As your Estimating department grows, each new person will need help learning the steps you take to win jobs as a team. HeavyBid Checklists provides a simple solution to solve this problem by creating to-do lists inside each estimate that can be customized for any purpose. This is a guide to help you get started using Checklists.
Should I Include a Checklist in the Master Estimate?
The first thing to plan out, before you create a Checklist, is if you want to use this Checklist on every estimate or if you just need it for one-time use. If you create a Checklist within the master estimate, the Checklist(s) will be added to every new estimate that uses that master as a template.
You can add as many Checklists as you need to the master, and if you need an example of a few Checklists, the demo estimates that come with every installation of HeavyBid, “1-Bridge” and “1-Earth,” have a few Checklists that you can modify without affecting your active estimates.
The Fundamentals
To access this feature, start at the beginning of the menu, and go to File > Checklists.
Creating a new Checklist is a familiar as adding a new Biditem. Type in a code for the Checklist, click “tab” to jump to the next field and fill in a description. Each Item# is a numeric field that will help you organize the steps. Just like creating Biditems, if you increment them by 10s (10, 20, 30, 40, etc.), you can add items in between without disrupting the order. You can also just number them as 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.
The available columns can be adjusted, as needed, using the “Customize” button at the bottom, and up to three user-defined columns can be added using the “Setup User-Defined Labels” button. Clicking “Close” will save your Checklist. To delete a Checklist, right-click on the Checklist’s name, and select Delete from the right-click menu.
These Checklists can be used for virtually any purpose that can be solved with a to-do list, including communicating to your team what you expect to complete each task and the order of tasks. If you would like help beyond Checklists in getting your team to work cohesively, here is an article from the “Ask the Chief” series on the subject: Click here.
Here are some examples of lists that have helped other HCSS Customers:
- Checklist for creating a typical estimate
- Checklist for creating a master estimate
- Checklist to closeout bid
- Checklist to enter quote folders and quotes
- How to Conform an Estimate
- Checklist to Export to Accounting
One quick tip for using HeavyBid is that when you find yourself looking for a feature, you can read the menu like a book, from left-to-right, and top-to-bottom. Never get discouraged, because if you need help, HCSS Support can be reached whenever you need us at 800-444-3196.
Here is a help article created by support using HeavyBid Checklists
Let’s get more users using checklists, and if you can think of ways we can improve this feature, be sure to engage the community or contact the Product Manager for HeavyBid. Leave a comment with what kind of lists you will create.
