Good Ideas for the Modern Electrical Estimator Part I

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Electrical estimating is an intense, all-consuming task that is only made more difficult when adding distractions.  When you consider the constant bombardment of communication about jobs past, present, and future…it’s amazing we ever get anything done. Inevitably, errors find their way into an estimate.  Many times, item counts or measurements will be done correctly, but get incorrectly entered into an estimate. At best, the repercussions from these human errors will inflate the price of an estimate, effectively taking your bid out of contention. At worst, there’s really no limit to what can go wrong.

There is no doubt that a company is better equipped to handle the estimating process, from start to finish, with professional electrical estimating software. It makes an estimating team more productive and better prepared for bidding projects with complicated bid forms, alternates, unit prices, etc.

• Use On-screen Take-off software
  Digital plans are easier to work with, store, and send.  Also, a company will save considerable resources as a result of reduced plan printing needs.  Beyond overall takeoff speed benefits, the most important advantage on-screen takeoff software provides an electrical estimator is the substantial reduction in human error.  When using this software, the computer performs all of the counting in one place and the estimator only needs to locate and click on an item.  Many times, the software’s auto-count feature can even speed the process further.  Plus, there is no need to remember how many of them were counted before the phone rang!
• Eliminate redundant methods
  Redundant processes of preforming take-offs by hand is how the majority of estimating mistakes occur.  The method of performing a take-off on a notepad or spreadsheet and then entering it into an estimate later is fertile soil for human error.  Here is a good example:An estimator meticulously counts the light fixtures in a plan with utmost accuracy.  The counts are then documented onto a notepad or spreadsheet. So far so good, right? But things will go wrong in a hurry if these counts aren’t perfectly entered into the system. Any take-off methods that involve doing something more than once contribute to the overall risk of error and should be improved.
• Use automatically updated material pricing
  Time is an estimator’s most valuable asset. Simply put, the more time an estimator has, the more projects they can bid, and the more work they can bring to their company. One very important task for any estimating team is keeping material prices current. Doing this by hand is a tedious process that can easily go wrong. Using an automated service will ensure your pricing is always accurate, 24 hours a day. It’s one less task to worry about.

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