Why estimating software is an essential piece of kit for every builder
In times of economic uncertainty, many building firm owners are looking for ways to improve their margins and create financial security. Profit is not a “desirable”; it’s “essential” for any business who wants to survive and thrive in a tough industry, in tough times. Technology is a key way of achieving increased operational efficiency. Many small and medium sized builders are looking to software to make improvements around the estimating of construction costs.
Over the past decade or two, forward-thinking construction firms have embraced estimating software. Builders who historically estimated by hand or using spreadsheets have moved on from outdated methods of estimating. Instead, they’re digitising this time-consuming aspect of their work and seeing the benefits. What’s led them to make the change and what are the advantages of using estimating software?
The advantages of estimating software for small to medium sized builders
If you’re considering investing in estimating software, you no doubt want to understand the longer-term financial benefits of doing so.
The first advantage of estimating using software is that it helps you avoid mistakes. It’s difficult to achieve a high degree of accuracy in your costings when estimating using traditional methods. Using out of date material prices, overlooking changes to building regulations and under-specifying the project, forgetting to include key resources and failing to accurately calculate build times are all easy ways to make losses on your project. Mistakes and shortfalls have to be covered somehow. Estimating software will help you avoid these errors.
The second key benefit of estimating software is the hours saved over using a manual or spreadsheet approach. Estimating is a drain on every builder’s time and we all know the saying, “time is money”. Any reduction in time spent estimating will benefit your business, creating opportunities for you to focus on areas of your business which make you money: keeping projects on schedule, negotiating deals with your suppliers, going after high-end projects and so on.
The third major benefit of using specialist estimating software is that you’ll be able to project and control your project costs and profits from start to completion. This is a crucial undertaking for any SME building firm. Sustainable building firms factor in all of the variables, including wastage, overheads, VAT and inflation, as well as construction costs. If your firm doesn’t pass these costs onto the customer, they’ll come out of your profits. Market-leading estimating software will help you estimate all of these costs.
Estimating software v estimating apps
Mobile apps and trade-based software can be a good solution for tradesmen who are looking to estimate basic, trade-specific work. However, they don’t have the power to estimate the larger projects small and medium-sized builders carry out. Be sure to look for software designed specifically for builders which will offer the features you need to estimate complete projects such as refurbishments, extensions and new builds.
Whether you opt for take-off software such as HBXL’s Take-off & Estimate Kit or template-based estimating offered by EstimatorXpress, the best estimating software solutions on the market boast user-friendly interfaces which enable fast-track estimating. What’s more, estimating software gives you a high level of flexibility to deal with the specific details of your project - something basic apps cannot compete with. In addition, estimating software provides you with an automatic, professional-looking quotation which will impress your customer and help you win the business.
What’s more, the organisational tools included in building estimation software will benefit your business for the duration of each project. For example, material order schedules help you ensure the materials are delivered to site in good time and automated build programmes assist with managing delays to the build schedule. Estimating apps rarely offer features such as these.
Save time, make money
The quickest way to improve your profits is not to take on more projects or work longer hours; it’s to work smarter. Estimating using outdated methods is a time-drain and profit-killer. If you embrace technology and invest in estimating software, you will quickly reap the benefits: increased efficiency, time to focus on money-making tasks and a healthier bottom line.
Using professional estimating software will also enhance your reputation, enable you to win more business and compete for the prestige projects. Let’s face it, your competitors are probably already using estimating software so don’t let them get any further ahead.
What next?
Take a look at EstimatorXpress and Take-off & Estimate Kit, software tools which offer all of the features discussed above, and more. Take time to research to software on the market, find the best estimating software for your business - and get yourself to the front of the pack, alongside other savvy building firms.