Since the COVID-19 pandemic drove the need for remote solutions, the use of construction bidding software has become almost ubiquitous. The challenge? Not all construction bid software is created equal. Some may act more like glorified file sharing, while others provide a robust set of features that can add efficiencies to the bidding process. If you are looking for construction bidding software to meet your agency’s needs, this article is written to be a comprehensive list of all the features you should look for in the software you are considering.
We’re omitting to mention online bid submission because it should hopefully be inherent in every piece of software you’re looking at. But be sure to check out the rest of these time-saving features, as the cost of switching software after an implementation is always high and can leave you stuck with an unsatisfactory build bid software your needs
Here are the features you should look for when trying to find the right fit:
Alerts of errors and omissions
A simple mistake or forgotten form can be one of the most costly factors during the bidding process because it can result in unresponsive bids. Before we started using construction bidding software, we know agencies that had to disqualify low bids that would have saved them over $100,000 on a project. Simple error and omission alerts that highlight forgotten fields in red, prevent the contractor from continuing without filling everything in, or perform automatic calculations to avoid math errors are key features to look for when comparing different construction bidding software.
Custom offer templates
Over the course of the build season, you’ll likely have a number of offers that are so similar they could be duplicated with just a few tweaks here and there. Good construction bidding software will allow you to do just that. We’ve talked to people at agencies who say their offer preparation time has gone from hours to minutes. To quote one purchasing manager: “Probably about 60% of the deals I’ve done, I’ve modeled in some way. Munitions, skids, retaining walls, I’ve modeled all of them. My deals take me 15 minutes at most”. Be sure to ask about templates when researching bidding software.
Scheduling of requests
During the busiest time of the bidding season, it can be stressful to handle multiple requests at once. Features like auto-posting and request scheduling can be very helpful when juggling multiple requests. This way, you can take care of scheduling the offer ad while you’re preparing the offer, even if you’re not quite ready to start it, and then move on to the next offer without worry – you have to go back. publish the first
Scoring of the proposal
A growing number of organizations are exploring alternative procurement methods, such as design and build, that focus on accepting and evaluating proposals rather than defaulting to the low bid. Many construction bidding software solutions are built only to handle the unit price low bidder methodology, but an increasing number are expanding their feature set to accommodate the acceptance and scoring of the proposal If your agency is starting to use alternative procurement methods alongside your typical bidding process, consider finding construction bidding software that can handle both and includes features for weighted scoring.
