Do a takeoff

crux measures from the lines in the drawing files, never from a picture or a guess. What it cannot measure (most often a wall height) it asks you. Nothing counts until you approve it on the canvas.

Before you start#

• Onboard the bid first, so crux knows the sheets, the finish schedule and the paint schedule.
• The drawings should be PDF files made by the design software (with real lines). A scanned sheet is only a picture: crux cannot measure it and tells you so. Ask for the PDF drawings, or measure that sheet yourself with Edit by hand.

1. Ask for it#

In the job's chat, ask: "do the takeoff". crux sets up the conditions from the schedules (walls by height band, ceilings, doors and frames, and so on) and starts measuring. For a single quantity, use the Quick takeoff quick action instead.

Open the Takeoff tab to watch. It says Live: crux is working here while crux draws.

2. Confirm the scale#

Each sheet's scale shows in the scale chip at the top left. When crux set a scale from the sheet, the chip turns amber until you check it: open it and click Confirm. A confirmed scale is one of the checks crux runs before the quantities are used.

3. Give the heights#

Walls need a height to become square feet. When the documents do not give one, crux asks you in the chat (or on the Project tab's Needs you card) and the walls stay amber until you answer. crux never assumes a height.

4. Check and approve#

• Shapes crux proposed are dashed. The Approve bar at the bottom says how many are on this sheet.
• Click a shape to see its quantity and how it was measured. Approve or Reject it, or Ask crux to fix this to send crux a note about it in the chat.
• Fix… on the Approve bar asks crux to fix the sheet in chat. Approve N approves every proposed shape on the sheet you are looking at.
• Approved shapes turn solid. Approving in chat does not count; only the canvas approves.

5. Use it#

The Project tab's Takeoff card shows the conditions, measurements and how many are approved. When the takeoff is approved, ask crux to build the estimate. See Build the estimate.

Tip: To draw or change shapes yourself, switch on Edit by hand at the top right of the canvas for the full toolbar.