The short version
You’ll have a trade-by-trade cost plan you can tender from, negotiate with, and sign against, with every allowance shown with its basis so you can see what would change it.
We’ll take off the drawings, build the key allowances, and price the structure and envelope trade by trade. You’ll see what is in the number, what could move it, and why, before you order excavation, timber, or windows.
We start with a full plan takeoff and a quantities check against the drawing set you provide. From there we build the estimate in the order the job becomes expensive: groundworks first, then structure, then the envelope and window packages. We finish with a trade summary and a stated contingency line, so the total reads like a decision tool, not a guess.
About us
We’re a takeoff and estimating team built around one job: turning drawing sets into a new build cost plan you can make commitments on. We’ve priced new builds where the first surprises show up in the ground, in the roof loads, and in the window package. Our day-to-day work is quantities, rates, and allowances that tie back to something on the plans.
Most overruns start where a single line hides three decisions. We keep those decisions visible. Our groundworks figure shows what we assumed for excavation, access, disposal, and rock risk. Our structure lines separate concrete, reinforcement, and formwork. Our envelope lines break out windows and external doors as their own package, so you can check it before you’re locked in.
Who you will work with
You’ll have a named estimator on the job and a second set of eyes on the quantities before the numbers are issued.
Team
Lukas Gruber, Lead estimator. Lukas leads the estimate and signs off the trade summary, so the final number matches the drawings and the assumptions behind it are stated.
Katharina Moser, Quantity surveyor. Katharina runs the plan takeoff and checks quantities across trades, so a missing wall length or roof area does not turn into a missing cost.
Daniel Leitner, Groundworks estimator. Daniel builds the groundworks and excavation allowances, including access, disposal, and the items that change first when the dig starts.
Miriam Hofer, Cost plan coordinator. Miriam coordinates the cost plan issue, keeps the line items consistent, and makes sure every allowance has a basis you can point at.
Selected work
A few recent new build cost plans where the drawing set was good enough to price, but the risk sat in the ground, structure, and envelope.
Portfolio
Two-storey single home. Full takeoff from permit drawings, with a separated excavation allowance and a window package line of its own. The client used the trade split to tender three trades and cut the gap between bids.
Small multi-unit build. Trade-by-trade cost plan built to match a subcontractor tender list. We split concrete, reinforcement, and formwork, then carried the same breakdown into the summary so comparisons stayed clean.
Timber roof new build. Structure and roof estimate with snow load allowances shown as a named assumption, not buried in a rate. The client used it to confirm the roof package before locking the supplier date.
“The trade breakdown made it obvious what was fixed and what could move.”
Small developer, pricing a new build before tender
New build cost plan
A trade-by-trade cost plan built from your drawings, with each line item priced as a countable scope you can tender and negotiate against.
BILL OF QUANTITIES TAKEOFF
A measured quantities schedule tied back to the drawings, covering the major elements so you can see the numbers behind the cost plan.
GROUNDWORKS ALLOWANCE BUILD-UP
An excavation and groundworks allowance with the basis stated: volumes, access assumptions, disposal, and the items that typically change first once digging starts.
Structure estimate
A priced structure section covering concrete and reinforced slab where shown, plus the timber frame and roof structure estimate where applicable to your design.
ENVELOPE AND WINDOW PACKAGE ESTIMATE
A separate envelope section including facade items, windows, and external doors, priced as a package so you can check it against supplier quotes early.
TRADE SUMMARY WITH CONTINGENCY LINE
A one-page summary that rolls every trade up to the total, plus a stated contingency line so you can see what you are carrying for uncertainty.
What it costs
Pick the tier that matches how settled your drawings are and how much risk you want shown as measured quantities versus named allowances.
Priced items
Getting started
If you want us to hold a start slot, the next step is to sign and send the drawing set you want priced.
1. Sign this proposal to book the work. 2. Pay the 40% booking invoice within 14 days. 3. Send the drawings and any engineer notes, and we’ll start the takeoff.
ARE YOU PRICING FROM THESE DRAWINGS, OR DO YOU NEED MORE DETAIL FIRST?
We can price from your current drawing set if it shows the main dimensions, levels, wall build-ups, structure intent, and openings. If a section is not defined enough to measure, we’ll price it as an allowance and show the basis so you can update it when details land.
WHAT HAVE YOU ASSUMED FOR GROUND CONDITIONS AND ACCESS FOR EXCAVATION?
We state our ground and access assumptions on the groundworks build-up, line by line. Where the drawings do not confirm soil class, rock, dewatering, or haul distance, we carry those items as named allowances so you can see what would change the figure.
HAVE YOU ALLOWED FOR SNOW LOAD REQUIREMENTS IN THE ROOF STRUCTURE?
Yes. We include a stated allowance for snow load driven sizing in the roof structure where the design is still at an estimating stage. If your engineer’s snow load and member sizes are already defined, we price to that information and note the source.
WHAT’S INCLUDED AND EXCLUDED IN THIS NUMBER, LINE BY LINE?
The cost plan is written as line items you can point at, with a scope note for each trade section. You’ll see what is priced as a measured quantity, what is priced as an allowance, and what information we used, so you can check it before you sign.
Signature
Fee summary
Payment
We invoice 40% to book the work when you sign, and 60% when we hand over the finished new build cost plan. Each invoice is payable within 14 days of its date.
What we need. You send the current drawing set and any schedules you have in one package. If we receive revisions after we start, we work from the latest set you confirm in writing.
Allowances and assumptions. Where drawings do not confirm ground conditions, haul distance, dewatering, or access constraints, we carry named allowances and list the basis line by line in the groundworks build-up so you can see what moves.
Changes to the work. If the drawing set changes enough to affect quantities or trade scope, we will tell you what needs updating and why before we redo takeoff or rebuild sections, and we will price the extra work first.
Handover format
We issue the new build cost plan as a trade-by-trade breakdown with line items you can point at, including notes on what is measured versus allowance, plus the bill of quantities takeoff and the trade summary with contingency line.
Client review. You check the assumptions, exclusions, and scope notes when you receive the draft. If something is missing from the information set you intended us to use, you flag it and we will update the relevant lines.
Ownership. Once the final invoice is paid, you own the finished new build cost plan and can use it for pricing and contracting on this project. Our worksheets and estimating templates stay ours.
