An AI estimating assistant built by a rebar estimator with 25+ years on the job. It reads the drawings, does the counting and cites the sheet behind every bar, so you can check its work in seconds.
Reading the footing schedule on S-201 before anything else.
Added: F3 pad footing, bottom mat each way
Detail 4/S-501: 8 #5 dowels with a 90° hook. One bend, so heavy.
Slab S1 area assumed at 15,250 SF. Weight counted, flagged VERIFY.
| Element | Bar | Qty × length | Source | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F3 pad · bottom mat EW | #6 straight | 24 × 8'-6" | S-201 schedule, F3 | VERIFIED |
| F3 pad · column dowels | #5 heavy | 8 × 4'-6" | Detail 4/S-501 | VERIFIED |
| Slab S1: #4 @ 18" EW | #4 straight | 750 × 30'-0" | 2nd Level: 15,250 SF | VERIFY AREA |
Illustrative sample job. Every line cites the sheet, schedule or detail it came from.
Drawings in, sourced takeoff out, with every check shown.
A two-minute walkthrough of the presentation with voice-over and music.
Both checked against a real answer: the weight that actually shipped.
Source: the founder's records of two live bids. Results depend on plan quality and scope; estimator review is always required.
Drop in the structural PDFs and your scope sheet, and tell it what to take off.
It reads the schedules, sections and details and adds lines one at a time. You see its reasoning live and can challenge any number.
Fill in the VERIFY items only you can measure, clear the checks, and download a sourced takeoff workbook.
These aren't reminders the AI is supposed to remember. A line without a source can't get into the takeoff as a real number.
A line that doesn't cite its sheet or detail is refused, or goes on your VERIFY list with its assumed weight. Never a zero.
Checked against the drawing index. No bid item sits silently at zero.
Every detail cut is cross-referenced, and each one has to be cleared.
Verticals, horizontals, dowels and ties are never blended into one number.
Straight, heavy (1 to 2 bends), light (3 or more). A single hook is heavy, every time.
Already knows all symbols and abbreviations, so EF counts both faces, every time.
The estimator challenged a splice length. The assistant pointed to the general note that referenced it. The note won.
Disagreements get settled by the drawings, not by who sounds more sure. That's what a source on every line buys you.
And when the source shows the assistant got it wrong, you see that just as fast, and you correct it on the spot. Every change is logged in the workbook.
| The miss | What the system does now |
|---|---|
| Connection dowels called out only on a detail sheet | Detail sweep: every detail bubble on the plans is listed and has to be cleared |
| Bond-beam bars counted as masonry wall dowels | Every bar role gets its own line and its own code |
| One flat splice factor across a large slab | Laps computed per stock bar, from the actual bar lengths |
| Top and bottom splice lengths treated alike | Applied per the general notes, with the note cited on the line |
| A rounding error inside its own code | Found and fixed; a regression test suite re-checks every change |
More bids per estimator, fewer misses, and takeoffs a reviewer can check line by line.
Take on more work without cutting corners on the details.
Rebar takeoffs done in-house, with the sources to back them up.
The engine runs on our server, so there's nothing to maintain, and every improvement reaches every seat.
For the independent estimator.
For the first five customers. Price locked for 6 months.
For estimating teams. About two takeoffs a week per seat.
$3,000 setup, including a 1-week pilot that sets up your cost codes and shop rules. AI provider: Anthropic's Claude API, under its commercial terms.
A live walkthrough from start to finish: drawings in, sourced takeoff out, with every check shown.
Book a live demo