I received a question from an estimator while working in Anchorage last week, common to all estimating systems. The process is the same, regardless of whether your company uses WinEst, US Cost Success Estimator, Timberline Estimating, or any other software we know of.
Example: you’ve selected an item from the database, such as 3-5/8″ steel stud partitions with drywall, and you’d like to change the unit of measure from square feet to lineal feet, and insert the productivity based on LF. You’ve opened the Detail screen to make the adjustment, but the unit won’t change. Why not?
The solution: Close the Detail screen, and change the unit in the Takeoff Unit column first. Then adjust the Takeoff Quantity and Labor Production IMMEDIATELY! By definition, those values must be incorrect as you’ve changed the unit of measure.
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- First, change the Quantity based on the appropriate conversion between the original and new Takeoff unit.
- Then reopen the Detail view and modify the Labor Productivity for the new unit.
In Timberline Estimating and US COST Success you won’t have to close the Detail view to change the Takeoff Quantity, but you will in WinEst. In all three, the Labor Productivity can be changed on the Estimate Spreadsheet itself if you’ve got those columns visible in the current view or filter.
Check out the blog topics for more estimating tips.
