Construction services · Estimating
Construction estimate and proposal
Go from a quote request to a proposal the client can decide on, without the scope, drawings and site details scattered over calls and emails. The client shares everything through one link, and no price goes out before the estimating manager approves it.
- Duration: 2 to 4 weeks
- How often: For every quote request
- Steps: 9 steps
- AI agents: 1 AI agent
- Approvals: 1 approval
Free plan, no credit card needed.
What changes with this template
Without it
Scope, drawings and site photos arrive over a week of calls, texts and emails.
Proposals go out with whatever exclusions the estimator remembered that day.
A price can reach the client without anyone else having seen it.
Nobody can say why the last few proposals were lost.
With it
The client shares scope, budget, timing and links to the drawings through one link before the site visit.
An AI agent drafts scope, exclusions and assumptions from the site visit and the estimate, and the estimating manager checks them.
No proposal goes out until the estimating manager approves the price and the wording.
Every run ends with the outcome and the reason recorded.
The template, step by step
Each step says who does it: someone on your team, an AI agent, or the client through a shared link. An approval keeps every later step locked until it is given.
- Done by your team
- Done by an AI agent
- Done by the client, through a shared link
Starts when
A client asks for a price. The estimator starts a run with the client name and the project address.
- 1
Log the request and send the shared link
Day 1Estimator · Team
Record the request and send the client the shared run link, so they can describe the job and share their drawings before the site visit.
Checklist
- Request logged
- Shared link sent to the client
- Site visit date proposed
Fields to fill in
- Client name (required)
- Project address (required)
- Client email (required)
- Site visit date (required)
- 2
Describe the job and share the drawings
Days 1 to 3Client contact · Shared link
Through the shared link, the client describes the work, the budget range and the timing, and shares links to drawings, specifications and photos of the site.
Checklist
- Site access arranged for the visit
- Decision makers named
Fields to fill in
- Scope of work (required)
- Budget range
- Preferred start date
- Link to drawings and photos (required)
- 3
Visit the site and record the conditions
Week 1Estimator · Team
Measure, photograph and note everything that changes the price or the method of work. If the drawings are missing or unusable, mark the run as blocked and note what you need.
Checklist
- Measurements taken
- Access, storage and parking checked
- Existing conditions and utilities photographed
Fields to fill in
- Site conditions and risks (required)
- Link to the site visit photos and measurements (required)
- 4
Price the work
Hidden from the shared linkWeek 2Estimator · Team
Do the takeoff, get prices from the subcontractors and suppliers you need, and build the estimate with labor, materials, equipment, subcontracts, overhead and margin.
Checklist
- Takeoff complete
- Subcontractor and supplier prices in
- Contingency and margin set
Fields to fill in
- Link to the estimate (required)
- Total price (required)
- Duration in weeks (required)
- 5
Draft the proposal
Week 2Proposal writer · AI agent
The proposal writer drafts the scope of work, inclusions, exclusions, assumptions and schedule from the client's description, the site conditions and the estimate totals.
Fields to fill in
- Draft proposal text (required)
- Open questions for the client
Checked by: The estimating manager corrects the draft and approves the price and the proposal in step 6.
- 6
Approve the price and the proposal
Hidden from the shared linkWeek 2Estimating manager · Team
Check the estimate against the drawings and the site visit notes, correct the draft proposal and approve the price.
Checklist
- Scope matches the drawings
- Exclusions and assumptions are clear
- Margin meets your minimum
Fields to fill in
- Approved price (required)
Approval: Nothing goes to the client until the estimating manager approves the price and the proposal.
- 7
Send the proposal and walk the client through it
Week 3Estimator · Team
Send the approved proposal and go through it with the client, especially the exclusions, the assumptions and the dates.
Checklist
- Proposal sent
- Walkthrough held with the client
Fields to fill in
- Link to the proposal sent (required)
- Proposal valid until (required)
- 8
Accept or decline the proposal
Weeks 3 to 4Client contact · Shared link
Through the shared link, the client records their decision, and what they would change if they are not ready to accept.
Fields to fill in
- Decision (required)
- What to change
- 9
Record the outcome
Hidden from the shared linkWeek 4Estimator · Team
Record whether the job was won or lost, and why. For a won job, book the handover meeting with the project manager.
Checklist
- Estimate filed
- Handover booked for a won job
Fields to fill in
- Outcome (required)
- Reason
Done when
The client has accepted or declined the proposal, the outcome and the reason are recorded, and a won job has its handover to the project manager booked.
Make it yours. Rename steps, change owners and add checklist items, fields or approvals. The template is a starting point for the way your team works.
The AI agents in this template
An agent only works on its own steps, and a person on your team checks what it did. Anything an agent writes to a connected app waits for approval unless you allow it.
Proposal writer
Drafts the proposal text from the client's description, the site visit notes and the estimate totals.
What it does
- Reads the scope, site conditions and estimate totals recorded on the run
- Drafts the scope of work, inclusions, exclusions and assumptions
- Lists the open questions to settle with the client
- Completes its step, so the estimating manager can review the draft
Checked by: The estimating manager corrects the draft and approves the price and the proposal in step 6.
Questions this template answers
Get the scope, drawings and site details from the client in one go before you visit, instead of collecting them over several calls. In step 2 the client fills in the scope, budget and timing and shares links to drawings and photos through a shared link.
Check everything that changes the price or the method: access, storage, existing conditions, utilities and whatever the drawings do not show. Step 3 gives the estimator that checklist and records the conditions and risks for the estimate and the proposal.
Write them from the site visit notes and the estimate, not from memory, and check them before the proposal goes out. In step 5 an AI agent drafts the scope, inclusions, exclusions and assumptions, and in step 6 the estimating manager checks them against the drawings.
Make every price pass a second person before it reaches the client. Step 6 is an approval gate: the proposal stays locked until the estimating manager approves the price, the margin and the wording.
Walk the client through the proposal, give it a valid-until date and ask for a clear yes or no. Step 7 records the walkthrough and the validity date, and in step 8 the client accepts or declines through the shared link and says what they would change.
Record the outcome and the reason for every proposal, won or lost, in the same place. Step 9 records both on every run, so the reasons can be compared across jobs instead of being remembered.
Run this workflow in OKiDO
Set up the steps, owners and approvals once, then start a run for every new case.