Before purchasing B2W Estimate in 1999, C.S. McCrossan was using spreadsheets for estimating and bidding, and a lot of estimators were doing bids by hand. The company knew that a standardized system was needed to get everyone on the same page. The company had previously used StreetSmarts reports, printed and filled out by project managers, with paper time cards to manage their field tracking needs. This process had its share of problems, from the risk of costly errors to the lack of timely data reported.

Dallas 1 Construction and Development, a company providing a wide range of utility and sitework services in the greater Tampa, Florida area, was looking for a more efficient and unified way to manage their estimating and field tracking processes. They had been using B2W Estimate for over a decade but were still relying on a spreadsheet-based system for field tracking and analysis. The company wanted to take their field tracking and analysis to a higher, unified level. They also wanted a system that was easy to use and intuitive, with a low learning curve and the ability to bring new employees up to speed quickly.

The DDS Companies had been a long-time client of B2W Software, utilizing Estimate to ensure their bids are accurate and efficient. However, as the company grew in size, scope of construction and engineering services, geographic coverage, and utilization of B2W Estimate features, the need to simplify the process of preparing bids became more pressing. The company's founder, Sean Donohoe, had been using his own privately developed spreadsheets to prepare bids, but this method was becoming increasingly cumbersome and inefficient.

Gerber Construction, a Utah-based concrete construction specialist, was facing challenges with its estimating and bidding process. The company was seeking a solution that would enhance profitability through more efficient and accurate estimating and bidding. After evaluating Timberline, Gerber Construction thought it had made a decision, but then decided to give B2W Software a shot. The company was immediately impressed by the fact that B2W Estimate is optimized for multiple users, allowing any number of estimators to work on the same estimate at the same time with no performance degradation—a major benefit for a large company.

Hoffman Bros., Inc., a leading excavation company in Michigan, was facing challenges with tracking costs in the field. The company, which employs over 100 construction professionals and operates over 100 pieces of equipment, was using a combination of manual forms and custom Excel spreadsheets for field tracking. This system had been in place for decades, making the collection and interpretation of data time-consuming and inaccurate. The company needed a new solution that would save time, reduce the potential for errors, and eliminate redundant data entry by field supervisors and accounting personnel.

James D. Morrissey, a family-owned construction company, was facing challenges in real-time field tracking. The majority of their work volume comes from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (DOT), which pays based on quantities completed, as measured by the state’s engineers. Without an effective tool, field supervision often found themselves unable to confirm or dispute the state’s calculations until they received payment. This lack of real-time tracking and confirmation was a significant challenge for the company.

Joseph McCormick Construction, a highway construction specialist, was facing challenges with their existing tools for creating bids. They were using Excel spreadsheets and homemade calculations, but as the volume of work and complexity of jobs increased, these tools were proving to be inadequate. They needed better tools to organize their estimates and bid more efficiently. Additionally, they were relying on an accounting system for analysis of field data, which was causing delays and constraints. They needed a system that could measure job progress and budgets in real time, rather than one or two weeks later when the information made it to the accounting reports and it was too late to respond.

KPM Industries, a leading supplier of street, parking lot, and highway construction services in Southern Ontario, was facing challenges with its in-house spreadsheet-based system for field tracking and analysis. The system was difficult to support, and reporting was always an issue. The company needed a solution that could provide real-time job performance data to senior management and operations personnel. The existing system was also paper-based, which made data entry and report generation inefficient.

Prior to 2007, Landmark Construction Company was using Hard Dollar to manage their estimating and bidding process. However, they felt that the company had a lack of commitment to the product. The company decided it was time for a change, and began searching for a robust, flexible solution that would standardize their work across the enterprise. They were looking for a solution that was easy to learn and could help them increase their bid output.

Pace Construction, a company based in St. Louis providing heavy highway, bridge, and asphalt services, was previously using Hard Dollar (now InEight) to estimate and bid their jobs. However, they were unsatisfied with the system for a number of reasons. The system was described as 'overkill' with many extraneous packages that were not needed, and features like custom reports, which were needed, were not included. The implementation of user suggestions was slow, and there was no way to access information if they decided to switch to another estimating system.

As Palmer Construction Group expanded, the need to standardize their estimating and operations became apparent. They had tried several solutions, including Lotus and Excel spreadsheets, and a program called Chief Estimator. However, these solutions were not up-to-date and lacked a centralized database. The company needed a solution that could manage all of their job logistics in a streamlined and efficient way, and one that could grow with them and remain on the cutting edge of technology.

Pomerleau, a large-scale infrastructure and construction company, was in search of an estimating and bidding software solution that would meet its requirements. The company needed a robust solution with advanced features to standardize the estimating and bidding process across the enterprise. A particular challenge was a complex project in the Montreal area consisting of the demolition and reconstruction of a bridge. The main difficulty in this project was the soil conditions, including underwater soil consolidation, large caissons, and an abutment directly on a very steep-angle rock surface.

R.D. Johnson Excavating Company, based in Lawrence, Kansas, was facing challenges with their traditional pencil and paper method of estimating projects. The company specializes in excavating, grading, paving, utilities, and materials. The manual method of estimating was not efficient and lacked strategic planning. The company was looking for a solution that could streamline their bidding process, especially for repetitive bids such as utility work and street work projects. The company also wanted a solution that could handle large scale projects with ease and keep track of each item that they bid.

C.A. Hull, a company specializing in full-service bridge construction and rehabilitation, was in search of an effective, streamlined software solution for its estimating and operations processes. The company wanted to move away from paper-based processes and adopt a more efficient system. The challenge was to find a solution that would be embraced by the employees and would improve the efficiency of their operations.

Romero General Construction was in need of a software package that would provide a centralized database to compartmentalize their resources and keep them organized. They were looking for a solution that would standardize the estimating and bidding process, keeping all of their estimators on the same page and eliminating the risk of errors. The company also wanted to save time and money by updating a specific part of the bid globally. Furthermore, they were looking to streamline their field tracking and analysis operations. Previously, reports were filled out by foremen in the field and faxed into the office, requiring someone to transcribe the report and enter it into the accounting system.

EPC Services Company, a subsidiary of Electrical Consultants Inc., provides turnkey engineering, procurement, and construction management services for utility and power delivery projects throughout North America. The company typically works on three to five bids in any given week, with projects ranging in value up to $30 million. However, the company was facing challenges with its spreadsheet-based estimating system. The inability for multiple people to work on the same estimate at the same time was a major liability, especially for a company that operates out of several locations and on projects nationwide. The pressure to produce accurate bids in less time was also increasing, with project owners demanding bids in seven to ten days, compared to the three weeks EPC typically had in the past.

Minger Construction, a Minnesota-based company, was seeking to improve its safety, quality, and efficiency. The company had been using B2W Estimate and added unified elements from the ONE Platform to manage field tracking and analysis as well as resource scheduling and dispatching. However, they needed a solution to collect safety information more effectively and efficiently in the field and to get it to the office faster. They also wanted to be able to generate reports easily without the tedious, manual effort and sorting through papers that was required in the past.

Emil Anderson Construction, a company based in British Columbia, Canada, was facing challenges with their self-built solutions for estimating and field tracking. With the volume and complexity of work increasing, the limitations of their existing systems were becoming more apparent. They recognized the need for specialized applications and a unified solution. The company was also struggling with cohesive, coordinated estimating across several sites in British Columbia. Having multiple people work simultaneously on an estimate was impossible with the spreadsheet-based system. Incorporating input from estimators in different locations and keeping everything up to date was also a big challenge.

W.L. French Excavating Corporation, a family-owned company with 150 employees, was initially focused strictly on field operations, not software and computers. As the company grew and evolved, they realized the importance of technology in their success. They faced internal resistance, particularly from field and maintenance employees loyal to familiar, manual systems. The maintenance team relied on paper-based processes and whiteboards to manage more than 200 pieces of heavy equipment. Maintenance of equipment accounts for a significant percentage of their annual operating budget, and they saw a big opportunity to impact profitability through process improvement.

The Utah Valley University construction management program regularly participates in competitions to enhance the educational experience of its students. One such competition is the Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) competition, which is considered a must-attend event for students pursuing a degree in the field. In this competition, industry leaders offer active projects for students to solve. However, the students faced challenges in estimating and bidding on these projects due to the lack of effective tools. They had to rely on a combination of loosely integrated tools, including Excel, to estimate project costs. This approach limited their visibility into the overall project goals and hindered their ability to advance past the preliminary competitions.

Wave Broadband, a provider of high-speed internet, video, and phone services in Washington, Oregon, and California, was facing challenges with their existing estimating and bidding process. They were using Excel workbooks developed in-house, which made extracting data for reporting a labor-intensive process, requiring a lot of redundant data entry work. The company's clients range from residential and apartment complexes to businesses, hospitals, and universities, with cell service providers accounting for a large portion of the work. While some of the projects are small, estimates for large networks for these cell carriers can be very large and complex, adding to the complexity of the process.

Don Pearson, a veteran in the estimating and operations field, started his own company, Tenex Contractors, in 2021. The company, based in Burlington, Wisconsin, performs grading, excavation, and road construction work across the southern part of the state. Pearson had previously used B2W heavy construction estimating software for close to two decades, helping him produce up to 1,200 bids a year as chief estimator for a $200 million company. With his new company, Pearson faced the challenge of maintaining the same level of speed, accuracy, and consistency in bidding, but on a smaller scale.

The University of Washington's Civil and Environmental Engineering program aims to prepare its students for real-world construction-related professions. A significant part of this preparation involves familiarizing students with actual tools used extensively in heavy construction, such as the B2W Estimating Software. The challenge lies in effectively integrating this software into the curriculum and ensuring that students gain valuable experience with it. The university also aims to expose students to the estimating concepts and workflows behind the tool.