Still LeAfrning Take off portion not all PDF will scale true.

Honestly a learning experience is the best I grt now,

Pros

Just Inputting and using program to enter ships and drawings of ships in for each class of ship we are working on. once more jobs are entered would like to end up witha square foot to S data base so in futur we can ask how many sqare foot pf bilge in the AMR on a WMSL Class ship and wbhat did we charge as an average for painting by square foot. Now have Started to measure 2s square footage but have not seen or understand hoe to correlate that to job.
Much less how to enter it and pull it out to make a bid I supose that will come in time. First we are verifying what we have and then there will be more data base building from old and new bids as we go , including machinery and equipment needs to use and the material required. The we should be able ask " the customer want us to paint the forward bulkead in the bosn locke dark ble using xxx paint prepared to SSPC SP10 what will the cost be for bid... hpw much profit can we make and also what is the average marie rate for that.

Cons

AS I explained above new at it and have not yet gotten to the point of being a well trained user of it. Howevr it has bothered me when i set in a PDF print use the stated scale and do noy get a known answer ...>>>>>Just Inputting and using program to enter ships and drawings of ships in for each class of ship we are working on. once more jobs are entered would like to end up witha square foot to S data base so in futur we can ask howmany sqare foot pf bilge in the AMR on a WMSL Class ship and wbhat did we charge as an average for painting by square foot. Now have Started to measure 2s square footage but have not seen or understand hoe to correlate that to job.
Much less how to enter it and pull it out to make a bid I supose thst will come in time. First we are verifying what we have and then there will be more data base building from old and new bids as we go , including machinery and equipment needs to use and the material required. The we shold be able ask " the customer want us to paint the fwd bulkead in the bosn locke dark ble using xxx paint prepared to SSPC SP10 what will the cost be for bid... hpw much profit can we make and also what is the average marie rate for that.Workin the marine industry in a land familiar setting.

Simple and Easy to Use!

For very quick masonry estimates, nothing beats this software. For more advanced/detailed prints, as long as you take your time this will work just fine. I haven't seen a friendlier piece of software at an affordable price that gives you want you need without being headache to setup.

Pros

We looked for a very long time for a very simple takeoff program and this is definitely it. We have used this program for the past year and a half to get measurements on masonry and it has not failed us. Our trade does not need super advanced features so this suites us perfectly. If you have a properly scaled PDF then you can hit the ground running for your measurements. Otherwise, determining your own scale is very simple to do and I've even taken pictures of blueprints with my phone to roughly estimate one of our simpler prints in under 10 prints from the camera snapping. Amazing.

Cons

Due to this program being available online only sometimes it can be finicky if you have a poor internet connection or if there is some sort of (extremely rare) maintenance.

As stated earlier, we use this for masonry so it does not need advanced features. But as with all estimating, you will still need a basic knowledge of your trade's quirks. If you can't see a wall on an elevation because it is returning into the building then you will need to approximately draw it in under your elevation based off of a foundation plan or floor plan. Not super hard but it just will not do all of the work for you.

Great product. Customer support right in app and always quick to respond.

Pros

This product is incredibly simple to use, but a very powerful tool. The calendar makes organizing projects by due date easy. You can quickly see what's coming up and space them out when a larger project takes more time. The search function to find past projects is imperative.

Doing takeoffs is much easier now. I can export final dwgs and reports so that my sales rep can go back and see exactly what I quoted and where. All the work is saved so I can back and reference it or change it if plans change.

The lines and symbols are easy to read and quick to set up. You can dimension the plans when needed and add call outs. The cloud tool is useful for items I have a question about. I can even copy and paste a line several times instead of having to draw it out each time.

Being able to add labels to the takeoff is crucial. It makes my quotes much more powerful when I say exactly where I found each product. It also helps if there is a change to the plan later. I can easily remove one section by using the Geometric Report instead of having to dig through all the plans.

The ability to use two screens is awesome! When I find a particular detail and have to match it to the plan, it is much easier to have one screen with the detail and one with the plan.

Cons

Some things are not customizable. I can't change the default dimension color or size. But once you set it, it remembers the changes for that page only.

I can't rearrange the sheets with the tabs on top. I have to open them in the order I need. So if I find a detail on another sheet, I may have to close some tabs and them reopen them in the order I need.

It does integrate with Excel reports, but Excel charges a monthly subscription for that. I am also waiting for the symbol search tool.

I've tried the rest, Stack is clearly the best.

Over the last 15 years, I've been with 2 companies prior to my current and, at both, I encouraged the Owner to purchase Stack (Cloud Take-off previously). Most were hesitant due to ongoing subscriptions with other platforms but eventually I was able to get, at minimum, the take off program. I haven't tried the estimating version and would try it if I could ever get the time to sit down and populate all the different assemblies, vendor pricing etc. The other issue is purchasing something untried and untested to our company specifically tailored to how we function. I think an extended trial period for that training and tailoring to our needs might be enough to justify the upgrade.

Pros

The greatest feature is the ease of use. They kept it simple for the take-off, genius on the auto-save. Of course, the cloud-based feature. No more bringing home the laptop, cables, plans, specs. Quick uploads and tons of memory for those large jobs.

Cons

Had issues with Silverlight running on MAC in earlier versions. ( wasn't a huge deal and I believe when Stack took over they fixed the bugs).

I'd like to see options when drawing a linear measurement to have various dashes or hashes for lines would be helpful. For example, on other platforms I could indicate through-wall cf with a red dotted line while below do a solid line indicating another linear measurement such as expansion joint. You would then be able to visually identify to different terminations on the same linear measurement. Just a suggestion.

Darn near perfect.

Having used Stack for the better part of two years, I can say it has greatly improved our takeoff speed and provided the ability to accomplish several time consuming tasks quickly. Stack features allow me to achieve a great degree of accuracy, and they seem to constantly improve the product with new tools like the snap feature. In the future we look forward to deploying Stack to an even greater extent to win more work, and generate more revenue!

Pros

First and foremost, I enjoy the takeoff speed and accuracy Stack affords our estimating department. Simply by clicking a link on a plan exchange site, or quickly uploading plans, we can begin a highly detailed accurate takeoff in minutes if not seconds. Likewise, we can complete our takeoff much faster than traditional methods saving valuable time to analyze our bids post takeoff.

Cons

Like any good cost hawk, I would highlight price as my least favorite aspect of Stack Software; though I will say the product represents good value for the price! I would like to see Stack offer the complete product in one package, without the present tiered pricing.

One of the best available software for estimating

Before I used stack ct, our company used an estimating system known to many; planswift. When we made the switch to stack ct about a year ago, I was suprised we hadn't switched before. The ease of use and ergonomical set up makes this cloud based system great for not only one, but many user to edit all at once. Even better, we upgraded about 2 months ago to the full Stack Pro and are now using the items and assemblies options. I can run a full job and have my estimate in under 30 minutes thanks to this awesome feature. One of the main reasons I will be staying with stack is their level of customer service, no matter what the problem is, or the time you are having the problem, the service is top level and extremely helpful. So far, I have not had one problem they haven't been able to fix. I would highly recommend this great product for any estimators looking to make their job more simple.

Pros

Constant Upgrades, high level of customer service, user friendly and very detailed reports and takeoffs.

Cons

You cannot copy an entire project. Also, you can't download all the plans at once. You are able to export marked up files but if you want to download the entire plans that you have uploaded (in case you deleted the original files) you will have to select each plan to download; very time consuming.

Uploads Plans quickly, great features and great customer service.

Pros

For me it has to be the speed at which it allows me to get through a large scale take-off. The way I can customize my labels makes it easy for me to separate areas and alternates for each individual project, and then sort them and pull information from with in those labels easily and quickly.

Cons

Not many Cons, but it would be nice to be able to use my delete key on my key board once I have takeoff highlighted versus highlighting the take off then going over to the menu bar and then taking the cursor down to the delete function. It would also be nice to hold down command/cntrl key and select multiple take offs to copy and or delete. Finally being able to highlight a takeoff area and change what that take-off is with out deleting it and re- drawing it, this would be a huge time saver for me when dealing with addendum and design team changes.

Great Takeoff Tool!

Overall Stack is great and is saving our company time & money! It took a little bit for additional users in our office to get up to speed, but they are cruising right along now. Troy and the guys in support always get back to me promptly. I've been using Stack for about 8 years now and couldn't be happier!

Pros

Cloud Storage, Takeoff Storage, Calendar, Accumulating Units of Measurement, Customer Support, Copy/Paste, Upload Times, Legend, Highlight, Labels, Auto-load from Smartbidnet ITB's, able to view takeoffs from mobile version & able to view other user's takeoffs on our account.

Cons

Going through the plan pages seems cumbersome at times. I wish Stack could go back to the Cloud Takeoff Silverlight version, much better UI.
Not being able to reorganize the plan sheet tabs by a left click and drag, have to close each one of them down and then go through the correct page sequence to display in the order you want. Chrome issue of having to multi select every item you want to quickly delete. Not being able to share a takeoff instantly, instead we have to download the plan into a PDF and send the PDF.

Fantastic! Anyone who can use a computer, can use this software to easily generate measurements.

Generating accurate takeoffs and reports as an estimator, to get accurate pricing on materials for our projects is a main role of my position