Creating Estimates

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The Estimates screen shown below lets you add, edit and view estimates. This screen also lets you view the details for the estimate including totals and tax without opening the estimate. An estimate is very similar to an invoice and provides an easy way of providing you customers with quotes. An estimate can easily be converted to an invoice if the estimate is accepted with just a single click of a button.



You can filter the estimates using the Filter Estimates drop-down list. The following options are available from this list.

Show All

When you select Show All, all your estimates are displayed.

Show Accepted

When you select Show Accepted, only estimates that have been accepted are displayed.

Show pending

When you select Show Pending, only estimates that have not been accepted are displayed.

Show For Month

When you select Show By Month, two drop-down list are displayed from which you can choose the year and the month to display estimates for.

Show By Customer

When you select Show By Customer, a drop-down list containing all your customers is displayed. When you choose a customer, that customer's estimates are displayed.

When an estimate is selected, all items that are part of that estimate are shown in the Estimate Details list. The Total Cost, Subtotal, Tax and Estimate Total are also shown.

Click the Add button to add a new estimate.

Click the View / Edit button to view or edit the selected estimate.

You can also print, email and print details for the selected estimate without opening the estimate.

Click the Delete button to delete the selected estimate.

When you click the Add or View / Edit buttons the screen shown below is displayed. This is where you view and edit complete details for the estimate. This is also where you print or email the estimate from.



Click the small button next to the Customer field to select the customer the estimate is for. A window like the one shown below will open listing all your active customers.



You can sort the list by any column by clicking the column header. Click again to sort in the opposite direction. Select the customer from the list and click the OK button.

You can add a description for the estimate in the Description field.

The Estimate # will be entered for you as will the Estimate Date. You can change the date by clicking the small button next to the field.

The Tax Rate % will be entered for you based on the default tax rate you entered on the Company Info screen. You can change this if needed.

Select or type the terms for the estimate using the Terms drop-down list. If the one you want is not on the list, just type it in and it will be saved for next time. You can manage this list from the Other Lists screen.

Select or type a note for the estimate using the Notes drop-down list. If the one you want is not on the list, just type it in and it will be saved for next time. You can manage this list from the Other Lists screen.

You add items to the estimate in the Add / Edit Estimate Items section. You have two options, you can just type in the item information or you can select an item from the Item List list. You can also select plants from the Plant List. This gives you complete flexibility when creating estimates.

You can make an item a header item by checking the Header Item box. A header item will not have any cost or quantity. You can uses header items as tasks or a way to group and organize items. You can optionally schedule a header item. This would apply if you are using them as tasks. See the image below.

To schedule a task, check the Schedule Task box and enter the start and end dates using the popup calendar.

If you just want to type in the item then enter the title and optionally the description. To enter a description, click the View / Edit Description button. This will open a popup window as shown below where you can view and edit the text.



Enter the quantity and unit cost. The unit cost can be broken down into Labor, Materials, and Other. If you don't want to break the unit cost down, just enter the total unit cost in the Labor field. Check the Taxable box if it is a taxable item. Enter a markup % if you want to apply markup to the item. As you enter information the item cost and price will be calculated. When you are happy with the item, click the Save / Update button to add it to the estimate. The estimate totals will be updated. When you type an item in you can add it to the Item List list by clicking the Save To List button.

To select an item from the Item List list, click the button to the right of the Item field. This will open the first screen shown below.



Simply select the category and click the OK button. This will display the second screen shown above listing the items in the chosen category. Select the item you want and click the OK button. All the information will be entered for you but you can edit it if you want. Editing will not affect the item in the Item List list. All the calculations will be done also. You can make any changes you need to the item such as changing the quantity or unit cost and it will recalculate automatically. When you are happy with the item, click the Save button to add it to the estimate. The estimate totals will be updated. If you have entered the hours per unit for each item in the Item List, then the total hours required to complete the job will be calculated and displayed below the total.

Repeat the steps above to add a plant to the estimate. Just click the button instead.

To keep things consistent and to save time, you should add all the items and plants that you use to the Item List and Plant List.

To edit an existing estimate item, select it from the Estimate Items list. Its details will be displayed in the Add / Edit Estimate Items section. Make any changes and then click the Save button. All the totals will recalculate automatically.

You can force Plant Estimator to print subtotals anywhere within the estimate. To do this, simply click the Insert Subtotal Line button. See the example below.

This

will look like this when printed.

You will notice that the * does not print.

You can re-arrange the items in the list using the Move Row Up and Move Row Down buttons. Simply select the row you want to move and click the appropriate button. You can insert an item anywhere within the list by selecting the row you want to insert an item after and then clicking the Insert New Row button. This feature combined with the ability to move items up and down, Header Items and subtotals gives you complete control over how the estimate will look when printed.

You can expand the Estimate Items list by clicking the Expand List button. This lets you view more items at a time and is useful if the estimate has a lot of items. Click the button again to return to normal view.

You can optionally view the Estimate Items in a tree like view by clicking the Tree View button. See the example below.



The items will be grouped by header items if any exist. You can select an item and edit is just like in list view. Click the button again to return to list view.

Click the Adjust Price button to adjust the overall price for the estimate. You can adjust the price up or down. There are three options to choose from when you click this button.

Adjust To Set Amount

This lets you enter an amount to adjust the estimate to before taxes.

Adjust By Percentage

This lets you enter a percentage to adjust the estimate by. For example to add 10%, you would just enter 10.

Round Up To The Nearest 100

This lets you round the price befor tax up to the nearest 100.

When you adjust the price, Plant Estimator adjust the markup for each item in the estimate so as to arrive at the desired price. This means that it is blended throughtout the estimate so it is invisible to your customers.

Click the Save Estimate button to save your changes to the estimate. If you have not saved your changes the font color on the Save button changes to yellow, which acts as a flag or reminder that you have made changes that are not saved yet.

Click the Print Estimate button to print a copy of the estimate to give to the customer. A popup menu will appear listing different printing options including any custom estimates you have created. You can also print a plant list with or without images.

When you choose the one you want, a message will popup asking if you want to print the item / plant descriptions. If you choose No, only the item titles will be printed on the estimate. The estimate will open in the Print Preview window.

Click the Email Estimate button to email the estimate to the customer. A popup menu will appear listing different printing options including any custom estimates you have created.

When you choose the one you want, a message will popup asking if you want to include the item descriptions. If you choose No, only the item titles will be included on the estimate. The estimate will be converted to a PDF file so it can be attached to an email message. Then the screen shown below will open.



You must be already connected to the internet. If you have entered an email address for the customer, it will be entered in the To Email field. You can change this to any email address you want. You can edit the subject as needed. If you have setup a default message on the Email Settings screen, it will be entered for you. If you included any merge fields in the default message, these will have been replaced with the correct values. Click the Send button to send the estimate or click the Cancel button to not send it. A small dialog window will show the status and let you know if the message was sent or if it failed.

You can also email the estimate from the Print Preview window. This method uses your default email program.

Click the Print Details button to print a copy of the estimate showing all the details including costs and markup. This is for your own use and should not be given to the customer. A message will popup asking if you want to print the item / plant descriptions. If you choose No, only the item titles will be printed. The estimate details will open in the Print Preview window. You can also print a work order and task schedule from this button.

You can duplicate the estimate by clicking the Duplicate button. This is very useful if you create estimates that are very similar or if the customer want different variations.

When an estimate is accepted you should check the Accepted box. This will enable the Create Invoice button. This button lets you create an invoice from the estimate. All the information will be copied to a new invoice. A message will popup telling you the invoice has been created and asking you if you want to view the invoice. Click Yes to open the invoice so you can make any changes needed and print it.

Click the Close button to return to the Estimate List screen. If you have not saved your changes a message will popup asking you if you want to save them or not.

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