Real Time Cost Estimating with Estimator for SketchUp – SketchUp Extension of the Week #32
Download Estimator (Affiliate Link, 14 Day Free Trial)
This week’s extension allows you to create cost estimates directly inside a SketchUp model!
Plugin Name: Estimator
Plugin Developer: John Brock
How Much does it cost? $149. 14 Day Free Trial
Where do you get it?
You can download it by visiting www.thesketchupessentials.com/estimator . Please note that this is an affiliate link, so if you decide to purchase, I will receive a commission.
Tool Functions
This extension basically has 4 ways to add costs into your estimate.
You can associate costs with components, either as a “per object cost,” or as a calculated cost based on the attributes of your object.
For example, if you were to create a solid foundation wall and you look in your entity info, you can see that it gives you a volume. You can then adjust your unit cost to calculate a cost total for your object, including labor, waste, and tax.
You can also assign objects to a layer, and associate costs with them that way.
You can assign costs to materials, so you if add something like a wood floor material, you can assign a cost to that material.
There’s also a tab for quotes, so if you were to get a quote from a subcontractor, like if you got a quote for a window package, you could plug that in as a lump sum, or you could also plug things like general conditions in as lump sums.
You can assign different items to different codes, allowing you to organize your estimate by code.
You can include quotes, as well as margin on top of your estimates as well.
Once you’re done all of that, you can input your project information, and export a complete estimate, both as an HTML report, as well as a CSV report that you can then import into an excel file.
About Justin Geis
Hi, I'm Justin Geis, and I'm the founder of The SketchUp Essentials. I started using SketchUp as part of my work as a general contractor in 2008. I quickly realized the power of the software and started using it for personal projects. I started The SketchUp Essentials as a place to share easy to follow SketchUp tutorials and tips to help everyone harness the power of 3D Modeling in their lives. When not working with SketchUp, I enjoy playing soccer and spending time with my wife and our two dogs.
