Options for Digital Takeoff: Which solution is right for you?

Working with blueprints and schematics can be an extremely time-consuming and costly part of doing business nowadays.  Having to rely upon your ruler and calculator to takeoff linear feet, square feet and individual counts compromises accuracy due to human error.  What’s the solution?  A visual electronic takeoff software interface, making doing your takeoffs faster and easier.  CAD files can automatically be transferred into the software, paper drawings can be scanned, plan room files can be used or digital photographs can be taken where Digital Takeoff’s intelligence will be sure that things are scaled correctly.  Digitizers are still prevalent but more folks are moving to digital takeoff because it is less expensive and want to get rid of the “bulk”, saving desk space.

Two popular digital takeoff packages are on the market which integrates wonderfully with your Sage Estimating application.  PlanSwift requires minimal setup before you can begin using.  The integration embeds the Estimating Items and Assemblies directly into the PlanSwift user interface.  OnScreen Takeoff’s integration requires “upfront” database configuration before using, however, resulting in reusable mappings and a more automated approach or generating estimates.  So which package is right for your business?

There are two qualifying questions to ask:
Does your organization have internal resources dedicated to regular database maintenance and ongoing refinement?  If yes, the initial database mapping work required with OnScreen Takeoff will result in a powerful automation tool for your estimating department.  If you answered no, the quicker and lower upfront investment in implementation would be PlanSwift.

How price sensitive are you when shopping for such a package? For smaller companies on a tight budget with limited resources, PlanSwift should be considered.  For larger companies that can invest more into the software and implementation, OnScreen Takeoff may be the appropriate choice.

To aid in choosing which the right package is for your business, listed below are some of the features in each:

OnScreen Takeoff

• Improve takeoff productivity
• Improve communication (change orders, plan addendums, etc.) between owners, architects, project manager and estimators
• Manage bids (takeoff projects) electronically and check status and other project details
• View, measure and annotate electronic plans
• Calculate simple or complex lengths, areas and volumes
• Keep track of takeoff. It it’s colored, it’s counted.
• Store up to three values of each condition (example, LF, SF and CY)
• Backout dimensions
• Auto count
• Takeoff summary tab showing detailed audit of takeoff
• Worksheet tab allows manual entry of Labor, Material and Subcontract amounts
• Ability to view multiple pages at once
• Overlay feature saves time with exhaustive plan review using color coding for deleted and added items
• Hot links can be strategically placed within secondary views such as elevation to provide supplemental information
• Measure and draw takeoff directly on your display via interactive pen (w/ On Center’s Digital Takeoff Table 2)
• Project Express.  Now estimators can easily share very large bids for free (up to 100 mb) via the internet. 

PlanSwift

• Get rid of paper plans all together
• Works with all major CAD and image file types
• Scan in or download plans
• Level feature (plans scanned in crooked)
• Easily navigate through plans
• Just point-and-click to calculate areas, linears and counts
• Calculates curved walls and arcs and cut-outs
• Undo
• Automatically calculates roof pitches
• Identify takeoffs easily by labels and colors
• Track changes with comparative plan overlays
• Share plans (email) or individual pages with others
• Hyperlink to URL or other plan pages
• Export to Excel/2010 compatibility
• 14-day free trial

On "Virtual Newstands" Now! Fall/Winter 2011 CPA Technology Newsletter

If you've been wondering what "good read" to immerse yourself in during your lunch breaks...here's your answer!

The latest issue of CPA Technology's newsletter is on "virtual newstands" now! Included in this issue is important information on both recent and upcoming software updates and helpful tips for preparing for year-end.

Read it here!

This just in! Sage and the CFMA Team Up for Unprecedented Partnership

Sage just announced a new partnership between Sage CRE and the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA), an international professional non-profit association focused on the educational needs of financial professionals in the construction industry. With Sage CRE becoming a major sponsor of CFMA, the acceleration of development of timely, relevant educational content will fulfill the specialized learning needs of thousands of financial managers and professionals within the construction industry.

Through this partnership, Sage will sponsor many of the existing CFMA educational programs, as well as fund the establishment of the Sage Educational Fellowship which will develop new educational programs, opening many more learning opportunities to its association members and the broader construction community.

Beyond the Horizon: Sage Timberline Office Version 9.8 Release

Sage is gearing up for Timberline Office’s latest release, Version 9.8, which will feature several enhancements and performance improvements across the board to make the job of running your business easier.

The improvement of speed in starting up applications and tasks in v9.8 will save you hours in a week so you can spend your time more efficiently. Field reporting in Project Management, security improvement, along with workstation installation enhancements are other features to look forward to in the new release, scheduled for launch early fall of 2011.

Two major challenges of a majority of Timberline office users will be addressed: managing your workforce and credit card payment management. Reduce the time spent managing your employees and avoid costly claims and other employee related liabilities with proper HR documentation. With over 70 customizable forms, you can now easily hire, probate or terminate employees by automatically pre-filling these forms with information from your Timberline Payroll application. Better credit card management capabilities will now benefit businesses using corporate credit cards. You will be able to enter and distribute credit card receipts, reconcile credit card statements and create statement invoices in AP.
Look for more enhancements coming in 2012. Sage is looking to extend credit card management into broader electronic payment processing in Timberline Office. Continued enhancements in Accounting and Property Management, and improvement in business intelligence and forecasting tools are in the works as well.

[Download Timberline Office v9.8 Enhancements Brochure]
[Download Timberline Office v9.8 HR Documentation Manager Brochure]

Customers who are currently on a Sage Business Care software assurance plan will receive this release as part of their plan. For more information on Timberline Office v9.8, contact CPA Technology at (610) 862-1998 and speak to one of our Certified Timberline consultants.

Look out for Sage MAS 90/200's new version (4.5) coming soon!

Sage MAS 90/200 version 4.5, featuring new customer-requested enhancements (across Payroll, Accounts Receivable, and Sales Order) is scheduled to be released in Q4 2011. Customers upgrading to 4.5 will be eligible to receive a FREE SageCRM user License and a FREE Sage CRM Service License and installed base Sage MAS 90/200 customers will have the option to move to Sage MAS 200 SQL with the release of v4.5.

So why should you upgrade? Listed below are the new features and functionalities that version 4.5 has to offer:

• National Accounts Management 
• Additional Payroll Deduction Calculation Methods 
• Deduction Recalculation in Payroll Entry 
• Deduction Calculation Based on Earnings Type 
• Payroll Data Entry Importing 
• Enhanced Benefit Accrual 
• Automatically Create Purchase Orders from Sales Orders 
• Price Level By Customer and Product Line 
• Pricing Flexibility for Total Item Quantities 
• Item Pricing By Total Quantity 
• Distribute By Lot and Serial Number 
• Maintain Split Commissions by Customer 
• Commission Rate Table by Salesperson, Customer & Item 
• Enhanced Sale Order Integration with Job Cost 

Sage ERP MAS Intelligence will be enhanced in v4.5 to include Reporting Tree capabilities, additional sample reports, and compatibility with the Sage ERP MAS 200 SQL product. FAS Fixed Asset Accounting will also be compatible with v4.5 Sage MAS 200 SQL.

No need to fret. All (36) enhancements that have been provided through Product Updates for v4.4 will be included in the 4.5 release, as well.

Contact CPA Technology at (610) 862-1998 for more details.

Time is Money!

We all know the phrase “Time is money,” but have you ever stopped to figure out how much it costs when a job runs late?  Say a $1 million project is scheduled to last 40 days. That’s $25,000 per day. If the project runs 10% over (that’s just four extra days!), it will cost an additional $100,000 (four days times $25,000 per day). On most jobs, that would represent the job’s entire profit! In addition, there’s also the opportunity cost—what is lost from not working on other projects because of working on this one.

Increasing efficiency and accuracy and eliminating redundancy is part of what's required to deliver quality work on time and within budget. The backbone to a successful construction/contracting company is a strong, robust software package that can handle all of the business operations: accounting, estimating, project management and service.

Saving time means saving money. Save time and resources by adding more licenses or more tools (modules) which allow for more workstations be put to use and an increase in productivity. Now between September 30, 2011, current Sage CRE customers can take advantage of a deal where the more they buy, the more they save. Not only on their wallets but in time in managing projects.

Purchase (2) add-on/add-uses --> Receive a 10% discount
Purchase (3) add-on/add-uses --> Receive a 15% discount
Purchase (4) or more add-on/add-uses --> Receive a 20% discount

Sage is also extending a special offer to NEW Sage CRE customers with 0% financing now through September 23, 2011. 

Sage Timberline Office Receives Top Honor

With the past recession, it’s no secret that it put a hurting on the construction industry. Construction companies and contractors are looking at ways to improve efficiency, maximize profits and win more bids in order to stay alive - one of these ways is looking for a more powerful and capable software package to handle their accounting and operations. The CPA Practice Advisor has completed a review of several Construction and Accounting systems out on the market to aid construction and contracting businesses in their selection process.

In their 2011 review, the products varied widely, from out-of-the box entry-level construction products to top-line, comprehensive construction and contractor products that offer everything from in-depth financial capability to the ability to access the system from anywhere, to color-coded service boards that track service calls and technicians in the field.  This year, the CPA Practice Advisor has ranked Sage Timberline Office with five stars based on the criteria below: 

• Basic System Functions (ease of use, customization capability, multi-location/remote access capability and supported platforms)
• Core Accounting Capabilities (focusing on the four main core modules – GL, AP, AR and PR, the availability of additional accounting modules and audit trail functionality and user security)
• Construction/Contractor-specific Features (availability of tools – estimating, project management, inventory and purchasing, etc. and contractor-specific features such as dispatch & scheduling, equipment management and integration with GPS devices)
• Reporting & Management Tools (reporting options, alerts and dashboards, Document Management integration and employee/contractor time-tracking)
• Integration/Import/Export (ability to import/export data from other applications, add-on module availability, integration with industry necessities such as estimating tools)
• Help/Support (available Help options, accessibility of system updates, training/support options) 

You can find more on CPA Practice Advisor’s review on Sage Timberline Office here.