Whether you are building new rail or maintaining an existing network, preparing accurate and transparent estimates is not an easy task. Rail projects involve many different disciplines including civil works, track work, tunnels, bridges, structures, signalling and ICT. Organisations involved in rail projects need an estimating system that is adaptable to many disciplines, and also one that ensures that your estimates contain sufficient detail and transparency.
Our estimating solutions are also developed on the award winning Microsoft .NET platform and support two of the world’s leading database systems – Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle. This means maximum performance for your end users and also ensures that your rail estimates are stored in a robust and secure manner.
Your Item Library is a key repository for your corporate knowledge. It stores your list of standard services (or WBS items) with their rates and rate buildups in one central database. Each Item can contain a build up of Resources and can also include standard production rates, and key assumptions. Each Item can also contain Variables which ensures that estimates can be produced using parametric estimating techniques. Benchmark’s Item Library helps you to maintain your Item Rates/business intelligence in a structured and secure manner, helping you to achieve consistency and accuracy across your organisation. The Item Library, as with all Libraries in Benchmark, has access privileges so only authorised users can update rates.
If you undertake a rail project or projects that traverse different Regions where cost of Resources or construction methods vary, Regionalisation could be very valuable to you. The Regionalisation feature gives you the ability to set differing prices for the same Resource in your Resource Library. You can also ‘regionalise’ most of Benchmark Estimating Software’s other Libraries and set permissions so that users only see the data that is relevant to them. When estimating, the price used for a Project is automatically based on where the Project is being constructed. The process for the estimator is unchanged, the power of Regionalisation lies in the way in which our software manages your database of regionalised rates. This ensures greater cost control and consistency, more efficient administration of data and better business reporting.
Benchmark Estimating Software allows you to price large Projects that have multiple sites with similar operations, such as rail line maintenance projects using our Power Routines. By automating these large project estimates, you can build your estimate in just seconds saving you time and giving you more cost efficient estimating processes within your organisation.
The Subcontractor Manager within Benchmark Estimating Software allows you to import quotations from Subcontractors and Suppliers electronically to save time and increase accuracy. You can compare quotes on your screen and automatically update your rail estimate with your selected Subcontractor or Supplier’s price.
Three Point Estimating (TPE) is an add-on for Benchmark Estimating Software and is designed for authorities responsible for delivering large or complex capital works projects and programmes. Using cutting-edge three point estimating techniques and Monte-Carlo simulation, Benchmark Estimating Software’s TPE feature provides you with a clearer and more accurate picture of the potential price variations for capital projects and programmes.
“This training helped us to understand all the features and benefits of Benchmark Estimating Software. We are very excited to start using the software, so we can generate faster and more consistent estimates for our railway infrastructure projects.”
“I recently used Benchmark Estimating Software on complex rail project in Newcastle, NSW Australia. I was amazed at the ease with which I could adjust my standard items, stored within the Benchmark item library, to match the production rates and crew sizes required for this unique project. The flexibility and power of Benchmark allowed more time to focus on getting the price right and less time on the “mechanics” of building up the rates. I strongly recommend Benchmark for estimators in the rail industry.”