Getting Started with Accubid Anywhere
Accubid Anywhere is Trimble’s cloud-based electrical estimating platform. While many of the concepts will be familiar to estimators who have used other versions of Accubid, getting productive in Anywhere requires more than simply learning where the buttons are.
The biggest factor in how well Accubid Anywhere works is how the system is set up before estimating begins.
Start With the Database
Your database is the foundation of Accubid Anywhere.
It contains the material items, labor, assemblies, specifications, designations, takeoff structure, and other information estimators rely on every day.
A well-developed database allows an estimator to concentrate on the project being estimated instead of repeatedly stopping to create assemblies, locate materials, enter labor, or determine how something should be taken off.
This is why database development should be treated as part of implementing Accubid Anywhere—not something that gets figured out later.
Learn the Workflow, Not Just the Interface
Knowing where a command is located is useful. Understanding how information moves through the estimate is much more important.
A new user should become comfortable with the basic workflow:
Create the project → establish estimate settings → organize takeoff → perform takeoff → review the estimate → apply adjustments → produce reports
The individual features become much easier to understand once you understand where they fit into the overall estimating process.
Build Consistency Early
One of the biggest advantages of Trimble Accubid Anywhere is consistency between estimators.
If every estimator creates assemblies differently, names things differently, or develops their own method of performing common takeoff, the company eventually ends up with several estimating systems living inside one estimating program.
Establish standards early and don’t make work arounds the default workflow
That includes database structure, assembly design, takeoff organization, specifications, naming conventions, and estimating workflows.
Don’t Try to Learn Everything at Once
Accubid Anywhere has a lot of capability.
You don’t need to understand every feature before producing an estimate.
Start with the functions you use every day and expand from there. Once the fundamental estimating workflow is comfortable, features such as LiveCount, specifications, alternates, change management, and more advanced database functionality become considerably easier to understand.
The Goal Is Production
Software implementation shouldn’t become a permanent project.
The objective is to get estimators estimating.
Training matters. Database development matters. Configuration matters. But all three should ultimately accomplish the same thing:
Reduce the amount of work required to produce a complete, consistent estimate.
Keystone Electrical Consulting provides Accubid Anywhere database solutions, training, and support developed specifically around real-world electrical estimating workflows.
