Quick Summary
- Use AI plan checking at the bid stage to understand projects better, price more accurately, and win more work
- Identify issues and risks before bidding to avoid costly surprises during construction
- Use findings as a sales tool to demonstrate superior project understanding to owners
- Perfect for GCs, developers, and contractors competing on bids
The bid stage is your first chance to understand a project—and your last chance to price it accurately before committing. AI plan checking at bid stage helps contractors identify issues, understand risks, and demonstrate superior project knowledge to win more work.
Why Check Plans at Bid Stage?
Price More Accurately
Identify issues and risks before bidding to avoid costly surprises during construction. Price the project correctly from the start.
Win More Work
Demonstrate superior project understanding to owners. Show them you've already identified issues that competitors missed.
Protect Your Margin
Avoid inheriting design team errors that eat into your margin. Identify issues upfront and account for them in your bid.
How It Works
1. Upload Bid Documents
When you receive bid documents, upload the construction drawings, specifications, and any other project documents. The AI will analyze the entire set for issues, risks, and coordination problems.
Typical Documents: Architectural drawings, structural drawings, MEP drawings, specifications, geotechnical reports, and any other relevant documents.
2. Identify Issues and Risks
The AI identifies hundreds of issues across disciplines—spec vs drawing conflicts, code violations, coordination problems, missing information, and more. These are the issues that could become RFIs, change orders, or delays during construction.
Common Issues Found: Spec vs drawing conflicts, missing details, code violations, coordination problems, calculation errors, and missing information.
3. Price and Bid Strategically
Use the findings to price the project accurately. Account for issues that will need to be addressed. If issues are significant, you can factor them into your bid or use them to negotiate scope clarifications.
Strategy: Price issues into your bid, or use findings to request clarifications before bidding.
4. Use as a Sales Tool
When presenting your bid, show the owner the issues you've already identified. Demonstrate that you understand the project better than competitors and that your bid is more realistic because you've accounted for these issues.
Example: "We've reviewed the plans and identified 200 issues that need to be addressed. Our bid accounts for these, ensuring no surprises during construction."
Real-World Examples
General Contractor - Multi-Family Project
A GC bidding on a six-building, 144-unit multifamily project ran the bid documents through AI plan checking before submitting their proposal.
What They Found:
- 300+ issues identified across architectural, structural, MEP, and civil disciplines
- Spec vs drawing conflicts that would cause RFIs during construction
- Missing details and placeholder references in the permit set
- Code violations that would need to be addressed
- Coordination problems between disciplines
How They Used It:
- Factored significant issues into their bid pricing
- Used findings to request clarifications before bidding
- Presented findings to the owner to demonstrate project understanding
- Won the project because their bid was more realistic and they showed superior knowledge
Result: They won the project and avoided costly surprises during construction because they had already identified and accounted for issues in their bid.
Developer - Mixed-Use Project
A developer considering a design-build proposal ran the existing construction documents through AI plan checking to understand project risks before committing.
What They Found:
- 1,200-1,400 sheet drawing set with hundreds of issues
- Calculation errors that would affect project feasibility
- Coordination problems that would cause delays
- Missing information that would need to be developed
How They Used It:
- Used findings to negotiate design team corrections before committing
- Factored risks into their project budget and timeline
- Made an informed decision about whether to proceed with the project
Result: They avoided committing to a project with significant issues and negotiated corrections before moving forward.
Best Practices for Bid Stage Checking
Maximizing Value
- Check Early: Run the check as soon as you receive bid documents to give yourself time to analyze findings and adjust your bid
- Focus on Critical Issues: Prioritize critical and high-severity issues that will have the biggest impact on cost and schedule
- Use Findings Strategically: Factor significant issues into your bid, or use them to request clarifications before bidding
- Present to Owner: Show the owner the issues you've identified to demonstrate superior project understanding and justify your bid
- Export for Team: Export findings to Excel to share with your estimating team and factor into pricing
ROI of Bid Stage Checking
Cost of Not Checking
- Underpricing projects due to unidentified issues
- Losing bids because competitors understand the project better
- Inheriting design team errors that eat into margin
- RFIs and change orders that could have been prevented
Value of Checking
- More accurate pricing from the start
- Win more work by demonstrating superior knowledge
- Protect margin by accounting for issues upfront
- Fewer surprises and RFIs during construction
Ready to Improve Your Bidding Process?
Use AI plan checking at bid stage to understand projects better, price more accurately, and win more work. Upload your bid documents and see what issues you're inheriting.