Estimaite
TradesPricingMCP
Division 05 · S-sheets

Structural & Misc Steel takeoff,
the way estimators do it.

Tonnage straight off the tags, every member carries its weight; deck and connections add on. Exactly what gets measured, how it gets priced, and how the number is proven.

Structural & Misc Steel

Division 05 · S-sheets

Tonnage straight off the tags, every member carries its weight; deck and connections add on.

Illustrative Structural & Misc Steel methodology: how Estimaite takes off the steel system
Illustrative takeoff
What Estimaite measures
Beams + columns by memberLinearTON
Base plates + anchor bolt setsCountEA
Metal deck by typeAreaSF
Shear studsCountEA
Open-web joists / girdersCountEA
Embeds, shelf + slab-edge anglesLinearLF
How it's priced
  • Every member is tagged with weight: a W12x26 = 26 lb/ft → LF × lb/ft → lbs → tons.
  • Group layers by shape family (W-beams, HSS columns); base plates 4 anchor bolts/column typical.
  • Connection / detail-material allowance on net tonnage ≈ 5-10% (state it).
  • Moment + braced-frame connections COUNTED separately (they price far above shear).
Derived + allowances
  • Metal deck SF by type (roof B-deck vs composite floor); shear studs EA on composite floors.
  • Misc embeds + shelf angles coordinated with the misc-metals scope so they count once.
Live sample estimate
W-beams (floor framing)38 TON$208,894.00
HSS columns14 TON$88,603.00
Composite floor deck12,800 SF$70,554.00
Shear studs1,850 EA$8,880.00
Base plates + anchor sets26 EA$7,618.00
Material$272,211.00
Labor$85,490.00
Markup 15%$53,655.00
Grand total$411,356.00
Markup15%
Illustrative unit costs, priced live through Estimaite's real estimating engine. Your catalog uses your own costs.
How Estimaite proves it
Steel tonnage cross-check: floor framing ≈ 6-12 lbs/SF of floor for typical office.
Every column-schedule tier appears with shape + length → tons.
Assumptions listed: connection allowance %, deck/stud basis.
The method

Every trade runs the same disciplined takeoff.

Not a black box. The same six steps a careful estimator follows, enforced on every sheet.

  1. 01
    Set the scale
    Calibrate on a known dimension or the title-block scale before measuring anything. Sanity-check against a door or a parking stall.
  2. 02
    Read every schedule
    Equipment and fixture schedules anchor the estimate. Count the tagged things first, then reconcile against the plan symbols.
  3. 03
    Count the tagged units
    One count layer per schedule type. Density is never an excuse to skip, a crowded sheet means trace finer, not less.
  4. 04
    Trace by system, size, material
    One layer per system + size + construction class ("CHWS 6" Sch40 grv"). Size alone is not a takeoff line, material and system price it.
  5. 05
    Verify in overlay
    Re-view each region in overlay mode. Every line must sit on a real drawn run; anything floating over nothing is deleted.
  6. 06
    Final full-sheet pass
    Re-tile the entire area of every in-scope sheet. Not done until zero dark runs sit unmeasured and zero lines sit on nothing.
Complete, never sampled
Every system, run, and tagged unit on every in-scope sheet. A "representative" or "main systems only" takeoff is a failed one, not a smaller one.
Only what is drawn
Every line and point sits on a real drawn element. Hallucinated geometry is worse than a gap, so unverified marks get deleted.
Mismatches are findings
When the schedule says 12 and the plan shows 10, that is reported, not silently reconciled. The number stays honest.

Takeoff by trade

Every trade gets its own page: what gets measured, how it is priced, and how the number is proven.

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