What’s the fastest time we can produce an estimate in?
Friday, October 30th, 2015
What’s the fastest way to produce an estimate?
The sales team recently set Adrian Wild, founder of HBXL Building Software, an estimating time trial to find out the fastest way to produce an estimate…
They asked him to see how quickly he could put together a quote for a rear extension to a 4-bedroom house using three different estimating methods?
We think you’ll be amazed at the results.
Trial 1: Manual estimate
Using an existing plan, Adrian worked out his quantities and then spent a good day dealing with suppliers, followed by a wait by the fax machine and computer for their prices to come through. He got most of the masonry, timber, windows, doors and sundries prices he needed and the missing prices were retrieved from old quotes. Adrian just hoped that the prices hadn’t gone up since.
Once he had the details, he keyed the prices into his spreadsheet, added the plant costs, the labour costs and then his mark-up. Nothing more.
The spreadsheet wasn’t a pretty sight, so he quickly typed up a single page note with the total figure that he could give to the customer.
Time: A day and a half
Accuracy: Approx 60% based on the following two quotes.
Trial 2: EstimatorXpress estimating
Using the same plan, Adrian set to work. There was a diagram on-screen to represent every stage of the construction project, so he simply keyed in the dimensions alongside the diagrams for the footings, the walls, the roof and so on. Every now and then he was asked a yes/no question. The longest job was probably selecting the PVC-U windows from a huge selection. And that was it.
The software’s calculators then set to work to cost and quantify all the materials, labour and plant. Everything. Every tube of Mastic, every nail, tape, noggings, the exact amount of sand, undercoat, rolls of insulation…Not forgetting VAT, wastage, critical costs, profit, and wear and tear.
And he didn’t need to pick up the phone, send an email or get in the van. His software was linked to thousands of live prices via HBXL’s unique Price Tracker, which automatically keeps pace with price increases (so no profit-pinching under-estimating). And since the job wasn’t likely to start for another six months he was also grateful for the built-in Inflation calculator.
Last step, a click of a button and the printer presented him with a letter, a detailed quotation including diagrams, plus a build programme that he could run through with the customer. As he left to deliver the quote, the printer carried on printing the material order schedule, the cutting list, the labour schedule…
Time: 47 minutes
Accuracy: 100%
Trial 3: 3D Visual Estimating (a combination of PlansXpress and EstimatorXpress)
Option 1: Drawing the extension
Adrian, using a scan of an existing plan for the house, traced over it in PlansXpress. He then drew the rear extension from scratch using the software’s simple drag and drop tools and the 1000s of individual diagrams that represent every square metre of any typical extension or new build.
Drawing time: 90 minutes
He then added detailing that would enable him to submit the plan to the Planning Department. The software also automatically gave him 3D drawings.
Drawing time: 30 minutes
With the plan complete, Adrian pressed the import button for the plan he’d created in PlansXpress to transfer across to EstimatorXpress using HBXL’s unique X-Connex technology. Seconds passed. He then waited for the software to do ALL the calculations using the data from the plan.
Again, he pressed print and out came the letter, detailed quotation, and so on and so on.
Estimating time: 2 minutes
Accuracy: 100%
Option 2: Using an existing plan
This time, the customer had supplied the plan with the extension already on there as a DWG (it could have been a pdf, JPEG or DXF file), so Adrian only needed to trace it in PlansXpress using the drag and drop tools.
Tracing time: 40 minutes
Again, he pressed the import button for the plan he’d created in PlansXpress to transfer across to EstimatorXpress using HBXL’s unique X-Connex technology. Seconds passed. He then waited for the software to do ALL the calculations using the data from the plan.
Again, he pressed print and out came the letter, detailed quotation, and so on and so on.
Estimating time: 2 minutes
Accuracy: 100%
Amazing! Once you have drawn or traced a plan in PlansXpress it takes just TWO MINUTES to produce a complete and comprehensive estimate! Yes, that’s an estimate in 120 seconds!
To see the complete set of outputs Adrian produced for this project – plans, quotation and reports – please see below:
Why not put the software to the test yourself and take advantage of our 14-day trial? Just call 0117 916 7898. We think you’ll be amazed.
