Trimble Accubid Enterprise Mechanical Software

Pros

Nothing, it might be better for a kid just out of college, but older users will not like it!!! Maybe it will be better after Seven years or so of daily practice,including weekends and holidays.

Cons

Even setting up a job was a nightmare!!! And the Resolves were ridiculous:

Ability to quick change conduit & cable sizes, quantities & types.

Pros

Substituting material, changing conduit & cable sizes & types. This software has great potential, but in my opinion is still a work in progress.

Cons

Resolving issues. For someone who doesn't use the software everyday, it can be a challenge. I sit down with our superintendents, who have gone through the class, and reteach them how to put together an estimate. Glad to do it, but that was not the case with Accubid Pro. But my biggest complaint about Enterprise is not being able to see Material & Labor $ after each line of take-off without having to calculate labor & material values. There has to be away this can be automatically calculated without bogging the system down. It worked in Accubid Pro. Most of my projects are not "cookie cutters". I need to know those values immediately after take-off. Highlighting and clicking on "calculate labor & material values" after every take-off is a pain. Something else that could be made easier is setting up projects in "Change Management". Way too many steps. I have done it several time over the past two years and still need to refer to the tutorial one of our administrators put together. Glad he did. Like I stated in the Pros, this software has great potential, but in my opinion is still a work in progress.

Ability to share resources in a multi user platform.

Pros

Multiuser environment is the number one feature we love the most. We have had 12 estimators from multiple office locations all in the same estimate at the same time(Live).

Cons

As we add users to the program, degradation of the software is becoming more apparent. We have over 300 users located in 20 offices across the United States.

Pros

We have four offices across the southeast.
able to maintain one database while allowing each office to have their own assemblies and pads.
We have estimated projects with 157 breakdowns with no problem using AccuBid Enterprise.
Being able to do Unit prices with ease.

Cons

The reporting is to complicated to get a hard report if you need one.
when doing project breakdowns do not have a way to see percentages material and labor the way we use to be able to see it in AccuBid.

Pros

The seamless integration of construction estimating disciplines. The export capabilities of the estimate data.

Cons

The learning curve seems to be longer than other estimating programs we have used. The lack of information in the Enterprise Estimating Manager Handbook.

Completing Accurate, quick estimates with very little effort needed into data entry.

Pros

The Design and Ease of use with the database and the customization ability of assemblies and takeoff pads makes doing takeoffs a breeze. Very little drill downs to find parts or piece you need. Build takeoff pads per system and that is almost all you need to get all your parts and pieces.

Pros

I like that the program has so many options. It was put together well. It makes take off a lot easier on the estimator side of the program.

Cons

Takes too long to connect and set-up a job. PM's did not like it for the quick budget estimates. Ended up going back to accubid because it was too cumbersome for the pm's.

Pros

It appears to be robust. It's well organized and offers a lot of options for adjusting items after takeoff entry.

Cons

Doesn't Auto save as much as I like, can't insert rows on takeoff screen, notes screen doesn't maintain blank lines when printing, should be able to hit enter a couple of times when inside a takeoff and finish the take off (currently ,if you keep hitting enter, it takes you back into the takeoff instead of finishing it)

Pros

great features and functionality. pulling up jobs and navigating is easy and calculations are spot on.

Cons

there are some problems when building and looking at assemblies and what goes into an equipment. customization.

Honestly, I have not had ample opportunity to use this product. I'm so busy doing estimates, I don't have a half a day 3 times a week to just sit and "test drive" it. I barley have time to fill out this survey. I wish there was a place I could go and do a complicated proposal, start to finish, and have someone guide me through it as I go. I'm not a tech savvy person, I was a construction sheet metal worker for 25 years, moved into an estimating role. Details are very important, and putting together a proposal with several different materials and paint systems, along with specialty items seems very difficult. But I have not, and will not give up, I need a tutor.

Pros

I like most the fact that when I watch other people, that know how to use the software, use it. it does everything it's supposed to and then some. It gives me hope that some day I too will be able to confidently use it.

Cons

I do a lot of custom pipe fabrication, what I like least is trying to put material into the specifications, and customizing the takeoff pad. I really need to sit and go through a bid start to finish with an administrator, but it's so expensive to have one for a few days.

The time frame to train new employees in Accubid Enterprise is drastically reduced from the previous Accubid Classic. True Multi-User mode within an estimate is a great advantage too, I can problem solve remotely, without a streaming interface. The instant availability of price updates and assembly changes is also a huge help. There's no more after-hours updates, only to have one person not log out and waste my efforts.

Pros

My favorite part about Accubid Enterprise is the extreme customization. I can tailor the user experience to the specific needs of my colleagues. The flexible way that assemblies can be built allows me to future-proof my work so that one seemingly minor request doesn't balloon into two 40hr weeks of copy/paste/rename.

Cons

Despite the flexibility in customizing the user experience, there are quite a few instances where a feature seems like it wasn't properly beta-tested. For example, there is no such thing as a template estimate. There are estimates we call "Template", however there is no functional difference between and Estimate and a Template Estimate. I have to leave my "Template" vulnerable to someone changing something in it, in order for it to be copied from. Another example is; Specifications reside in jobs and cannot "Retain Database Version". If I make a change to an assembly that requires a corresponding Specification change, I have to do a whole host of things to prevent existing jobs from breaking. This creates instability for your clients, particularly newer clients with limited overall database experience.

Pros

takeoff pad is very interactive, more than one estimator able to work at the same time is a great feature. Designation and lighting pad are very nice features

Cons

Can't be creative with the software you have to take what is given in the assemblies. It is a very very slow program. Hard to find the simple everyday items that are used frequently in a takeoff

none!

Cons

The fact that we were sold on this program by a salesman that could sell an ice cream cone to an eskimo, and we are still using it on the same server environment and have not moved to the cloud. The system is way too smart for what an Estimator needs to put together any type of estimate. We don't care what color a device is, but apparently Enterprise does and will fail the takeoff if you have the wrong color picked. I don't feel like I need to bash this program anymore, you will see from the other responses, its pretty much the same across the board. Our estimating times and stress levels have gone up for no apparent gain what so ever. If anyone says the opposite, they haven't been here long enough to see the con's from Pro. I was a tester for the Cloud environment built by Trimble to see why our system is so slow, and don't know why again we haven't moved to that direction. I think everyone's frustration is more of the slowness of it, on our side at our company. I am being honest about this and would also love some feed back on some of the other issues that you will see from the surveys. To go long with that, actual movement forward on making this program faster and easier to use if we have to continue utilizing this software.

Pros

It did have some good features. Being able to work in the job live is nice. The other screens are the same as Accubid 12

Cons

I hate anything to do with the spec driven take off. Not being able to easily see anything that is in the audit trail without having to drill into the levels. Extremely slow operation. To many to list.

Pros

This program is not user friendly and runs extremely slow. I could see it as a useful tool to someone with min. to no experience.

Cons

This program is not user friendly and runs extremely slow. I would like to use a program I could manipulate without seeing errors. There has been a quite a few times where I have noticed the software changing things I haven't asked it to change. (Has a mind of its own) Its very hard to trust this Enterprise

Speed and accuracy- I feel my takeoff is done faster with less chance for error using this software.

Pros

I like the spec driven aspect; keeps me from having to constantly pay attention to the assemblies I am using.

Cons

The lack ability to takeoff two different spec driven items in one line of takeoff. For instance; if I can take off an equipment termination (Flexible conduit -motor) and then also do the branch/feeder for it (EMT)- that would be helpful.