Equipment Costing – Part 1
If there is anything in the field of estimating that is misunderstood it is equipment costing. First it is critical to understand that the first day when the key is first turned on at the start of the equipment’s life to the final day when…
Adding Searchable Information to Estimates
There is information that you might want to add to estimates and this information can be searchable across all estimates. Or you just want this information available for review where it has been inputted by an estimator. These fields can be customized and is found…
Tracking Changes to Master Estimate(s)
I got this suggestion from a user I recently trained. If you want changes to the Master Estimate(s) to be documented and tracked, create a Word document and each time a revision is made summarize (or detail) the revision. Attach it in the Setup>Estimate Information…
Equipment Costing Resources – CEMP Central
Some companies that I have the opportunity to train have no idea of what their real equipment costs are and have no idea how to dial in real equipment rates. They don’t know what they don’t know. Here are two resources that I just purchased…
Activity Codebook – A History
The foundation of HeavyBid when it was first conceptualized was the Activity Codebook. I am one of the few people who have a first hand knowledge of this. Before there was HCSS (and HeavyBid) I worked at Raymond International for many senior estimators. One estimator…
Crew Costs Per Hour
If you want to see what hours crew costs are there is a simple report to print that is useful in estimate analysis. Go to Reports>Estimate Resource Reports>Crew Costs. There is an option to see only the crews in your estimate and also to include…
Crew on the Fly or “Open Crew” setup
What is a “Crew on the Fly”? It is nothing more than a crew with no labor or equipment. Sometimes it referred to it as a “blank” or “open” crew. It is useful when you want to use a one time crew that doesn’t exist…
Updating Your Master Estimate
Typically companies new to HeavyBid as they are working on estimates find that they have missed setting up certain labor, equipment or crew. During the estimating effort you will most likely add these resources (or revise resource costs) to the current estimate. At the end…
Automatic Backup – Settings
I love the automatic backup feature of HeavyBid. It will back up an estimate when you close HeavyBid or switch to another estimate as well as when major changes are being made (like in the Edit routines). So you will have at least one backup…
Recommended Optional Settings – Quote Folders
There are two optional settings that every estimator should activate. The first one shows the quantity for each material or sub in the grid (and not just on the bottom of the screen). This does not take a lot of screen room and most users…
HeavyBid – Basics and Beyond is devoted to everything HCSS HeavyBid and estimating. Updated regularly with helpful insights and tools of the trade, this blog is designed to make your estimating easier and more successful.
