Procore Estimating

Less time to get more done

Comments: Overall we really enjoy the cloud integration and plan on working with Esticom.

Pros:

The first thing that pops to my mind that really brought us to Esticom is the cloud support. Super easy to share reports and actions with the team.

Cons:

Creating the templates for our team did cause a bit of confusion. We eventually figured it out after referring to their website.

I can finally stop looking.

Comments: After searching for estimating software for almost 5 years, installing trial software, talking with tech support, even hiring a programmer to build our own system, the hunt ended with Esticom. Getting the system up and running was a breeze and my company now has a uniform database to build estimates from.

Pros:

The ability to simply enter lines of product and adjust all elements across the board: unit costs, markup, labor hours and difficulty factors are the stand out elements! Finding software that accomplishes this simple but tedious (if using Excel) task has changed our company's workflow.

Cons:

First and foremost this software is for estimating purposes. It dabbles in the process of automatically creating a quote to send to customers but lacks the customizability to make it your own. (In contrast to the many variables you can manipulate on the estimating side.) For now my team continues to use Word to provide our scopes of work with our personalized touch.

Esticom review as requested

Comments: It has sped up my estimating process

Pros:

Customer service was very good , useage was easy to get onto

Cons:

The estimate submission - breakout of the pst is awkward . I would more flexability with my final price to submit to client .

EstiCom for Telecom Estimating

Comments: EstiCom has been a great add to our business. The catalog feature keeps our quotes consistent, and the efficiencies it brings to the table have allowed us to increase the number of quotes each Estimator can send in a given time frame!

Pros:

This software is affordable and cloud-based, so my team can access it from anywhere they have an internet connection. It's user-friendly, comprehensive and professional. The stock catalogs are also very helpful.

Cons:

While the cloud-based software offers many benefits, it can also be a drawback if you need to be able to access your quotes while you're offline (such as in-flight or in a remote area). You're also at the mercy of the development team when you see functions/formats that could use an update, and when the software is updated (since updates are not optional).

Brief review of Esticom

Comments: I have had nothing but great experiences with the team at Esticom, every call and email have been answered promptly and most of my questions were easy to implement the solution for.

Pros:

Esticom has saved us a tremendous amount of time in our estimating process. With having auto-count and linear average I can get most plans done in minutes instead of hours now.

Cons:

It took a little bit to dial in the percentages and cost for products in our area but now that that is done I only review costs with my vendors when they tell me their is going to be a change.

Easy To View Estimating Breakdown

Comments: Really helps build budgets and build labor schedules

Pros:

Easy to see cost break downs after takeoffs are complete, you can export your material lists.

Cons:

assemblies are all in USD and there is no way to convert to CAD besides importing wholesale pricing and building all new assemblies.

Makes it so simple

Comments: Saves us a tremendous amount of time doing takeoffs. It also allowed us to finally move towards a built in labor rate for materials. So everything is calculated as we go. So nice!

Pros:

This was our first go at doing digital takeoffs and man, it really could not of been more simple. The workflow flows in line with our old paper ways of doing things so it was a natural transition. We can also blaze through a takeoff!

Cons:

Going digital and learning a new software was scary. But the team and support was there along the way. They never let us down and make sure we were using the software efficiently.

Definitely makes my job easier

Comments: Great, 9/10 would recommend. Executive was very responsive and the price is super reasonable.

Pros:

Being able to quickly and fairly accurately count, label, measure and itemize a project without having to print the plans, wait on the plotter or waste the paper. GUI is intuitive, streamlined and quick to use.

Cons:

My only wish is to be able to save a template and apply it after I've started a project. I haven't gotten around to asking if that's an option but so far as I can tell, you have to copy a previous job or template and apply it before you create the project or upload plans.

Project Help

Comments: We were marking up plans with a pen and a highlighter prior to getting esticom so this made that process much easier

Pros:

Esticom has made quoting jobs much easier. The tool loads quickly and if you take the time to setup your assemblies it makes quoting jobs very easy.

Cons:

The scale can be thrown off if the plans were printed via PDF

year two

Comments: It's better than any other software I've tried or just using a pencil

Pros:

Ease of use and the importing tool for inventory items, and drawings.

Cons:

no option to feed updated pricing from vendor, or having to check pricing after quote has been completed.

Great easy software gets the job done right

Comments: I use this for estimating big jobs. It is made very simple to add the basic information and exporting the bid sheets. It has glitches at times. I don't know if its because I use IOS products or it needs to be fixed. I do recommend this to whoever is in need for big projects. I do like the idea that you could change colors when estimating for easy understanding.

Pros:

I like that the software is easy to use.

Cons:

I don't like that it has glitches at times. I did request for some changes.

Esticomm Saves You Time and Improves Accuracy!

Comments: I use it to prepare my larger quotes for the reasons I mentioned. I am happy with the current performance and look forward to continued improvements.

Pros:

It saves me money from not having to print tons of project plans and then storing them. Esticomm saves me time by insuring I get accurate counts and distances the first time! Plus I can work from the office, at the job site or at home, which I prefer not to do, because all my files are on their site.

Cons:

Esticomm does a good job of constantly upgrading the software and making improvements. There are minor improvements I would make to the functionality of the software but they usually end up doing that automatically.

Esticom Review

Comments: We estimate telecommunications cabling installations. Once products are labored and imported into the program, the estimation process can be quite speedy. Item recognition when producing take-offs using auto-count can be spotty. There is no customization available for adding new overhead type items (ex: PM labor as a separate labor type). Overall, a nice improvement over printing drawings and marking up hard copies for takeoffs.

Pros:

When properly set up, the speed of producing an estimate is greatly improved

Cons:

Materials search functionality - often can't find product Lack of output options in spreadsheet format

Olson Electric Review

Comments: Having just gotten started with the program, I am happy with the experience. Got a great response from [SENSITIVE CONTENT HIDDEN] for adding symbols to the design function database. Very happy to see that the input from users is welcome.
Looking forward to really putting this software to use with some larger projects.

Pros:

Design function Ability to easily jump between work stations and use at home Reports that can be issued are very professional looking

Cons:

The database for devices in the design function is limited Limited database for parts that have been pre-entered

ACJ Electric

Comments: Overall time for completing bids has decreased drastically, to where we can complete several bids a day.

Pros:

The ease of use. The software is very intuitive.

Cons:

The break out portion in the estimation part of the software. There is no way to break out a certain task or job out of the bid whole to supply numbers to GCs. Also the markup calculations and profits don't add up to the percentages set in profit section.

Great Software

Comments: Esticom has save me time and time is money in this industry. I cant see myself going back to printing out drawings a making soo many notes. This is more professional.

Pros:

This has saved me lots of time count data drops on plans. Best of all, customer like seeing what they are being quoted.

Cons:

Sometimes Lags, Sometimes the page wont load.

Esticom Cloud Estimating

Comments: I have NO regrets! Their development team is very responsive and open to input. They are constantly making improvements.

Pros:

I love that it is in the cloud and accessible from anywhere. It also integrates with Zapier!

Cons:

Is lacking some customization options. I wish I could change logo sizes or layout of the bid.

Great software

Pros:

The auto-count feature for take-offs and the compatibility with excel

Cons:

The formatting of the estimates you can create.

Easy software for takeoffs

Comments: Revolutionized our quoting for jobs! We know exactly how much time to budget for a job and can send marked up drawings to clients.

Pros:

1. create custom items 2. markup and download drawings to send to clients 3. breakdown of labour and materials 4. ability to replace drawings that have been marked up (such as with construction set vs permit set) 5. customer service is very open to suggestions

Cons:

1. must pay a full fee for each additional log in 2. cannot adjust descriptions in the quote page (must do it in the takeoff screen) 3. some odd quirks, which are not deal breaker but annoying.

Evaluation

Pros:

I like how easy it is to use, very intuitive. The menu is simple and effective.

Cons:

The auto takeoff feature isn't very reliable. I would LOVE having this feature working correctly.

Esticom- Great Takeoff Software!!

Pros:

This software is easy to set up and is user friendly. I also like that this software is cloud based and I can do takeoffs anywhere.

Cons:

You have to go to the estimating page to add another part to the estimate. It would be nice to be able to add it on the takeoffs page. It would also be great to have the ability to price out alternates and have those totals separated from the base bid total on the proposal. We use our own proposal to have this ability.

Esticom is Awesome

Comments: The software is similar to one we have used for a few years. The difference is Esticom has almost all of the same features, but is MUCH more user friendly.

Pros:

Ease of use and the knowledge and helpfulness of the support staff that has been helping us get Esticom setup and running.

Cons:

Difficulty in working with margins and profit categories. This may be user error more than a software issue.

US to Canadian

Comments: With Esticom we are able to do an estimate in a fraction of the time. We are still working through some of the issues with pricing and description from US to Canadian but overall very productive.

Pros:

Some of the options are not easily converted from the US to Canadian. Measurements. Material costs, tax etc.

Cons:

We have to be careful before we send an estimate out to insure all the calculations are correct. Measurements are in metric. Pricing etc.

Great Job

Comments: I am able to send out quotes with one process. Eliminating hours I use to take preparing my bids.

Pros:

The software is easy to use and has a whole stock list of the product we sell in the fire alarm and security industry.

Cons:

The only thing I found least about the software, can the tool be able to float of the screen to allow all the items on the page to be seen.

A great Product with continued Enhancements

Comments: A quicker estimating return time to get to client and a smoother estimating process than doing it by hand.

Pros:

Ease of use. The navigation is simple, but effective!

Cons:

Lacking a bit on the materials, but getting better with updates!