Estimating

Estimating Overview

Generating Estimates

PMWeb Estimating is an easy-to-use web platform that gives any user the power to create detailed estimates and generate related records with the click of a button.

Automatically Generate Related Records

Estimate by Item

Custom Item Catalogs

PMWeb makes it easy to create and import any catalog of items you wish and to store them in your own group structure. This catalog can be used in Estimating and in the other PMWeb modules.

PMWeb makes it easy to add items to your estimate. Simply drag and drop from the tree to the estimate. You can drag and drop one or more items at a time; even drag and drop a folder and all of its subfolders – all of the items are added to the estimate at once.

Drag and Drop Whole Folders to Your Estimate

BIM Integration

PMWeb allows you to store unlimited bits of information with each item. This information can be used to integrate with other Business Information Management (BIM)-compliant applications.

Estimate by Assembly

Assemblies That Work for You

An assembly can be a simple collection of items or it can describe an intricate and complex system. Directly integrated graphics let you visualize your assemblies while you design and use them.

Integrated Graphics Let You Visualize the Assembly

Stored Formulas

Build your own formulas from scratch or customize the samples that come with PMWeb. Formulas can be simple mathematical calculations or complex functions that use multiple custom variables and logical evaluations.

Create One-Time Items

Need to add an item to your estimate that doesn’t exist in your catalog? PMWeb lets you enter it directly in the estimating grid.

Estimate Manager

See Managers for information about customizing and using Manager pages.

Estimates

Estimates are created and edited in the Estimates window. Each estimate is linked to a project and each project can have one or more estimates. In addition, users can generate estimate revisions with the click of a button. A revision is a complete copy of an estimate that can then be modified, leaving the original version unchanged. Multiple revisions can be generated, allowing for what-if estimating while retaining estimate development history.

Header Fields

*Field Name*	*Comments*
Project	This field is required. Once an estimate has been saved, Project cannot be changed.
Revision	This field is read-only. Revisions are editable copies of a record. You may create as many revisions to a record as you wish. A new record is designated revision 0. Only the newest revision can be edited. Older revisions are locked as “Inactive”.
Date	This field is read-only. The date the revision was created.
Description	A description of the estimate. Description must be unique within the project.
Status	The default status is “Draft”. This field may be edited at any time to reflect the record’s movement through an approval process. See Workflow for details about automating the approval process.
Estimate Unit of Measure	A unit of measure used to analyze the estimate. You may change this field whenever you wish.
Estimate Units	A quantity to use in conjunction with Estimate Unit of Measure. You may change this field whenever you wish.
Cost/Unit	This field is read-only. This is the Total Cost of the estimate (Estimate Totals) divided by the Estimate Units entered.
Price/Unit	This field is read-only. This is the Bid Price of the estimate (Estimate Totals) divided by the Estimate Units entered.

Details Fields

Details Grid

*Field Name*	*Comments*
Line #	By default, records in the Details grid are sorted by Line #. Click and drag a line up or down to change its line #.
Assembly	If the estimate line was added by selecting an assembly the ID of the assembly appears in this field. To add assemblies to the estimate click the Add assemblies button in the header of the details grid.
Item	If the estimate line was added by selecting an item from the catalog the ID of the item appears in this field. To add an item to the estimate click the Add items button in the header of the details grid.
Description	The description of this line item. If the estimate line is added by selecting an assembly the Description defaults to the description of the item as defined in Assemblies. If the estimate line is added by selecting an item from the Items catalog the Description defaults to the description defined in Items.
Phase	The phase for this line. See Phases for details on creating project phases.
Cost Code	The Cost Code for this line. See Budgets Setup for details on creating Cost Codes.
Type	The cost type for this line. The values in this list are PMWeb values and may not be changed.
UOM	The unit of measure for this line. This is a user-defined list.
Quantity	The quantity for this line.
Ext. Quantity	This field is read-only. If this estimate line was added by selecting an item from the catalog or by adding a blank line this will equal the Quantity field. If this estimate line was added by selecting an assembly this will equal the Quantity multiplied by the Quantity you entered in the Add Assembly Dialog.
Unit Cost	The unit cost for this line. If the estimate line was added by selecting an item or an assembly from the catalogs this is normally the Default Cost entered in Items. If, however, Use Unit Price When Estimating is checked in Items this defaults to the item’s Unit Price.
Total Cost	By default, Ext. Quantity multiplied by Unit Cost. You may override this is you wish. If you do edit this field, Ext. Quantity and Unit Cost will be unaffected.
Company	The company that will supply the estimate line. Entering a Company makes the line eligible to be generated to a contract or purchase order.
Sbtl	Whether or not this line will require a submittal.
Location	The project location associated with the estimate line.
Notes 1	Notes about the estimate line. See Generating Records from Estimates for details about using the two notes fields.
Notes 2	Notes about the estimate line. See Generating Records from Estimates for details about using the two notes fields.
Bid Category	If you wish to use this line in the procurement process, select a Bid Category here.
Manufacturer	If the estimate line is added by selecting an item from the Items catalog the Manufacturer defaults to the manufacturer defined in Items.
Mfr. #	If the estimate line is added by selecting an item from the Items catalog the Mfr. # defaults to the manufacturer # defined in Items.

Estimate Totals

*Field Name*	*Comments*
Total Cost	The sum of the Total Cost field for all estimate lines.
Total Markup	The sum of Markup Amount field on the Markup tab + (if Use Bond on the Markup tab is checked) Bond Cost on Markup tab.
Bid Price	The sum of Total Cost and Total Markup.
Gross Margin	Total Markup divided by Total Bid Price multiplied by 100.
Markup	Total Markup divided by Total Cost multiplied by 100.

Add Items Dialog

To add one or more items to an estimate click the Add items button in the grid header. The Add Items dialog opens.

The Add Items Dialog

Using the Add Items Dialog

Select any defaults you wish to apply to the items using the controls in the Item Defaults Zone.
Find the item or folder you wish to add in the Items Tree.
Click on the item or folder and drag it to the Drop Zone.
Click the Save to Estimate or Save and Close link to copy the items to the estimate.

Notes:

You can drag and drop a folder to the Drop Zone. If you do, all of the items in that folder, including any subfolders, will be copied to the Drop Zone.
You can Ctrl+Click to select multiple items or folders and then drag all of them to the Drop Zone at once.
You can add an item or folder to the Drop Zone more than once.
You can click and drag the Splitter left and right to change the widths of the Items Tree and Drop Zone panes.

Using the Item Defaults Zone

You can use the drop-down lists in the header of the Items Default Zone to assign settings to multiple items before adding them to the estimate. Settings you select in the drop-down will be applied to all items in the Drop Zone that have a value of “Select” for that field.

Notes:

· When items are added to the Drop Zone their default settings, as defined in Items, are added as well.

· Items in the Drop Zone with a value other than “Select” will not be affected by values selected in the Item Defaults Zone.

Add Assembly Dialog

To add one or more assemblies to an estimate click the Add assemblies button in the grid header. The Add Assembly dialog opens.

The Add Assembly Dialog

Using the Add Assembly Dialog

Select an assembly using the Select Assembly drop-down list.
Enter the assembly Quantity.
Select any defaults you wish to apply to the assembly items using the controls in the Assembly Defaults Zone.
Enter Variables as prompted.
Preview assembly Items.
Click the Save to Estimate or Save and Close link to copy the items to the estimate.

Notes: You may or may not be prompted to enter variables, depending on the design of the assembly.

Assembly Quantity

This is the multiplier for the assembly. If your takeoff calls for seven identical walls you would enter “7” in this field. When you save the assembly to the estimate it will display as a single assembly with each line’s quantity multiplied by seven (in the Ext. Quantity field). This way, you don’t have to add the assembly seven times.

Using the Assembly Defaults Zone

You can use the drop-down lists in the header of the Assembly Default Zone to assign settings to items in the assembly before adding them to the estimate. Settings you select in the drop-down will be applied to all items in the assembly that have a value of “Select” for that field (as defined in Items).

Note: Items in the assembly with a value other than “Select” will not be affected by values selected in the Assembly Defaults Zone.

Markup

An unlimited number of markups may be created. Markups can be calculated by PMWeb or be a fixed amount. Calculated markups may be overridden.

Note: Markups are sequentially calculated from the top of the list to the bottom.

Markups Grid

*Field Name*	*Comments*
Description	The description of the markup.
%	If the markup is calculated based on amounts in the estimate enter a percentage here. The default is “0.00”.
Applies To	If the markup is calculated based on amounts in the estimate select the cost type(s) to base it on here. One or more cost types may be selected. The default is “All”.
Cumulative	To include this markup amount in the base of subsequent calculations check this box.
Calculated Markup	= % multiplied by (total amounts of cost types selected in Applies To + Markup Amount for any previous lines marked as Cumulative?). This field is read-only.
Markup Amount	By default this equals Calculated Markup. If Manual? is unchecked this field is read-only and will be recalculated when Calculated Markup is. If Manual? is checked this amount may be overridden and it will not be recalculated.
Manual	Determines whether or not Markup Amount may be overridden.
Cost Code	If the Markup Amount is part of the project estimate select the Cost Code here. The default is “(Not in Budget)”.

Letting PMWeb Calculate the Markup

When you click the Save icon the markup will be calculated and saved.

Entering a Manual Markup

To override the Calculated Markup, check the Manual? checkbox and then type a dollar amount in the Markup Amount field. As long as the Manual? checkbox remains checked, Markup Amount will not change.

Bonding Grid

Bond amounts are calculated based on the estimate total plus total markup amount.

*Field Name*	*Comments*
Limit	The upper threshold of this bond rate in dollars.
Rate	The bond rate as a percentage.
Bond Cost	The calculated bond amount in dollars. This field is read-only.

Use Bond Checkbox

If the Use Bond Checkbox is checked, Total Bond Cost is used in the Total Markup calculation on the Estimate Detail page. If it is unchecked, bond cost is not included in calculations. By default the box is checked.

Generating Records from Estimates

One of the most powerful features of PMWeb Estimating is the ability to quickly and easily generate external records based on estimate data. Duplicate data entry is eliminated and the estimate serves as the historic record of underlying details.