Makeoff builds the gear list from the drawings and checks every vendor quote against it, unit by unit.
+8
units on the drawings that a real Siemens switchgear quote left out
The check every gear quote needs
A quote missing a 112.5 kVA transformer becomes a change order in the field.
Switchgear is the largest single purchase on most commercial electrical bids, and it gets bought on distributor quotes. Before a quote goes into the bid, someone has to confirm it carries every unit the drawings call for, at the rating the drawings state.
Leveling catches the gap before bid day, but only against a gear list built from the drawings. That list is the estimator's first pass on every bid, and it is the pass that gets squeezed when six bids are due in a week.
How it works
Upload the drawings and the gear quotes. Makeoff reads the one-line, risers, panel schedules and spec, then builds the gear list with every designation and rating.
Then it checks every quote against that one list. Missing units, rating mismatches and units pushed back to you in the fine print each get their own line.
Leveling in practice
Mineola, NY · Siemens quote
+8
units on the drawings the Siemens quote left out
28
quoted units, all found
What the check turned up
3 apartment load-center types, which the quote's notes left to the contractor
Kitchen panel K1 / K21: 600A on the riser, 800A on the switchboard schedule, and the quote priced 800A
The rest of the eight are itemized in the benchmark paper.
South San Francisco, CA · ABB quote
+1
unit on the drawings the ABB quote left out
30
quoted units, all matched
What the check turned up
1 unit on the drawings that the ABB quote did not carry
Transformers T-1 through T-4, each tied to the panel it feeds on the one-line
The missing unit is itemized in the benchmark paper.
Across all 32 projects in the benchmark, 16 units drawn on the plans were missing from the estimate: apartment load centers, panel-mounted surge devices, a scheduled 60A panel, two service switchboard sections and a 22 kW generator at a pool house. Every one is a question a leveled quote should have answered.
The benchmark
97%
of the gear the estimator found, Makeoff found too
88%
of Makeoff's list matched the estimator's list
99%
found once an estimator checked the 11 disagreements
These numbers come from the Takeoff Agreement Benchmark: 32 real projects from 13 contractors, each checked against the estimator's own takeoff, with nothing curated. Every disagreement is printed in the paper with its cause.
Read the paperBooth 7430 · Oct 4–7, 2026
Upload a plan set and the gear quotes that came back on it.
Or reply to the announcement email and Will will run it for you.
Book a time at Booth 7430
Oct 4–7
