It’s every flooring expert’s dream to only have to deal with square rooms that have no strange nooks, doorways, hidden spaces, or huge corners.
But sadly, that is a far-off dream and not a reality that many will get to enjoy.
This is because rooms come in all shapes and sizes, and over the years, this has meant flooring professionals have had to try and find new and innovative ways to create grids and material estimates fora range of flooring, including tiles, laminate, carpet, and more.
This is where Construction Takeoff Software come in, and in particular, flooring takeoff softwares.
In this guide, we’re going to take a look at what flooring takeoff software is, some of the most common features of these platforms, and some of the leading flooring business software available.
Read on to find out more.
Flooring takeoff software is a computer application that has been designed to help contractors calculate the cost of materials and labor. This can then be used to create a detailed bid proposal.
These softwares are customized to the workflows and needs of flooring experts and contractors.
For example, trade-specific software allows flooring contractors to account for obstructions such as doors, stairs, and baseboards. And as well as working out how many tiles, laminate, etc. is needed, these tools can also work out add-ons such as carpet pads, nail strips, or adhesive.
Plus, they able to give accurate measurements and costs. This can also help contractors to reduce waste and keep within the project budget.
Depending on the software you choose (and we’ll look at some of these in more detail later), each flooring takeoff software will be a little different. That said, any good platform will have some, if not most, of the following features:
• Optical recognition features that can automatically spot floored, tiled, and carpeted areas on the digital plans
• Layout grids that add seams on carpet rolls, or place cuts on hardwood flooring
• Trade-specific cost and material databases
• The ability to rotate grids to get a better view and ensure coverage of curved or irregular areas
• Calculate cost estimating features that include itemized costs for material and labor
• Automatic proposal generation
• Prebuilt assemblies for standard jobs, or the ability to create custom assemblies
• Single-click area select for tile, carpet, wood, etc.
It’s all well and good looking at what these tools are, but why have contractors and professionals in the industry come to rely on flooring takeoff software so heavily? Well, it’s because these tools have a number of benefits and can make their jobs much easier. Some of the key benefits include:
Single-click functionalities, speedy perimeters, and automated proposal tools are just some of the features that make flooring takeoff software great.
These allow contractors and companies to create bids in no time and win more work.
When you decrease the time required to cost up a job and produce a bid, experts can get to work much faster. Not to mention this saves them precious time on administrative work.
Plus, the use of technology makes these take offs a lot more accurate; some can even update prices as the market fluctuates.
As we said earlier, being able to accurately map out and measure materials means there is less room for over or under-ordering.This can stop there from being too much leftover material.
And it helps contractors to ensure they’re sticking within or even going under budget. This helps them to better control their profit margin.
And these are just a handful of reasons why construction businesses are increasingly embracing flooring takeoff software.
As well as having different features, different flooring takeoff software will also vary in popularity, price, and effectiveness.
To help you get a better understanding of what is out there on the market right now and to compare the top platforms, we have pulled together a list of some of the top software available. These include:
ConX Measure allows contractors to complete flooring takeoffs in minutes and up to 10 times faster than manual takeoffs.
Users can measure floor areas, skirting, and trims much quicker and more efficiently, helping them to reduce waste and stick to their budget. Some of the key features of ConX Measure include smart quoting, Xero integration, real-time collaboration, and more!
Prices start from as little as $40 a month, and a 14-day free trial is on offer.
eTakeOff is a powerful takeoff software that allows users to get exact flooring measurements and cost estimations with ease.
Some of the platform’s key features include Microsoft Office compatibility, assembly capabilities, interrogation with PlanRooms, and high-performance database technology.
As well as offering a free trial, eTakeOff also has a basic package that users can access for free. But for those who wish to upgrade to premium services, prices start at $950 a year.
PlanSwift offers users a comprehensive and easy-to-use way to deal with their flooring takeoff. It helps contractors to save time, reduce costs, and get exact and accurate measurements.
To do this, the platform offers key features such as one-click options, drag and drop functionality, integration with Excel, and the ability to add different plug-ins from their store. This allows users to customize their software package to suit their needs.
The company offers an initial free trial, and after this, plans start at $1595 a year.
PreBuild ML is incredibly useful software allows users to easily deal with the takeoff of their flooring plan for any project.
This application is very easy to use and includes great features such as accurate material lists, the ability to create custom layouts, note tools, and one-click digitalisation.
There are two different versions, PreBuilt ML PROtrade and PreBuilt ML X; both come with a free trial option. Then pricing starts from just $39.95 a month, depending on which version you choose.
Last on the list, we have MeasureSquare which was built specifically as Flooring Takeoff Software.
MeasureSquare offers a complete suite of measure takeoff software solutions across various trades including Flooring, Tiling and Granite/Stone. Their focus is to lower costs and increase automation of processes for higher accuracy rates.
Pricing starts at $149 for residential contractors and $179 for commercial contractors and training comes at an additional cost of $400 for remote setup, going up to $2,000 for on-site training.
But, of course, these are just some of the options available right now, and before investing in any flooring takeoff software, you should do thorough research to find the tool and provider that is best for your business or specific needs.