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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Pipeline Suite

    Score8 out of 10
    N/AN/AN/A

    SketchUp

    Score8.4 out of 10
    N/ASketchUp is 3D modeling software with an emphasis on usability. SketchUp is a Trimble product.

    $119

    per year

    Pricing
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Free
    $0.00
    per year
    For Schools (free with G Suite or Microsoft education account)
    $0
    For Students
    $55.00
    per year
    For Educators
    $55.00
    per year
    Studio for Students / Educators (Desktop version)
    $55
    per year
    Shop
    $119.00
    per year
    Pro
    $299.00
    per year
    Professional
    $299.00
    per year
    Studio (Windows only)
    $699
    per year
    Studio
    $1199.00
    per year
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Considered Both Products
    Pipeline Suite
    No answer on this topic
    Trimble
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    96%
    Would buy again
    23 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    22 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    92%
    Happy with the feature set
    22 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    89%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    17 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    18 Answers
    Features
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Construction Project & Field Management
    Comparison of Construction Project & Field Management features of Pipeline Suite and SketchUp
    Feature
    Pipeline Suite
    8.5
    1 Ratings
    11% above category average
    SketchUp
    -
    Ratings
    Plan distribution & viewing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Plan markups & sharing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Issue tracking & punchlists8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Photo documentation9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Jobsite reports8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document sharing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    RFI tools8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Collaboration & approvals9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    As-built drawings9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile app7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Submittal design and management8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Estimating
    Comparison of Estimating features of Pipeline Suite and SketchUp
    Feature
    Pipeline Suite
    8.2
    1 Ratings
    8% above category average
    SketchUp
    -
    Ratings
    Takeoff tools8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Job costing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost databases8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost calculator8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Bid creation8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Small Businesses
    CMiC Construction Platform
    Score7.5 out of 10
    Autodesk Maya
    Score8.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Autodesk Build
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Navisworks
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Revit
    Score8.9 out of 10
    Navisworks
    Score9.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.0
    (47 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.5
    (14 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Pipeline SuiteSketchUp
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Pipeline Suite
    Pipeline Suite is a very niche product, but for anyone who has ever dealt with the construction bidding process, you can understand the need for it. With Pipeline Suite, it is so easy to request bids, share documents and plans, and coordinate schedules for submittals. We are able to prequalify sub contractors and vendors at a faster pace as well with the product
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    SketchUp is great for individually studying options for building design. It is an awesome conceptual tool to be able to quickly model and manipulate a building to study different designs. It is not good for complex geometries, especially curves. Surfaces have a hard time registering and cutting into one another. It also eventually needs to go into Revit to be more realistic as it is not good as a documentation tool
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Pipeline Suite
    • Sharing documents and plans with project stakeholders is a piece of cake.
    • The product makes tracking the status of bids so much easier.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • Quickly exploring solutions in 3D: We get a lot of "what if" and "what would that look like" questions. While hand-sketching and hand-drafting can be fairly quick, SketchUp allows me to quickly create 3D and 2D views of a detail or solution, change dimensions and materials in a flash, and show a client or installer the plan in minutes.
    • Creating professional design documents in LayOut: Projects of any scale need good documentation. Using a combination of SketchUp and LayOut, I can create a Design Intent Set, plans for permitting, a set for mechanical trades to mark-up, etc. Having clear, appropriately-scaled drawings with dimensions or notations is a must, and we don't always have the time or budget to get an architect involved!
    • Using live files to guide discussions: Not all clients are "visual" people, so opening their model and orbiting around their space in real time has been extremely helpful. Clients and trades enjoy the perspective views so much that we often include them in the full-sized drawing sets to give a good "overall" view of the project intent. For complex or tight spaces, sometimes un-rendered plans and elevations just aren't enough!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Pipeline Suite
    • The onboarding process was difficult for us just because we had some pretty disorganized databases.
    • The product is pricey for small to medium sized firms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • Ability to import Revit files and libraries.
    • Ability to export true curved vector linework. There are some workarounds, needs to be refined.
    • Create an OPEN MAPS connection. Since the split from Google, the source for high-quality aerials is limited.
    • Ability to dock all menus to the master window on a Mac
    • Ability to develop dockable menu trays on a Mac
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Pipeline Suite
    No answers on this topic
    Trimble
    We typically wait a few years in between renewing, as even older versions are powerful tools for modeling, and we make sure the amount of feature changes are worth the re-investment.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Pipeline Suite
    No answers on this topic
    Trimble
    It is very user friendly and easy to learn. It's simplicity allows for a low learning curve so more people can learn it faster. The downside is that most schools are no longer teaching it, so many younger professionals come out of school not knowing it and knowing more complex software and they have a hard time "dumbing down" their skillsets
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Pipeline Suite
    I have found that the customer support team has an understanding of the construction bidding process. They have been able to see issues through our eyes, so to speak, not just through the eyes of a software company. They have always been very timely in their responses and seem to go above and beyond to solve issues
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    Sketchup is so intuitive; I can't recall ever looking for official support. However, there are many user forums online that can answer more questions. The usefulness of the online forums is, however, tempered by the fact that there have been many versions of the software under different ownership and support regimes, and thus finding the right information for the right version of the software can be a challenge.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Pipeline Suite
    I don't have a lot of personal experience with SmartBid, but from what I hear from other colleagues, Pipeline Suite makes it easier for subcontractors to access documents/plans and to respond to bids. The interface and design of Pipeline Suite is more modern and the user experience is a major upgrade from SmartBid
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    We have not evaluated any other competing software to this one. I heard about this software from a friend who teaches how to use it. She showed me in just a few minutes and I was HOOKED. I saw immediately the possible help it would be to my business. Thank you.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Pipeline Suite
    • We have been able to respond to more bids using Pipeline Suite.
    • Our proposals are more accurate and organized, which has made our projects come under budget more often.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • It's good in the sense that you can quickly make a drawing and speeds up the design process. Not sure how to quantify that from a ROI perspective.
    • Also, good for editing an image after the fact. We can easily add a dimension that was forgotten in the original image.
    • Allows team members to understand a design easier than on other software platforms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots