"Saved me 25 hours on a 60-page commercial mechanical set. Equipment schedules extracted correctly — RTUs, AHUs, VAV boxes. Ductwork footage was within 3% of my manual check."
Commercial HVAC Estimating. Ductwork, Equipment, Diffusers. About 15 Minutes.
Upload your commercial mechanical plan set. Get ductwork footage by size, equipment schedules with tonnage and CFM, diffuser counts by zone, refrigerant piping, and VAV system counts — organized for Accubid, ConEst, or FastDuct.
Ductwork, equipment, diffusers — commercial projects
AI extracts every circuit, outlet, and fixture from your PDF plans in minutes
Get complete ductwork measurements, equipment schedules, and diffuser counts ready for bidding
Fixture counts, pipe sizing, and valve schedules extracted from your plumbing drawings
Export to Excel, CSV, or JSON - ready to import into your estimating software
What Commercial HVAC Estimating Includes
Commercial mechanical plan sets include HVAC ductwork plans, equipment schedules, riser diagrams, and piping plans. TakeoffBuilder reads all sheets together — extracting ductwork footage, equipment specs, diffuser counts, and piping quantities in one output.
- HVAC plans: ductwork footage by size, supply/return/exhaust separated
- Equipment schedules: RTUs, AHUs, FCUs, VAVs with tonnage and CFM
- Piping plans: refrigerant line sets, hydronic piping by size
Ductwork, equipment schedules, diffusers — all counted
What Commercial HVAC Estimating Delivers
AI extracts ductwork footage, equipment schedules, diffuser counts, and piping quantities from your commercial mechanical plans.
RTUs, AHUs, FCUs, VAVs with tonnage and CFM
Commercial Equipment Schedules
RTUs, AHUs, FCUs, and VAV boxes extracted from equipment schedules with tonnage, CFM, and model requirements. Location tags cross-referenced to plan symbols. Multi-zone and multi-floor commercial systems handled.
- RTUs: tonnage, CFM, electrical requirements by unit
- AHUs and FCUs: airflow, static pressure, coil configuration
- VAV boxes: max/min CFM, zone assignments, reheat coils
Supply, return, exhaust — by size and gauge
Commercial Ductwork Takeoff
Rectangular, round, and oval ductwork by linear foot, separated by size and gauge. Supply, return, and exhaust duct counted separately. Fittings (elbows, tees, reducers, offsets) counted by type.
- Rectangular duct: linear footage by size and gauge (26 ga, 24 ga)
- Round and spiral duct by diameter (6", 8", 10", 12", 14")
- Fittings: elbows, tees, reducers, offsets — by type and size
Supply, return, exhaust — by size and zone
Diffuser & Grille Distribution
Supply diffusers, return grilles, and exhaust grilles counted separately by size and type. 2x2, 2x4, round, linear bar, and specialty diffusers identified. Organized by floor and zone for phased installation.
- Supply diffusers: 2x2, 2x4, round, linear — by size and zone
- Return and transfer grilles by size and type
- Exhaust grilles and toilet room exhaust separated
Commercial HVAC — Specific System Types
Commercial HVAC systems vary by building type — office, retail, healthcare, data center, warehouse. TakeoffBuilder reads the plan type and adjusts for the specific mechanical system in use.
- VAV systems with zone controllers and reheat coils
- Hydronic heating and cooling with chilled/hot water piping
- VRF/VRV systems with indoor and outdoor unit schedules
Why Commercial HVAC Contractors Choose TakeoffBuilder
Built for commercial HVAC contractors bidding 3-8 commercial jobs per week who can't spend 3 days per mechanical takeoff.
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Trade-Specific AI Trained on commercial mechanical plans specifically. Reads ductwork schedules, equipment tables, riser diagrams, and diffuser ceiling plans — not just shapes on a page.
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Review & Adjust Workflow AI delivers initial counts with flagged items for review. You verify flagged items — typically 5-15 minutes. Everything else you trust and export.
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Export to Accubid, ConEst, FastDuct Excel and CSV export organized by ductwork size, equipment type, and diffuser category. Import directly into Accubid, ConEst, or FastDuct. Or price in the Excel — formatted the way those tools expect.
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Pay When You Use It No monthly subscription. Buy credits when you need them — they never expire. Sign up free to see a live example takeoff.
Export to Accubid, ConEst, FastDuct, or Excel
Commercial HVAC Contractors Who Use It
Mechanical estimators on commercial projects who needed ductwork and equipment counts faster.
"The equipment schedule extraction is spot-on. I verify the counts and adjust any field conditions. Saves me 20+ hours per commercial mechanical project."
"We can bid way more jobs now. The tool gives the baseline counts, I review and adjust, export to Accubid. Total time under an hour."
"Use it to verify sub bids. Caught a 20% undercount on a recent electrical sub package. Paid for a month of credits on that one catch. Now I run every sub bid through it before signing."
"Sprinkler layouts are complex — density zones, obstruction calcs, riser diagrams. The AI catches head counts and pipe footage I'd need hours to verify manually. Especially useful on large commercial projects."
"No subscription is the key for me. I pay credits when I bid, not monthly whether I use it or not. Slow months cost me nothing. Busy months I load up credits at the 10-pack rate and save 25%."
Commercial HVAC Estimating — Questions
What commercial HVAC contractors ask about AI-assisted mechanical takeoffs.
Will it catch everything, or will I miss items?
Accuracy runs 95%+ on standard commercial drawings. Anything the AI isn't confident about gets flagged — with the exact page and location. You review flagged items manually. Most contractors find the spot-check takes 5-10 minutes and catches less than 5% edge cases.
- 95%+ accuracy on standard commercial plans
- Flagged items show exact page and location for manual review
What if my plans are old, scanned, or hand-drawn?
We've processed 47-page scanned permit sets, faded drawings from the 80s, and hand-drawn TI plans. Accuracy may be slightly lower on degraded scans — the AI flags anything it's uncertain about rather than guessing. You get honest results, not inflated claims.
- Works on scanned, hand-drawn, and CAD exports
- Lower confidence items flagged, not silently guessed
How long does it actually take?
About 15 minutes for a typical 30-page commercial set. Larger plan sets — 80-100 pages — run 25-40 minutes. You'll get an email when results are ready. Upload before lunch, have counts before you leave the office.
- 30 pages: ~15 minutes
- Email notification when complete — no waiting at the screen
What exactly do I get back?
An Excel spreadsheet (or CSV) organized by trade category — circuits, devices, wire footage by gauge, conduit runs with sizing. The same format you'd hand to a supplier or import into your estimating software. Plus a flagged items list with page references.
- Excel, CSV, or JSON — your choice
- Organized by category, ready to import or price
How do I get started?
Create a free account with one Google click and we’ll show you a real commercial plan set alongside the AI-generated takeoff from it. See the output format, accuracy, and how flagged items work — before uploading any of your own plans. No credit card required.
- One Google click — no credit card required
- See a real example plan and takeoff output immediately
Does it export to Accubid, ConEst, or FastDuct?
Yes. Excel (.xlsx) and CSV export organized by ductwork size, equipment type, and diffuser category. Import directly into Accubid, ConEst, or FastDuct. Or price it in the Excel — formatted with category headers the way those tools expect.
- Excel and CSV — import into any HVAC estimating software
- Organized by category for Accubid, ConEst, FastDuct
Visit our complete FAQ page or contact support for specific questions about your projects
Build Your TakeoffSee a Real Commercial HVAC Takeoff Free
Upload any commercial mechanical plan set with a free account. Get ductwork footage, equipment schedules, and diffuser counts in about 15 minutes. No credit card required.
- See a live example takeoff — free when you sign up
- ~15 minutes for a 30-page commercial mechanical set
- Export to Accubid, ConEst, FastDuct, or Excel
~15 minutes. Ductwork, equipment, diffusers.