Takeoff
Upload a drawing set as one PDF, let the sheets be split, named and scaled, check each sheet's scale, and take quick measurements on screen.
The Takeoff tab turns the consultant's drawing set into sheets you can browse, zoom and measure on. Upload one PDF; every page becomes a sheet, named from its title block and scaled from its scale note where the drawing says one.
📷 Screenshot spot — the takeoff workspace: sheet navigator grouped by discipline on the left, a floor plan in the middle, the sheet and scale chips in the top bar, and the status bar showing the scale and cursor position
Save as static/img/screenshots/precon-takeoff.png and replace this box with 
You can upload sets, browse and name sheets, set and confirm scales, and measure lengths with the ruler. Ruler measurements are not saved, and takeoff quantities do not flow into a BOQ in the app yet. Zaptiz Detect shows in the toolbar but is not available.
Takeoff lives inside a project. To measure for a bid, have the Company Admin create the project first — it stays a prospect until the award, which can then link it. See Create a project.
Upload a plan set
- Open the project and go to the Takeoff tab.
- Click Upload plan set.
- Choose the file under Drawing set (PDF, up to 200 MB). Upload the whole set as one PDF.
- Check the Name (it defaults to the file name — for example "Tender set R0").
- Click Upload.
The upload returns at once and the sheets are processed in the background. The list updates by itself: the Sheets column fills up as pages finish, and you can open a set as soon as its first sheet is ready.
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Queued / Processing | Sheets are being split and rendered |
| Ready | Every sheet is ready |
| Partly ready | Some sheets failed — open the rest, or click Re-process |
| Failed | Nothing could be rendered; the reason shows under the name |
A file over 200 MB is refused — split the set by discipline and upload each part. A file that is not a PDF, or is encrypted or damaged, is refused while the upload panel is still open.
Find your way around a set
Click Open on a ready set.
- Sheet navigator (left) groups sheets by discipline — ARCH, STRUCT, MEP-E and so on. Type in Find sheet to filter. An amber dot marks a sheet whose scale is not confirmed.
- Top bar shows "12 of 82", with arrows to move between sheets, the sheet chip (number and title) and the scale chip.
- Status bar (bottom) shows the scale, the cursor position in metres once a scale is set, how many drawing lines snapping can use, whether the sheet is vector or raster, and the zoom.
| Key | Does |
|---|---|
| [ / ] | Previous / next sheet |
| H | Pan |
| M | Ruler |
| K | Calibrate scale |
| F | Fit the sheet |
| + / - | Zoom in / out |
The contrast button switches the paper between white and dark. Share sends a link that opens on the sheet you are looking at.
Name a sheet
Sheet numbers and titles are read from the title block when the PDF has text. Hover the sheet chip to see how sure the reading was. To correct it, click the sheet chip, fill in Sheet number, Title and Discipline, and click Save. A name you type is kept even if the set is re-processed.
Check the scale before you measure
Click the scale chip. It says one of: No scale, NTS, a detected scale with · confirm, or a confirmed scale with a tick.
A sheet printed on a different paper size still says 1:100 and measures 1:200. Check the scale against a dimension you know before you trust any measurement.
In the Sheet scale box you can:
- Click Confirm 1:100 (or whatever was detected) once you have checked it.
- Type a scale —
1:50, or an architectural scale like1/8" = 1'-0"— and click Set. - Click Calibrate on the sheet, then click the two ends of a dimension you know. Enter the Real length and Unit and click Set scale. Longer lines give a more accurate scale; two points too close together are refused.
- Click Not to scale for a sheet that cannot be measured.
Typing, calibrating or confirming a scale all count as confirmation. Only the Company Admin, Project Manager and QS / Estimator can set a scale.
Measure with the ruler
Press M or click the ruler. Click points along what you are measuring and double-click to finish; Esc cancels. Turn on snapping (the magnet) to lock onto the drawing's own lines on vector sheets. The ruler is for checking a dimension — nothing it measures is stored.
Re-process or archive a set
Re-process renders the set again — use it on a failed or partly ready set. Archive removes a set from the list.
An archived plan set cannot be brought back from the app. Archive only sets you no longer need — superseded tender drawings, for example.
Who can do what
| Action | Roles |
|---|---|
| Open sets and view sheets | Every role on the project except the Accountant |
| Upload, re-process, archive, rename sheets | Company Admin, Project Manager, QS / Estimator, Site Engineer |
| Set or confirm a scale, calibrate | Company Admin, Project Manager, QS / Estimator |
Related
- Bills of quantities — where the quantities go once measured.
- Drawings — the project's controlled drawing register.