Estimators in heavy civil construction have one of the most difficult jobs in any field, tasked with making accurate bids (in many cases, as low as 6 or 7 figures, whereas in others, up to 10 figures even). Winning the project is vital, but so is not leaving money on the table. Unfortunately, profit margins for DOT and other jobs can be as thin as a razor. The bright side is that HeavyBid, developed by HCSS, is a truly formidable construction estimating and bidding software platform.
From highways to pipelines, companies need a trusted solution for tackling complex infrastructure projects—especially one with features tailored to meet the industry's unique challenges.
Here’s a closer look at what sets HeavyBid apart!
Key Features and Benefits of HeavyBid
Historical Cost Database: Imagine a database of every bid you’ve ever made, whether they were won or lost, providing insights into how they stack up. HeavyBid allows users to leverage that wealth of historical cost data from previous projects to generate more precise estimates in the future.
Quote Management: The process of comparing and managing quotes from subcontractors and suppliers can be extremely tedious. With detailed analysis tools in HeavyBid, the speed at which you can compare vendor prices and update estimates means contractors can more easily populate quote folders and analyze quotes.
DOT Data Import: Another time-consuming part of estimating that users wanted to be simplified was importing Department of Transportation (DOT) data from state websites. This automation further reduces manual data entry during the bidding process.
Activity Codebook: Providing a system-wide list of pre-built buckets of labor equipment and material costs that can be easily accessed and modified (without altering the original codebook entries), this feature ensures greater consistency among estimates. Activities created in local estimates can also be saved to the codebook for reuse in future projects, accelerating the creation of new bids.
Integration Capabilities: Already love your current accounting system? No worries! HCSS software connects seamlessly to all major construction management and accounting systems that you might already be using, such as QuickBooks and Sage 300 (formerly Timberline). This ensures smooth data flow across your different platforms.
Escalation Feature: For projects affected by cost escalations, HeavyBid offers a feature to take these into account and automatically manage adjustments, particularly during final scheduling. Escalation rates, escalation overrides, multi-year escalation, and other escalation-related options can easily be applied to the estimate at hand.
Customization & Flexibility: Based on your organizational needs, HeavyBid is highly customizable and allows companies to adapt the software to their specific estimating workflows. Considering how vastly different project requirements are, the ability to produce detailed bid documents (that are 100% unique) is a major benefit.
Security & Data Management: When it comes to cybersecurity, don’t ever gamble with how secure your data is. With the ability to upload and retrieve system data from the web, HeavyBid positions your data to remain secure yet easily accessible.
User Support & Training: You might have heard that one setback of HeavyBid is a steep learning curve. This is total nonsense! With a full implementation team of product experts, HCSS will get your estimators onboarded and using the product to its full potential in less than 90 days. Even better, HCSS also provides exceptional customer support – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – at no additional cost to users.
A Proven History: HeavyBid has been around long enough to have served every size business, and the input received from industry leaders has led to the continuous development that shines in the software. Built on how estimators like to work, HeavyBid helps you define and repeat a winning game plan, gets you operating faster and with more accuracy and offers your estimators more opportunities to collaborate and train newer estimators.
Why Choose HeavyBid?
First hitting the market in 1986, HeavyBid was specifically designed for heavy civil construction projects and has since branched out to cover even more ground, built to handle the complexities of large-scale infrastructure work. Contractors in sectors like highways, pipelines, and other major civil projects can rely on these features and their benefits for substantial assistance with creating more effective estimating and bidding processes.
With an initial investment in training and customization, companies can leverage HeavyBid’s combination of historical cost analysis, integration capabilities, and error-reduction tools to experience significant ROI in winning better bids.
Schedule a demo with a HeavyBid expert today!
