The Catalog tab is the backbone of Zevbit’s estimating system. It stores all the essential data contractors need to build fast, accurate, and profitable estimates:
- Materials
- Subcontractor services
- Equipment costs
- Vendors
- Production rates
Once the catalog is built, teams can create estimates much faster and with greater precision.
Materials
- Add categories of materials (e.g., concrete, pavers, lumber).
- Customize fields, toggle price visibility, and decide if items are editable on estimates.
- Add individual materials with details like name, cost, and units.
- This ensures every estimate pulls from a consistent, up-to-date material database.
Subcontractors
- Create categories for subcontractor services (e.g., electrical, plumbing).
- Add line items with costs and units for each subcontractor.
- Helps track outsourced work and integrate it seamlessly into estimates.
Equipment
- Organize company tools and machinery into categories.
- Decide whether equipment costs are visible or editable in estimates.
- Add equipment details (costs, usage rates) to ensure accurate overhead recovery.
Vendors
- Manage supplier lists with contact and location information.
- Enable/disable vendors with toggles.
- Edit vendor details to keep supplier data current.
- Ensures material and service sourcing is streamlined.
Production Rates
This is the critical piece for Zevbit customers. Production rates define how quickly tasks can be completed (e.g., square feet of flooring installed per hour).
- Accessible via the Production Rate Calculator in the Budget tool.
- Users can import rates or add them manually.
- Each service gets a production rate, which is saved to the catalog.
Why They Matter
- Accurate Estimates: Production rates ensure labor and time calculations reflect reality.
- Profitability: Prevents underbidding and protects margins.
- Scheduling: Helps plan realistic timelines for project delivery.
- Consistency: Standardizes performance expectations across projects.
Without production rates, estimates risk being inaccurate, timelines unrealistic, and profits eroded.
Others/Text
- Optional categories for custom services or values.
- Editable toggles allow flexibility in estimates.
- Useful for unique project-specific items not covered by standard categories.
Bottom Line: The Catalog organizes all the building blocks of estimating, but production rates are the engine that makes estimates accurate, profitable, and reliable. They connect materials, subs, equipment, and vendors into a realistic picture of how work gets done.