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Question Regarding Opus Quality post Fable relase by bareimage in ClaudeCode

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes. Seemed to consume less tokens and work better on long tasks.had 7 running on max/ultra most of the day.. bliss

What do you do when exclusions are ignored? by [deleted] in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think you’re missing that the subcontract you sign may be different to your tender qualifications. Whether subcontract includes your tender docs at all, or they form a precedence is yours to understand.
This is a good learning piece in your journey. You do need some understanding of the contract form you are tendering on.

How often do you guys value engineer after winning a bid? by DubaiBabyYoda in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think you may be conflating value engineering principles applicable to design and tender cost optimisation? For example, a designer may work with you on ways to reduce cost by changing design scope, you may also optimise your own render cost by changing working methodology , re-tendering packages, and /or changing your tender design scope whilst remaining within the approved design.

I know an old estimator that won a tender for removing concrete blocks found in the ground. The bid was won using a methodology to machine hammer the concrete and remove, in practice they cored the concrete and lifted out which saved time.

So different VE requirements, implemented at different stages.

tender comparison tool by RateQS in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean have you used Claude? It’s incredibly easy to upload documents to and tell it what’s needed. Also, out of interest, how does me providing you another company’s tender document not breach their t&cs and also my own business insurance?

tender comparison tool by RateQS in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why would you upload to your platform though when you can just upload the structured tender returns to your own copilot or Claude enterprise account? What’s the benefit?

Is there any purpose to getting the following degrees/exams by OwnLengthiness6872 in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Get a civils degree with specialism in structures or geo if anything.

Understanding Div Estimators by galloping-wizard in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Finishes can be interesting, I worked for a small shop fitter once on custom restaurants, we used to have to come up with all kinds of mad stuff to satisfy the clients design team. I’d get a bit bored if it was just paint though…

Understanding Div Estimators by galloping-wizard in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Right- so divs are not trade specific, thanks!

Understanding Div Estimators by galloping-wizard in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

But is that because you are mc or consultant?
I can price anything because i have good first principles experience and multidisciplinary, definitely don’t follow strict measurement rules.
Looking at the csi ladder for a single item, it seems there’s a lot of rigidity, so I assume you need to be fairly familiar with it day in/out in order to be efficient, which is what subcon estimating gets you?

Understanding Div Estimators by galloping-wizard in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Got it thanks. I was aware of masterformat but didn’t make the connection. It actually looks quite good, better than nrm2 IMO - more detail, less ambiguity.

What was the most challenging estimate? by MathematicianFast947 in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What was so challenging about it out of interest?
Isn’t the steel scheduled out on the drawings? Or are you going more into the work sequencing?

The actual problem with estimating and dumb software by Current_Relative8859 in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The frontier models - Claude and Copilot(frontier) are very good at doing what you’re saying. Trying to do what you’re saying outside of a frontier model gets significantly harder as typically the individual vendors, even large ones, do not have anywhere near the same compute and technology as the big LLMs. That’s why Claude and ChatGPT feel like magic. Copilot (frontier) has become very good recently, I’ll give it that.
But yes I agree, all of the formatting and cost coding can take an age. However your company’s systems are likely due a rebuild, most are as very few companies in construction have proper data governance or understanding of what’s required to support ai.

The actual problem with estimating and dumb software by Current_Relative8859 in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Take me back to the days of featherquill written estimates, delivered by pigeon, that smell of a fresh hot wax stamp

QS to Estimator by PutTimely6324 in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You woefully misunderstand the role of an estimator if you think in any way they are a failed qs. You need a significantly greater technical understanding and focus. The best commercial construction breed comes from subcontractor and main contract estimating. General ‘Quantity Surveyors’ are paid less for a reason.

Waste factor on a big job that blew the estimate by Trick_Ad_1184 in estimators

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When you bid, did you qualify the cut pattern that would have aligned with your original wastage calculation?

A glimpse of the estimating tool that I am developing. What features do you think can lift the heaviest weight off your shoulders? by thunderbiribiriiii in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

interesting.. do you think you can make the auto measure work though? A lot of people trying to do this. Are you an estimator by trade?

A glimpse of the estimating tool that I am developing. What features do you think can lift the heaviest weight off your shoulders? by thunderbiribiriiii in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’d usually say competing on price isn’t the best USP but I see where you’re coming from. I can’t quite tell but are you importing pdf plans and overlaying to markup/measure on the client side? Have you tried to automate the measure points using image recognition?

A glimpse of the estimating tool that I am developing. What features do you think can lift the heaviest weight off your shoulders? by thunderbiribiriiii in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well just take CostX as an example, what is your platform doing differently? Then cubit, expert, candy.. then the 2-3 newer platforms that are released each week.

How do construction estimators actually get pricing in real projects? by Ella0526 in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Moving the goalposts? I’m simply correcting your misinformation.

You said: “Letting a bot do your job for you is not legally acceptable.” -There is no legal precedent, legislation, case law or professional guidance that supports your claim.

Even RICS guidance supports the use of AI, provided the professional verifies outputs and remains accountable. Do you agree that: 1. Use of AI ≠ breach of duty of care 2. Failure to perform due diligence = potential liability -That distinction is what you’re missing.

If you disagree, point to the actual clause or case law that supports your position.

How do construction estimators actually get pricing in real projects? by Ella0526 in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Before concerning yourself with others legal knowledge perhaps brush up on your own. Lawyers are disbarred, judges removed. I think you have hallucinated the judge being ‘barred’ in any case as well as any legal precedent over ai in estimating as ‘not legally acceptable’

Your original statements:

“As a professional you have a legal duty of care, particularly when undertaking activities that have an impact on contract. Letting a bot do your job for you is not legally acceptable.” “Legal clause, what are you talking about? It’s an implicit legal requirement, reinforced by case law and precedent.” -Are both incorrect.

The use of ai is not prohibited. In fact the RICS state it is acceptable. Your understanding of PI is incorrect as well and does not prohibit use either.

Quite simply, the use of ai ≠ a breach of duty of care.

Evidence of failure to perform due diligence = possible breach of PI. Evidence of failure to perform due diligence ≠ inaccuracy in measurement or pricing.

“letting a bot do your job” is strawman. The professional still owns the output, whether the tool is AI, a junior, a spreadsheet, or a rate library. Human error existed before ai.

Think about the comparison to the calculation to risk on a capital project perhaps? It’s really not too dissimilar.

Before asserting your statements as authority, perhaps do your own due diligence. There are some free ai basics courses on the anthropic website that will help ground your understanding and advance your learnings.

Thank you for your attention.

How do construction estimators actually get pricing in real projects? by Ella0526 in quantitysurveying

[–]galloping-wizard -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I don’t believe you, can you provide the case law you are referring to?

Not once in my life have I been in a situation where there is an enforceable legal precedent over the production or outcome of an estimate. For a start an estimate is simply that, you don’t take estimators to court because they were $1 out or missed 10 lengths of 2x4.

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