Oracle Aconex vs. WinEst by Trimble

For outstanding project managing and operational assistance, Oracle Aconex is an incredible program. The budget that suits every project are met and followed. More so, Oracle Aconex takes the permits required, for instance, the insurance permit and the license tracking. The contractor management feature is also encoded on Oracle Aconex, making the investor and the contractor have the same objective.

Incentivized

I use WinEst in all stages of estimating from conceptual to GMP.

Incentivized

• File Sharing - unlimited storage, version control and access control on a neutral host - Aconex is significantly superior to ftp, SharePoint or a contractor hosted platform in that once onboarded, each user organization has equal privileges and can in turn onboard any number of members within the respective organizations.
• Process and Workflow Management - while imperfect, Aconex offers the opportunity to customize process control and enforcement. Our team used these processes for RFI preparation and response, submittal tracking and other custom requirements.
• Neutrality - while mentioned, the neutral host places all project participants on a equal basis. Typically, non-neutral platforms favor in-house participants to the detriment of the project. Until shared, files are 100% private to the respective organizations.
• Mobile interface - good (not perfect) access to unlimited project file information from a mobile device.
• Audit trail - no more "I didn't get that document". File sharing and file opening is tracked by user. Transmittals are a matter of record and there's no 'delete' function.

Incentivized

• It's very flexible when building an estimate and selecting items to include. You can either click your way to the datebase or quickly copy and paste similar items.
• The numerous ways to view and estimate whether it's by CSI, Uniformat, Master Format, or any view you'd like to see. One of ours is by program area, i.e. Sitework, Tower, Parking Deck, etc. After that, you can sort by Bid Package, CSI, etc. Quick buttons can be created far all the views you'd need which allows changing between views a breeze.
• The visual interface is pleasing and easy to read.
• It's easy to create your own database using Excel. Once you tag an item with unit costs, sort codes, etc., Winest will import it. You can also build it manually within the program but Excel was faster.

Incentivized

• Oracle Aconex has no compliance management
• More so, equipment management and asset valuation is missing.
• The accounting integration lacks on Oracle Aconex.

Incentivized

• At times, WinEst controls feel counter intuitive. Also the tools available for actually developing the database can feel clunky. This means that if you do not take the time to create a robust import file, you will spend a serious amount of time fixing your errors.
• WinEst is also an object based database which means that it is difficult to do mass dumps of information (mainly takeoff) into the program. While this is great for ensuring that everything is done purposefully, it does lead to extended hours of data entry
• It takes hours upon hours of use before you begin to realize the true potential. The sheer number of tools is overwhelming and their help resources are very basic and only explain how to correctly enter the data but not the feature's best use cases.

Incentivized

Requires a better interface that allows you to find all tools in order to utilise all functions.

Incentivized

Doug Quinn was our trainer and travels all over the country. Whenever I have an issue I shoot him an email and he quickly responds as soon as his training gets a break.

Incentivized

Finding that more companies are turning to Aconex for their project management software, although Procore is tough software to beat.

Incentivized

WinEst simply blows excel and Timberline out of the water. The shear depth of functionality is unparalleled. Not only does WinEst deliver a better product, it also shortens the amount of man hours required for each bid, alternate, pricing exercise, etc. On top of this, it has a number of redundant safeguards for catching errors that the others don't have.

Incentivized

• Project document can be easily accessed through the Cloud service.
• Easy budget and time tracking.
• Cloud collaboration ability has been more helpful.

Incentivized

• WinEst has created a simple path for delivering clean estimates time and time again no matter what the user is
• WinEst has allowed us to analyze data on a level previously unattainable

Incentivized