AI takeoff in minutes, not hours
Upload a PDF plan set. The AI Takeoff Engine identifies walls, openings, slab areas, and roof surfaces with confidence flags. Review the marked-up plan and adjust where needed.
For estimators in Australian residential construction
Bid 3x more jobs.
Without working weekends.
AI Takeoff reads PDF plans in minutes and produces structured takeoffs your estimating team can review and price — not redo. Built for AU residential workflows with NCC 2022 line items, supplier price feeds, and waste-factor assemblies.
Why estimators choose Build Margin
NCC 2022 line items, pre-mapped
Every detected element comes mapped to the right NCC compliance line items and Australian assembly templates. No more cross-referencing standards documents on every job.
Estimates that stay in sync
When a supplier price changes, your active estimates update. When a client requests a variation, the impact flows through to margin live. No more stale spreadsheets.
Everything you need, in one place
Pre-construction
- AI Takeoff Engine — PDF plans to structured quantities
- NCC 2022 line items and assembly library
- Spreadsheet-style Estimate Builder
- Cost library with reusable assemblies
- Supplier Hub for live RFQs
Accuracy & review
- Confidence flags on every AI-detected item
- Side-by-side plan view + line items
- Variation tracking with margin impact
- Audit trail on every estimate change
Volume
- Run 3+ active estimates in parallel
- Template estimates from past jobs
- Bulk-update prices across all open quotes
- Quote intelligence — win/loss patterns
Handoff
- One-click quote send to client portal
- State machine: draft → sent → accepted → built
- Direct flow from estimate to project budget
- Cash flow projection from accepted estimate
Common questions
How accurate is the AI takeoff?
On standard residential plan sets, AI takeoff is consistently within 2–4% of a manual takeoff on architectural elements (walls, openings, slab areas, roof). Confidence flags highlight items the AI is less sure about so you know where to focus your review.
What plan formats are supported?
PDF (any size), and we recommend vector PDFs where possible for highest accuracy. Scanned PDFs work but with lower confidence scores. CAD/Revit/IFC support is on the roadmap.
Can I bring my own cost library?
Yes. Import your existing cost library via CSV or build new assemblies inside Build Margin. The NCC-mapped library is provided as a starting point; you can use it, edit it, or ignore it entirely.
How does this compare to PlanSwift or CostX?
PlanSwift and CostX are pure takeoff tools — you still need a separate platform for estimating, supplier management, and client portal. Build Margin is an integrated platform where takeoff is the starting point of a full workflow.
Will my estimating team need training?
Estimators usually run their first AI takeoff inside an hour. Build Margin is designed for builders who don't want to learn complex software. We offer free 1:1 onboarding calls during your trial.
Stop redoing takeoffs.
Review what the AI found. Price the bits that need pricing. Send the quote.
Try AI takeoff free