Automate Estimating Tasks with DESTINI Estimator
We are in a new era of how we estimate construction projects.
Revolutionary digital technologies have aided in eliminating the boring but necessary manual tasks that estimators must do to complete their jobs. AI-powered takeoff; automated database collection, storage, and retrieval; instant real time connection, collaboration, and communication. There are plenty of integrated tools that have automated preconstruction workflows so estimators and preconstruction managers can now add true value to a project by making informed decisions and guiding design, ops, and owners through the entire life of a project.
With DESTINI Estimator construction estimating software, you can prioritize the high-level aspects of estimating that impress owners and win more work, because you have the time to do it!
Over 2,000 users of DESTINI Estimator like you were using disjointed multiple systems that were introducing high levels of risk in their estimating process before switching to DESTINI Estimator.
You can probably relate to three of the biggest common preconstruction problems these contractors faced before evaluating new construction estimating software: spending too much time doing takeoff, finding and accessing information, and reviewing and fixing mistakes.
DESTINI Estimator preconstruction software helps you fix these burdensome problems.
Takeoff
Takeoff is by far one of the biggest drains on any estimator’s time. Uploading drawings, clicking and dragging to perform the takeoff, ensuring the data makes it to the correct place, and then integrating that data into your estimate—it’s ripe for both monotony and error.
But with new technological advancements like Togal.AI’s artificial intelligence-powered takeoff tool, you can still get hands-on with the project and receive accurate takeoffs that easily fit into your estimates in just a matter of minutes, rather than hours.
Jennifer Kolp, a senior estimator at VJS Construction says, “Togal AI has helped our team to collaborate with Trade contractors. We are now able to send them a link through Togal to the takeoff and they can collaborate in the same document with us! This greatly increases the accuracy of our estimates.”
Estimator’s seamless integration with Togal produces 80 percent faster takeoffs saving estimators up to 90 minutes per sheet.
Data Management and Access
Another major distraction in preconstruction is managing both past and present data and storing it in a way that gives every team member easy access. Not to mention trusting that data to be correct.
Prior to the development of estimating software, preconstruction data was all over the place at most companies. Some existed in Excel, some existed only on one specific computer in a certain folder, and some didn’t even live in the digital realm, but on paper. Construction professionals spend over 14 hours a week on activities that are not productive to the project. Seeking out information and project data is one of those non-productive activities.
Taimoor Khan, Vice President of Preconstruction at Satterfield & Pontikes and University of Houston professor says, “With our previous estimating process where we were using multiple different software for our takeoff and also for estimating, a typical estimate would take 2-12 to 3 weeks. We’ve got it down to 1-1/2 to 2 weeks. Even in the starting, we cut it down at least 30%.”
But with a full-service construction estimating and bid leveling software like the DESTINI suite of preconstruction products, users have a cost database at their fingertips without ever having to leave the platform that they’re estimating in. And that’s not even the best part. When you’re able to have one central source of truth, you’re able to start creating things like estimate templates, which lets you focus on winning more projects.
Finding and Fixing Mistakes
The third most common complaint that we hear from precon professionals is getting held up at the office due to going back to correct mistakes—you know, the kind where you swear you typed 52,310 but you ended up hitting a 4 instead of a 2. One or two mistakes might be manageable, but over the course of a day or a week, they start adding up.
Chad Ricks, an estimator at Macallan Construction says, “The best thing I like about Estimator is that I don’t have to worry about sums. One of the things Excel is great at is it does use sums, but the bad part about that is that if you don’t have the sums in the right locations, or you start adding line items here and there, sum totals can just become a nightmare. Hard to track down, hard to find problems with them. I don’t have to worry about that when I use Estimator. Once I enter in an item, I know it gets transferred over.”
Trust your tiresome tasks to DESTINI Estimator
Perhaps most importantly, automating these kinds of tasks allows estimators to truly tap into their potential and utilize their skills for more than just being a human calculator. Johnny Maghzal, Head of Development at Togal.AI, puts it this way: “[As an estimator], I spent too much time in On-Screen and Bluebeam clicking, clicking, and dragging—and not even thinking … People fresh out of four years of school don’t want to spend their time clicking and dragging, they want to use their brain … and they want to learn from their seniors how things are built, not really coloring and tracing.”
If you're curious to learn more, click the button below to schedule a conversation with us about preconstruction software that can help you spend more time on customer added value tasks that win work.