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Cost Plan Management

Cost plans enable linking BIM elements to cost structures for quantity takeoff and cost estimation.

Understanding Cost Plans

A cost plan consists of:

  • Cost Items - Line items with quantities and rates
  • Cost Assignments - Links between elements and cost items
  • Formulas - Calculations for quantities
  • Snapshots - Point-in-time cost captures

Creating a Cost Plan

  1. Navigate to Cost Plans in admin
  2. Click Create New
  3. Enter plan details:
  4. Name - Plan identifier
  5. Project - Associated project
  6. Description - Plan purpose
  7. Base Date - Cost base date
  8. Click Save

Cost Items

Cost Item Structure

Cost items are organized hierarchically:

1.0 Structural
├── 1.1 Foundations
│   ├── 1.1.1 Concrete foundations
│   └── 1.1.2 Pile foundations
├── 1.2 Superstructure
│   ├── 1.2.1 Columns
│   └── 1.2.2 Beams
└── 1.3 Roof structure

Screenshot Placeholder

TODO: Add screenshot of cost plan structure

Cost Plan Structure Placeholder

Cost plan management interface showing hierarchical cost item tree with codes, names, units, rates, quantities, and totals

Creating Cost Items

  1. Go to Cost Plan → Items
  2. Click Add Item
  3. Enter details:
  4. Code - Item code
  5. Name - Description
  6. Unit - Measurement unit
  7. Rate - Cost per unit
  8. Set parent item if applicable
  9. Save

Cost Item Properties

Property Description
Code Unique identifier
Name Item description
Unit m², m³, kg, etc.
Rate Cost per unit
Quantity Calculated/manual
Total Rate × Quantity

Cost Assignments

Assign Elements to Cost Items

  1. Select elements to assign
  2. Go to Cost Assignments
  3. Select target cost item
  4. Configure quantity source:
  5. Property - From element property
  6. Formula - Calculated value
  7. Manual - Direct entry
  8. Apply assignment

View Assignments

See which elements contribute to a cost item:

  1. Select cost item
  2. View Assigned Elements tab
  3. See individual quantities

Modify Assignments

  1. Find assignment in list
  2. Edit quantity source or value
  3. Save changes

Formulas

Quantity Formulas

Define calculations for quantities:

# Example: Wall area formula
element.property("Length") * element.property("Height")

# Example: With deductions
element.area - element.openings_area

Creating Formulas

  1. Go to Cost Plan → Formulas
  2. Click Add Formula
  3. Define formula:
  4. Name and description
  5. Formula expression
  6. Target properties
  7. Test formula
  8. Save

Formula Variables

Available variables in formulas:

Variable Description
element Current element
@project.name Project variable
@cost_plan.rate Cost plan value

Snapshots

Creating Snapshots

Capture cost state at a point in time:

  1. Go to Cost Plan → Snapshots
  2. Click Create Snapshot
  3. Enter snapshot name and notes
  4. Click Create

Comparing Snapshots

Compare costs between snapshots:

  1. Select two snapshots
  2. Click Compare
  3. View differences:
  4. Added items
  5. Removed items
  6. Changed quantities
  7. Cost variance

Snapshot Reports

Generate reports from snapshots:

  • Cost summary
  • Detailed breakdown
  • Variance analysis
  • Export to Excel

Cost Reports

Available Reports

Report Description
Summary Total costs by category
Detail Line item breakdown
Element Costs by element
Variance Change analysis

Generating Reports

  1. Go to Cost Plan → Reports
  2. Select report type
  3. Configure parameters
  4. Generate and export

Best Practices

  1. Structure early - Set up cost structure before assignments
  2. Use formulas - Automate quantity calculations
  3. Regular snapshots - Track cost evolution
  4. Review assignments - Verify element mappings
  5. Document changes - Notes on modifications