Tutorial: count an electrical fit-out fast, by symbol
Box one downlight and one power point and every match on the plan is counted for you to check, then place banks of switches with one click each.
Chapters
What you'll learn
- Box one symbol and count every match on the plan
- Pick Strict, Balanced or Loose, and box small symbols tightly
- Review the matches: reject the legend's, approve the rest
- Place banks of switches as ×N stacks, one click each
Each step below has a ▶ time: it plays the video from that step.
The steps
- New project: name it, choose the customer and site, and add the lighting and power plan. Its sheet number, title and scale are read off the drawing. Untick Run AI takeoff when the board opens and click Open board.
- Choose the Count tool (C): with no item picked, the Add Count items panel opens on your Simpro catalogue. Tick the LED downlight, the double GPO and the twin switch, then Add 3 items.
- Zoom in and choose the Symbol tool (S). Drag a box round one clean downlight. In Is this the symbol to count? check the catalogue item it found (search Catalogue, Pre-builds or Templates for another), and under Matching options leave Sensitivity on Balanced. Click Yes — count them on the sheet.
- Every match is listed To review: they don't count until you approve them. The legend's symbol is found too: click its match to see it, then its ✕ (Not this). Then Approve all.
- Do the same for the power points. They're small, so box one tight to its outline: a loose box, or Strict, can miss the ones drawn against the outside walls. Reject the legend's one and approve the rest.
- For a bank of switches, choose the Count tool again and pick the twin switch under In this takeoff, then set × in the options row to 3: one click counts three, shown as ×3 on the plan. Set it to 2 for the next bank, then back to 1. When Turn this into an asset? shows at the top of the plan, click No: a switch isn't one.
- The Sections tab shows each item's count under its section and sheet; 2 Review and price has every line priced from your catalogue.
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