# Resources for commercial preconstruction

Commercial preconstruction notes: measure in your quantity names, share one Project across offices, and keep the page on every row. You still price.

How a precon team measures a commercial set and shares the Project. You stay the expert. Stairs and rails are one package we show. You name the Subject.

Start with [what commercial preconstruction takeoff is](/resources/commercial-preconstruction-takeoff). If you are choosing software, [measure desk vs estimating vs a bid board](/resources/choose-takeoff-software). If you already work in Revu, [Bluebeam markups into Excel](/resources/bluebeam-to-excel). When the hours sit on one person, [the team on one set](/resources/precon-team-takeoff). A measure desk, not another estimating platform: [takeoff without a platform](/resources/takeoff-without-a-platform). Quantities before price: [takeoff vs estimating](/resources/takeoff-vs-estimating). Measuring the set, with stairs as the worked package: [quantities on the set](/resources/measuring-a-commercial-set) and [why scale calibration matters](/resources/scale-calibration). Scopes on the bid, including Division 05: [scopes](/resources/scopes-on-a-commercial-bid). If a Windows desktop tape is failing, [leaving PlanSwift (or OST)](/resources/leaving-planswift). For a model that traces the sheet, [whether AI takeoff works](/resources/ai-takeoff). How the desk finds scale callouts: [scale detection](/guides/scale-detection). Company standards and codes: [references](/resources/takeoff-references). Who can open the Project: [how work is organized](/guides).

## The resources

- [How to choose takeoff software](/resources/choose-takeoff-software.md): Markup desk, measure desk, estimating, or a bid board. Pick the job before the product. A precon team already prices in a workbook. You still price.
- [Get Bluebeam takeoff into Excel](/resources/bluebeam-to-excel.md): CSV Summary vs Quantity Link: how to get Bluebeam markups into Excel, which Revu plan you need, and why page refs beat retyping the Markups List.
- [Does AI takeoff actually work?](/resources/ai-takeoff.md): When AI takeoff helps on clean floors, why scanned shop sets still need a human check, and why Bluebeam Max plus Claude is review, not auto-QTO.
- [Leaving PlanSwift (or On-Screen Takeoff)](/resources/leaving-planswift.md): Why shops leave PlanSwift and On-Screen Takeoff, what to keep (Excel, the assemblies in your head), and how to switch without buying a platform seat.
- [What commercial preconstruction takeoff is](/resources/commercial-preconstruction-takeoff.md): Commercial preconstruction takeoff is quantities off the set, in your names, with the page on every row. You still decide the scope. You still price.
- [Scopes on a commercial bid](/resources/scopes-on-a-commercial-bid.md): A commercial bid is many scopes. You name each one. Division 05 is the worked example: structural steel, misc metals, and the railing spec are not the same job.
- [Takeoff vs estimating](/resources/takeoff-vs-estimating.md): Takeoff is quantities off the set. Estimating is the price. Finish the quantities, with the page on every row, before the other office loads rates.
- [Measuring quantities on a commercial set](/resources/measuring-a-commercial-set.md): Name the Subject, keep the page on the row, and split the sheets with the other office. Stairs and rails are the worked example. You still decide the scope.
- [Why scale calibration matters](/resources/scale-calibration.md): A length with two decimals can still be the wrong building. Calibrate each page, confirm a second dimension, and the other office inherits that scale.
- [Why a commercial takeoff waits on one person](/resources/precon-team-takeoff.md): The bid waits on the person who can read the set. Share the Project, keep the page on every row, and leave the judgment with them. You still price.
- [References for commercial takeoff](/resources/takeoff-references.md): The useful reference is your company checklist and the project specs. Codes sit behind that. Metals manuals are one shelf on a commercial bid.
- [A measure desk, not another estimating platform](/resources/takeoff-without-a-platform.md): Commercial preconstruction already has an estimating workbook. The missing piece is quantities in your names, on one Project, without a second platform.