Accuracy and completeness is an important part of determining a construction bid. Bid software can help you plan out and organize different aspects of your bid proposal, including estimating jobs, tracking costs and detailing subcontractor issues. When looking for bid software, be sure to choose a software that is capable of preparing documents, processing purchase orders, facilitating accounting and archiving previous jobs.
Document preparation is a feature that you likely will appreciate in bid software. As a part of your construction job, you almost certainly will need to prepare schedules, letters, contracts, reports and change order forms during the course of a project. Good bid software will provide you with customized reports, a calendar with a scheduling system, a contract and letter library and change-order processing forms. It should offer other features, as well, such as analysis of project areas and job phases.
Accounting is something about which all contractors worry. Great bid software has features that allow you to track each phase of a job's cost, providing calculating abilities, conversion programs, a centralized cost table that has information about assemblies and associated items that help you compare quotes between subcontractors and vendors. Additional accounting tools might include functions that let you export your accounting information about a particular job to a third-party accounting system. These accounting systems have to be compatible with the your software, however.
Keeping immaculate records definitely plays a large role in job estimating. Attributing specific costs to certain divisions so that you know exactly where money went; keeping separate databases for projects, customers, vendors and suppliers; and importing and exporting financial information into a cost book can only help you understand the intricacies of constructing a profitable job bid. A suitable bid software also can offer more technical methods of data safeguarding, such as automatic, internal backups and restore functions.
If you're a first-time user of bid software, you probably will be concerned with learning how to navigate the software and dealing with any problems that might arise. Before purchasing software, be sure to check out any online demonstrations of the software's features that are available to you; these can be found on the manufacturers' websites. While there, familiarize yourself with any training options offered. Training might be provided through the website or through the software itself. Good software will always have technical support that can be reached through email or by calling toll-free telephone numbers, and the response times should be fast.