Likelihood to Recommend Well Suited: Construction cost estimates for new larger projects where the construction will start within the next 6-9 months. Budgetary estimates for future buildings through its square foot models. Not Well Suited: Not accurate enough on small projects where labor, travel to sites, and OH&P are a higher percentage of unit costs than on larger projects where these costs are spread out across more units.
Read full review Ineight helps save us a huge amount of time in preparing the large number of bids we have to do. It is fast and has many desirable features which make it accurate and reliable. The company has made a lot of changes over the years and most are for the good of the software and are welcome. Some of the changes, however, do not make sense and are actually detrimental to the smooth functioning of the program. When asked why these changes were made I have not been able to get a satisfactory answer. We wish that the company would listen more to the suggestions of clients.
Read full review Pros CostWorks is very good at generating quick and valid estimates for standardized facilities such as office buildings, schools, etc. It allows you to validate other cost estimates at the UniFormat level when doing an estimate validation. CostWorks' database of detailed line-items is a very resourceful asset when it comes to finding a very specific line-item. Sometimes, when using Success or MII, I will have CostWorks open on the other screen so I can find an item that the other softwares just don't have and build it into the other software from the CostWorks entry. CostWorks does a very good job of generating reports that are both well-developed and have enough detail at the summary level to be able to sit with a client or a project manager and have them follow along and understand without being overwhelmed with detail and numbers. Read full review Tagging segments of work. User defined views and descriptions for all screens. Customizable ribbons to provide an efficient use of the software. Multiple layers/dependents to allow for an extreme drill down of the work and the ability to roll up to a more useful level for upper management review. You can bid the work as you would build it, in detail. Read full review Cons small project costs where labor is a bigger portion than materials on cost markup factors on governmental projects Read full review The import/export buttons are exactly the opposite of what you would expect. not intuitive and the logos for these should be swapped. The software is hard to train users upon. New users require 3-6 months of use before getting proficient. I think this is because many of the best features are buried in menus, three clicks deep. The claiming exports immediately default partial claim items to the user who claimed previously. You need to update your name every time you update a partial claim line item. There are many add-ins that should just be included with InEight Standard, instead of having to install extras to make the software usable. Read full review Likelihood to Renew Some features with InEight's TeamBinder are worthy of single use, however the review feature and subsequent revision and version numbering could be improved. We will be aiming to roll out the package to encompass our internal documentation in the near future and will be in a better position to judge the usability after that point in time.
Read full review Usability I would give it an 8 out of 10 because the software can be a bit cumbersome to new users. It also takes a long time to set up the library and input all of your companies needs so that the software will provide the level of service required to estimate projects. However, once the software is set up it is a powerful tool. We only use a portion of what the software is capable of delivering
Read full review Support Rating I've never had the need to discuss CostWorks with a vendor.
Read full review InEight have the ServiceNow ticketing system, which should improve the transparency of outstanding issues. However there is an inconsistency in advice within the help desk support staff (Kevin is excellent) and depending on who is handling the issue often our staff need to follow up with the help desk.
Read full review Implementation Rating Since the original inception, I have been required to overhaul the system so that it is more user friendly and combines both aspects of our business, documentation and drawings. Being able to control revision and version numbering has been a key struggle that only staff training has been able to mark this as complete.
Read full review Alternatives Considered CostWorks is a unique software for estimating as compared to the other softwares I have listed above. PACES is mostly used for federal modeling and really cannot be compared to Costworks. It has its own developed modeling database and has its own quirkiness and issues. MII has been developed for the USACE and utilized a user-developed folder structure and RS Means Database. I use CostWorks along side this software to find line-items that are not in the MII RS Means Database. Success has been developed for NAVFAC and again, utilizes a user-developed folder structure and RS Means Database. When I use this software, I ALWAYS have CostWorks open on the other screen as Success' RS Means database is extremely lacking when it comes to the number of detail line-items. Timberline is by SAGE and I use it mostly for DOS and FAA work. Of the 3 RS Means Database softwares, this one has the most detailed database for reference, however, there are times when I do have to look up an item that Timberline does not have and the first software I open is CostWorks.
Read full review Allows you to save all file types to a document, easily identify which formats you do and don’t have and manage which formats you issue. Great bulk functionality. Manage multiple projects and large volume of documentation easily with less staff. Read full review Scalability We only use Ineight at our main facility so are currently not in need of the flexibility and scalability of multiple sites and departments.
Read full review Return on Investment I don't really see any "negative" impacts on my business or my ROI by purchasing CostWorks. It's a valuable tool that we use, however, some of my colleagues do not use it or use it very infrequently. I find it well worth the cost even though we don't develop complete estimates in CostWorks due to client dictated softwares. It has provided very quickly-built estimating models that let our team and project managers know that the RFP or the task that they are contemplating bidding on or starting to work on is actually feasible to construction given the budget and directive. Read full review More detailed estimates for projects and alternative deliver partners. Able to reduce estimating time entry time on projects with assemblies allowing for more review of plans and specifications. Excellent tool for remote estimates allowing for more involvement from field construction personnel. Read full review ScreenShots