r/estimators

Basically what the title says. I’m working with a massive fill dirt site. The land is ready, and we’ve got a local trucking company completely locked in to dig and haul it the second we get the green light. Everything is ready to go, we just need more buyers.

but if you were sitting on this much dirt, how would you go about finding big commercial jobs or developers who need it? What’s the best way to get our name out there to the right people?

We were competing in a local county bid but we sadly bid too high😕

Hi all. Will ask my question first and then give context.

Question: If you started a new job with none of the knowledge/experience you currently have, how would you familiarize yourself with everything about process equipment, concrete, steel, electrical, piping and control instruments FAST so that people wouldn’t have to hold your hand through everything?

Follow up question: how would you set yourself apart/ make yourself of value to the company in a role where everyone is experienced (and you likely wont out edge anyone in engineering knowledge alone no matter how much catchup you do.)

Ok context- just started new role last month. Was a math major in college so don’t have quite as much engineering experience. All of my coworkers have been here 7+ years. It feels like they know it all and I feel bad that I’m so incompetent comparatively. It takes me so long to even help them on anything because trying to get the lay of the land/ understand the project scope requires so much research and I feel like it’s a brain overload. I’ll hyperfixate on classifying small things (inputting centrifugal pumps for example) and realize hours have passed because of the hyperfixation on all of the intricate details, and I haven’t even gotten to the rest of the equipment. I was always a perfectionist in school, so I hate feeling this way/ burdening others. Definitely doesn’t help that every project is different from the previous LOL!!

Any advice appreciated! Thanks

Looking for how other estimators manage this workflow.

Scenario: You've done a full material takeoff - CHB, concrete, rebar, finishing - and then the architect revises the floor plan. Room dimensions shift, a wall moves, slab area changes.

What's your process?

- Redo the takeoff from scratch?

- Versioned spreadsheets with manual deltas?

- Something else?

I'm in the Philippines working on residential and light commercial projects. Revisions feel like they take almost as long as the original estimate sometimes. Wondering if there's a smarter system I'm missing or if this is just the reality of the job.

I was looking into Bluebeam’s new MCP / Claude integration, and maybe I’m missing something, but the pricing feels weird to me.

From what I understand, the AI part is not actually Bluebeam’s AI. You still need Claude / Anthropic. Bluebeam is basically exposing a local MCP server so Claude can interact with Revu, read PDF data, work with markups, change properties, set page labels, etc.

That is useful, but if I’m already paying for Bluebeam and I also need to pay for Claude or deal with Claude’s usage limits, why is the MCP bridge locked behind the expensive Max subscription?

I get charging more for real Bluebeam-built AI features, enterprise admin tools, Studio automation, smart review, batch workflows, etc. That stuff takes real development and support.

But a basic MCP connector feels more like interoperability. It is basically letting the software I already pay for talk to the AI service I also pay for.

To me, the fair model would be:

- Basic MCP access included with Revu
- Advanced automation / Studio / admin / batch tools in Max
- User brings their own Claude account

Otherwise it kind of feels like paying Bluebeam a premium just for permission to use another company’s AI with files already open in Revu.

Not saying MCP is useless. I actually think it could be very useful for estimators: summarizing markups, checking page labels, extracting notes, cleaning up statuses, finding inconsistencies, etc.

I just don’t like the direction where every existing software company adds a connector to Claude/OpenAI and suddenly calls it a premium AI feature.

Curious what other estimators think. Would you pay for Bluebeam Max just to use MCP with Claude, or should this be included in regular Revu?

so i work with AI and one of my clients is a quantity surveyor, and honestly the thing he dreaded most was always the reports. you know the drill, pulling numbers, formatting everything, chasing down figures. it was just... time. so much time.

he came to me and we built him AI that handles the whole initial report generation process automatically. feeds in the data, structures it, spits out a finished report.

before: ~6 hours per report
after: ~45 minutes

anyone else been automating parts of their workflow? feels like this industry is way behind on this stuff and everyone's just quietly suffering lol

not trying to sell anything, genuinely just thought people here might care.

I'm currently working on a job that's a JV and it is quiet the process. Trying to coordinate with all these guys isn't easy. And using different software is tough, we chose to use Procore for our bidding and drawings. We have it broken out into they do the enclosure and MEP and we do interior finishes. But they keep getting involved in my finishes, like they are scheduling descoping meetings with subs and me. Is that their responsibility even though they aren't touching interiors? I'm pretty new to estimating and wanted to know if people had any advice on working with JVs.

The company I work for is a GC, and over the years we’ve worked with thousands of subs. And I just think our current set up is a mess.

We use Buildertrend to track our subs, but the CRM/organization side of it feels incredibly limited and half-baked. I tried moving everything over to a massive Google Sheet, but a flat spreadsheet just isn't cutting it for the amount of data I need to track.

This is sort of what I'm trying to build:

• Company Info: Business name, main line, website, service areas/trades, and past project history.
• Individual Contacts: The ability to attach multiple specific people to a single company (e.g., Estimator, PM, Owner) along with their specific job titles, direct emails, and cell numbers, etc.
• Visual Layout: Something clean like "contact cards" or a searchable digital Rolodex, rather than just rows of endless text.

Basically, I need a relational database or a lightweight CRM that plays nice with commercial construction workflows.

What is your company using to keep track of thousands of subs and their internal staff? Do you use a specific CRM, or did you build something custom in a tool like Airtable, Notion, or Monday?

Appreciate any recommendations!

Looking for estimating software for commercial painting. Would ideally: -be cloud based -have no storage or reasonable storage limits -work for estimating phase and marking up plans for use in field of job is awarded -integrate plan revisions as they are issued -work for a range of project sizes: small office repaints up to hospital remodels or new builds

Right now we are on PlanGrid

I used to see tariff prices that were all over the place here in the south. Didn't have any convos with vendors directly about it, but I noticed they all had a tariff clause in their quotes.

How unreasonable or outrageous have some of the clauses been that you've seen? Are you passing that cost over to the client?

I came up in the electrical field and now am trying my hand at estimating and I am just looking for a solution to put together assemblies for takeoffs without the two kidney buy in of accubid. Or is that just the price that must be paid?

Recently bought a new desktop and I have the licence fornplanswift 10 and for some reason it's not opening I ve deleted it and redownloaded it like 10 times and also changed the printer settings and it's still stuck on this any help would be highly appreciated

Hi Seniors,

I’m curious about how you estimate walls quickly across different types of projects. Instead of doing detailed takeoffs every time, I’m wondering if there are reliable rules of thumb — like applying wall quantities per floor area or using standard ratios — that can get you close enough (say ~60% accuracy).

A few things I’d love to hear about:

• Area-based estimating: Do you use total building area to approximate wall quantities, and how well does that work across different building types?
• Linear footage: Is this faster and more consistent than area-based methods?
• Stud type assumptions: Do you assume certain stud types per building category (e.g., commercial, residential) and apply them broadly?
• Adjustments for details: How do you factor in openings, partitions, or varying wall heights when using shortcuts?
• Software shortcuts: Any tools or assemblies that help automate these “per area” or “per ratio” methods?
• Speed vs accuracy: Do you find these quick methods good enough for early-stage estimates, or do they cause problems later?

Any input is appreciated. Thank you!

Edit: Just to clarify — I’m actually on the supplier side of things. I’m not bidding jobs; instead, I’m looking for a way to quickly estimate the baseline materials needed so we can start ordering and preparing stock. We’ll do the full detailed takeoff later, but I want a fast method to get in the right ballpark early on.

Looking for someone I can meet when needed or call local time. No one out of state or in the Middle East thanks

I recently put together a plumbing and HVAC estimate and we ended up winning the job. The bid results were:
95k (us)
96k
96.5k
98k
99k
110k
120k
130k
So we were at the low end and secured the contract.
However, a recent project review meeting flagged that the field crews went significantly over budget on labour—around 300 extra hours. This is being translated into roughly a 30k loss on a 15% margin job, which puts us at about -15k overall.
What’s been sticking with me is that I’m questioning my role in this. Even though the issue came from execution in the field, I can’t help but feel responsible as the estimator.
At times, I’m wondering if I have the right level of resilience or judgement to keep progressing in this role.
Would appreciate feedback from others in estimating / project management—how do you separate estimating responsibility from field execution when things go off the rails?

I recently received an offer from a competing company for more money, more structure, and what appears to be better long-term stability/growth. On paper, it’s probably the “right” career move.
The difficult part is I genuinely don’t have ill will toward my current company. They gave me a real opportunity, have been flexible with me, and I respect the people there. But at the same time, I also feel like I have to look out for myself and my future.

The problem is… me leaving would put them in a really difficult position.

I’m currently the sole estimator at a smaller commercial GC. If I leave, there really isn’t another estimator sitting there ready to absorb the workload. I know bids, relationships, systems, historical pricing knowledge, active pursuits, etc. would all take a hit immediately. That part weighs on me pretty heavily.

I think what I’m struggling with most is: wanting to do what’s best for my career while also not wanting to completely screw over people I respect

Realistically, I know there’s probably no scenario where everyone walks away happy.

For those who’ve been through similar situations:

1. How did you approach the conversation with your boss?
2. Did you tell them you had another offer immediately or wait until you made a final decision?
3. Did your company react professionally or emotionally?
4. Did you give extra notice/help transition?
5. Looking back, would you have handled anything differently?

I know business is business and companies would replace employees if needed, but it still feels different when you know your departure is going to create real problems for people you work with daily.

Appreciate any insight.

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I’m trying to improve my understanding of labor productivity, assemblies, and unit pricing in construction estimating.

Would learning RSMeans help in real-world residential/commercial estimating work?

Or do most companies rely on their own historical cost database?

Hi all, just looking for some advice from people in the industry. I’m currently in Melbourne with around 5 years overseas consultant-side estimator experience and AIQS membership, but no Australian local experience.
I’ve been looking through Seek and noticed a lot of jobs ask for local experience, while some others are more junior roles with lower pay than expected. Not really sure what the best approach is for getting that first role in Australia.

For people working in the Australian construction industry:
- How important is local experience when hiring estimators/QSs?

- Would 5 years overseas consultant experience still be considered valuable?

- Is it better to stay on the consultant side for the first job since that’s my background? Or would contractor-side roles be easier to get into first?

I’m also living in the outer east of Melbourne, and most consultant firms seem to be around the CBD, so the commute is another thing I’m considering.
Would appreciate hearing about other people’s experiences or advice. Thanks!

https://aspenational.org/

Has anyone ever taken their online courses to supplement their education? I am a baby estimator who isn’t getting to do traditional takeoffs like I would with a subcontractor bidding jobs (I work for a EPC in renewable energy) and thought this might be a good way to supplement my education

Thoughts?

Edit: I have an engineering degree in Construction Management from an accredited school. the estimating curriculum was just not great!