Construction estimating is changing faster now than at any time since drawings moved from paper to PDF. This article combines our earlier pieces on how technology is transforming take-off and on future trends in estimating. It covers the changes that matter and what builders and subcontractors in Western Australia can do about them now.
1. Automated and AI-assisted take-off
Take-off tools can increasingly recognise rooms, walls, doors and symbols on drawings and measure them automatically. The benefits:
- much faster counts and areas on repetitive layouts;
- quicker comparison between drawing revisions;
- more time for the estimator to spend on scope, pricing and risk.
The limits: poor-quality drawings, wrong scales and unusual details still trip up automated tools, and they can’t see what isn’t drawn. Human checking remains essential.
2. BIM and model-based quantities
On projects with a coordinated 3D model, quantities can come straight from the model and update as the design changes. For estimators, the skill shifts from measuring to checking what the model contains, how elements were modelled and what’s missing.
3. Drones, laser scanning and reality capture
Drone surveys and laser scans are now routine for earthworks volumes, stockpile measurement, progress tracking and existing-condition surveys on refurbishments. For civil work they feed straight into 3D earthworks models.
4. Data-driven pricing
Builders who capture actual costs and productivity from completed jobs can price future work with far more confidence. Benchmarks per m², per unit or per element, kept by project type and location, are increasingly valuable, especially in a market that moves as quickly as WA’s.
5. Cloud collaboration
Shared, version-controlled drawing sets and estimates make it easier for estimators, project managers and clients to work from the same information, and reduce the risk of pricing old revisions.
6. Sustainability and carbon estimating
Clients are starting to ask for embodied carbon alongside cost, and energy-efficiency requirements in the National Construction Code affect specification and price. Estimates that can show both cost and carbon for design options will become more common.
7. Modular and off-site construction
Prefabrication moves cost from site labour into factory supply and transport. Estimators need to price logistics, cranage and interfaces rather than traditional trade sequences.
What stays the same
- Understanding how things are actually built.
- Reading the contract and pricing the risk.
- Knowing current local labour and material costs.
- Writing clear qualifications and assumptions.
What WA builders and subcontractors can do now
- Move all take-off on screen, if you haven’t already.
- Standardise your estimate templates and cost codes.
- Record actual costs and productivity on every job.
- Trial automated take-off on repetitive work, and check the results.
- Outsource take-offs when tender volume peaks, rather than rushing them.
Read more in how digital estimating software is changing construction and AI in quantity surveying.
Frequently asked questions
Will AI make estimators redundant?
Unlikely. It will reduce time spent on routine measurement and increase the value of judgement, pricing and risk skills.
Is BIM-based estimating used on Perth projects?
Mainly on larger commercial and government projects with coordinated models. Most residential and small commercial work is still estimated from 2D drawings.
Need fast, checked take-offs for your next tender? Call Measure Manage on 0498 202 445 or see our material take-off services.