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On-Screen Takeoff - 06.02.01 - Takeoff Boost™ Auto Takeoff - Overview and Requirements

  • September 12, 2022
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daniel.wal

Effective June 5, 2026, Takeoff Boost is now the overarching brand name for ConstructConnect’s AI-Powered takeoff and project setup automation tools. What used to be called “Takeoff Boost” is now “Auto Takeoff”, part of the suite of AI-powered tools. See Takeoff Boost™ AI-Powered Takeoff and Project Setup Tools for details.

Auto Takeoff is ConstructConnect’s AI-Assisted Automated Takeoff Service that can help you get a jump start on your takeoff projects. In seconds, Auto Takeoff can return a Page full of walls, windows, areas, and counts in seconds so you can spend more time on the details and less time on repetitive takeoff tasks.

You must keep your On-Screen Takeoff up to date with the latest release to continue to use Auto Takeoff. See On-Screen Takeoff's Product Information and Downloads Page for the current release.

For customers who license On-Screen Takeoff by logging in with their e-mail address and password:

  • Customers on an Essential or Plus subscription can run Auto Takeoff on 5 Projects. Customer on a Core or Professional subscription can run Auto Takeoff an unlimited number of times.

For customers who license by activating a License Key or Server Code:

  • Customers under an Advanced Maintenance subscription can run Auto Takeoff on 5 Projects. Customers on a Premium Maintenance subscription can run Auto Takeoff an unlimited number of times.
  • Customers on Standard Maintenance can request a Trial of Auto Takeoff.

What Is Auto Takeoff and How Does It Work?



Auto Takeoff is integrated into On-Screen Takeoff and makes it easier for you to get a preliminary scope of work on a takeoff project. In seconds, Auto Takeoff analyzes a plan and then creates Conditions and takeoff to account for these objects:

  • Footprint area
    • Footprint Area - area outline of a building, drawn along the outside edge of the exterior walls
  • Net Area (less walls)
    • Net Area - cumulative area drawn along the inside edge of exterior and interior walls
  • Walls (linear)
    • Lines - straight segments only
    • Optionally, you can select a shape based on Wall Types tags designated on your floor plans and Auto Takeoff separates your takeoff into unique Conditions based on those tags
    • Existing walls
  • Ceilings (areas) (v.4.0 and newer)
    • Auto Takeoff identified Gypsum Wallboard (GWB) and Acoustical Ceiling Tile (ACT) type ceilings based on patterns on the drawings.
    • Optionally, if your Plans include Tags indicating Ceiling Types, a separate Condition for each Type is created
    • All other Ceiling takeoff is associated with a Condition called “Ceiling”
  • Painting
    • Takes off both sides of interior wall (Wall Surface Area)
  • Counts
    • Windows
      • Select the shape associated with Window Types on your plan and Auto Takeoff identifies them for you.
      • Windows that are not tagged
    • Other counted objects such as Plumbing Fixtures, Doors, Elevators, etc.
    • If the object you want to count isn’t included in Auto Takeoff’s Results, use AI-Powered Auto Count
  • Volume
    • Concrete spread footings
    • Concrete Slabs and linear footings

These preliminary takeoff results allow an estimator to review the scope/scale of a project quickly to determine its suitability for more in-depth estimating.

You can select any number of these results for Auto Takeoff to return.

Requirements

Use of Takeoff Boost™ tools requires uploading of some or all of your project plans. Ensure you have the legal right to do so. Please see the End User License Agreement and the Master Service Agreement for more information.

Takeoff Boost’s tools use Artificial Intelligence to provide results. It is your responsibility to verify results to ensure accuracy.

To use Auto Takeoff, you'll need a few things:

  • A takeoff license, see Licensing On-Screen Takeoff for more information
  • See above note for feature available based on your subscription or maintenance level
    • If you are using an older version of On-Screen Takeoff, you must activate a Takeoff Boost/Auto Takeoff subscription Authorization Code (this is separate from your takeoff license and begins with "BOOST+" instead of "OST+" or "OST@").

In addition to proper licensing:

  • Your Project must not be set to a "Locked" Job Status (see Masters: Job Statuses for more information)
  • Your Project cannot be open (locked) by another user (if you are using a shared (SQL) database)
  • You must have permissions to add takeoff to the Project (if you use a login to secure your database - see Securing Your Databases (using Access Levels...))
  • You must set (and verify) each Page’s Scale before running Auto Takeoff. Incorrect scale will cause incorrect results, see Setting the Scale of a Plan for more information
  • Auto Takeoff supports floor plans and enlarged floorplans, it does not support Detail, Section, or Elevation plans, at this time

For On-Screen Takeoff to connect to the Auto Takeoff service:

  • You must have an active, high-speed internet connection
  • Your Firewall must be configured to allow On-Screen Takeoff to connect to the service (see Configuring Your Firewall for details on configuring your connection)

It is critical that you set and verify Scale before running Auto Takeoff on any Page. Incorrect Scale will cause takeoff errors because Auto Takeoff relies on correct Page scale to identify objects on the Plan.

This is especially important because you can run Auto Takeoff on Pages that you are not viewing on the Takeoff Tab.

Why Would I Use Auto Takeoff?

Using Takeoff Boost’s Auto Takeoff you can:

  • Save up to 95% of your time by automating repetitive takeoff tasks
  • Spend more of your time in detailed analysis of your project and takeoff results
  • Estimate the scope of a project to see if you're interested in investing the time and effort necessary to work up a formal bid
  • Generate a rough cost estimate using your historical Unit Costs and Auto Takeoff's results (along with your own manual takeoff)

On-Screen Takeoff showing Auto Takeoff results
Example of what Auto Takeoff results can provide

From here, you could export the results to your favorite estimating program (such as Quick Bid) or simply use the Estimate Tab to develop a rough Unit Cost estimate.

What Auto Takeoff Isn’t

Let’s get this out of the way, no technology or automation can take the place of a seasoned, knowledgeable estimator. Auto Takeoff is not “complete, automated takeoff” that a user can, with the press of a magic button, use to estimate an entire project. Auto Takeoff gives you a great head start on your takeoff, and our Artificial Intelligence models are improving all the time, but as the estimator, you still play a critical role in bringing “human experience” to review and fine-tune the project.

Although the results Auto Takeoff delivers gives you a significant head start on your Project, you must still:

  • Review all takeoff Results
  • Rename and fill-out the details of Conditions Auto Takeoff creates (for example, update the height and width of Wall Conditions)
  • Add Conditions to separate takeoff as needed
  • Reassign takeoff from the Conditions Auto Takeoff creates to appropriate Conditions
  • Assign takeoff to Bid Areas, Typical Areas, etc.
  • Fill-in missing takeoff manually

Auto Takeoff isn’t a "fit" for every company or contractor. We are continuously improving Auto Takeoff and adding to the trades it works best for; so give it a try, it’s free to trial to see it’s a fit for your takeoff needs.

We cover running Auto Takeoff next and then analyzing/updating results in the articles that follow.

click here to view the previous article Drawing Takeoff Overview Running Auto Takeoff click here to view the next article

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