, state zip, ID, square feet number 8 is start date and number 9, 10, 11 & 12 are used for comments. Duration is how long, in days, is allowed to do the job. Average Man crew size. Usually only "one" is filled in, since the other is implied from the takeoff labor hours.


Takeoff Master Division Maintenance

You can have 35 Base Divisions and under each one of those you can have up to over 200
sub-divisions. You can delete or add just for this project as needed.

 

 


1. Setup Fixture Schedule illustrated is Fixture "A"

Create a Fixture and add accessories i.e. steel poles, whips. You can add as many fixtures as you need - no limit. You'll need to know what kind of Fixture, i.e. what kind of lamp you might need for that fixture. Accessories for Fixture might be something like an emergency battery pack, pipe or wire.

Use the arrow keys and page UP/DOWN to select the category and then the type of fixture. The system fill in TIME and 3-11.

Fixture Schedule Report

2. Display/Print Fixture

Most of the time fixtures are quoted, so very often a company will print out this short report and give it to his supplier(s) to get a faster response on his quote(s).

This report shows you all the different components you have in this particular fixture. This report shows the designation, description, qualifier and count that you have chosen form maintenance. Many times companies will print out the short format of this report to give to the supplier for a quote. If jobs are similar you can copy in fixtures from one job to another.


Setup Fixture Schedule
Create a fixture and add accessories, i.e. steel poles, whip, you
can add as many "fixture accessories" as you want.
a. Pick the type of fixture i.e. lamp i.e. A
b. Pick the kind of lamp for fixture i.e. FL/RECESS
c. Accessories for fixture i.e. whips

3. Copy Fixture Schedule

Next screen shows the Sequence, Description/Qualifier and Quantity. These are the accessories that go into Panel "A". For example the panel you have has different type of circuit breakers in it. Just keep adding circuit breakers until your finished and hit "END" key.

Assemblies can be made up of several different components. You can assign a value at the top level of the assembly, but normally the assembly value is the sum of the pieces. Material - will use the cost you put at the top level; labor is the hours entered on the top level Plus the sum of the individual pieces. At any time, you can hit F2 and get an overlay screen and change your price and labor totals and your divisions.

This screen shows: SEQ DESCRIPTION/QUALIFIER QUANTITY MATERIAL UOM LABOR UOM At any time you can hit F2 and get an overlay screen and change your attributes.

5 GENERAL TAKEOFF

*Note: The provisions of 3 columns or "windows". Different groups of items may be selected for takeoff in each window. The left and right arrows move between windows. The up and down arrows and page up and page down are used to select categories and items in a window.

Item Takeoff Selection (Every item you are Taking off is being tagged with Trim/ Bldg1/ Sound.

ITEM TAKEOFF SELECTION

We chose Misc. Categories in the left window, wire item THHN-SOLCU in the center window, and then 15 AMP SWITCHES and 1-POLE 15 AMP SWITCH in the right window. The takeoff quantity is requested, with the material and labor displayed. The labor or material may be overridden by operator input if needed.

SWITCHGEAR SCHEDULE MAINTENANCE

Switchgear i.e. panels & circuit breakers.

Same concept as a Fixture, just a different set of items ie circuit breakers & panels. You pick the type of panel with what accessories. We chose panel "A" thus designation shows PA. Description shows "Panels & Switchboards, 120-240V/MB/SF MTD. Labor hours 5, Labor UOM E, material cost 0.00, material UOM is QTE and Sub Total ID is 09.

6 BRANCH & FEEDER SELECTION

This shows that we have chosen for run description "First floor receptacles" Multiples of 1.

Note: Whatever you put in Multiples everything will be multiplied by that number.

From Branch & Feeder Selection under CONDUIT we chose EMT SLAB COND. and under CONDUIT SUPPORT MAINTENACE screen we chose 1/2". The next will then show your Run Desc. as panel a to panel b, Multiples 1, Conduit EMT SLAB COND. 1/2", Length 200 and # Runs 5. Next screen shows same info as above and to the right you'll see the ELLS box.

We put at the bottom of the screen where it asks Quantity of 2. Next screen shows TRENCHES, we chose none. Next screen shows SUPPORTS and we chose none. Just continue to pick from each screen the selections you need. You can then get a Branch & Selection Takeoff Review which will show you exactly what items you have chosen.

REVIEW

7 BID SUMMARY

Several people can be working in a job at the same time. For example, a project manager could be sitting and looking at Bid Summary screen and see the numbers change as other people are working on the same job. It is constantly updated as people work on adding quotes to it or adjusting overhead, profit and taxes. The screen is updated every 3 seconds.

8

9 Master File Maint

9-3 Defaults For Labor Rates

9-4

9-5 Defaults for Bid Summary Direct Job Expense

9-6 Defaults for Bid Summary Subcontract Quotes

9-7 Defaults for Bid Summary Material Quotes


9-8 Defaults for Bid Summary Miscellaneous Expenses

9-9 Defaults for Bid Summary Bond Table

9-10 Units of Measure for Labor and Material

9-11 Defaults for Conduit Support Spacing

9-12 Defaults for Bid Summary Constants

9-13 Material Cut Factors Used in Automatic Price Updating

9-14

10 ITEM CATALOG MAINTENANCE

10-1

Enter a Question Mark (?) if you don't know the DCI #.

C Component Individual item and/or part of an assembly can be counted by itself
H Header Means there are more items below that item
A Assembly Group of items taken off together

 

15 UTILITIES

Press <RETURN> to tag or untag takeoffs for deletion, <END> to end.

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© 2001 SI Systems, Inc.
2323 Belleair Road
Clearwater, FL 33764
800/422-2277, 727/531-0669
Fax: 727/536-8858