Using the Units tab in an Estimate
Ediphi's cloud infrastructure enables users to transition effortlessly from Use Groups to Unit Mix to Systems. This foundation allows for the easy retrieval of past scopes, facilitating the rapid creation of detailed estimates—even with sparse client details. We believe this accelerates the decision making process and shortens the time spent in preconstruction.
In this article
Unit Mix
The philosophy of data accessibility extends to Unit Mix. A unit mix describes the composition of the various repeating units in an estimate, like the number of one-bedroom one-bathroom units in a condo. This concept applies to any type of repeating units based on the project type. For instance, in school construction, classrooms might be your unit mix, whereas in hospital projects, exam rooms might recur. The unit mix and its related quantity take-off can be tailored based on your project type and saved in your cloud database.
Let's look at an example. In our dormitory test project we have pre-loaded four types of units: an RA suite, a Single bed, a suite with two (2) Single bedrooms, and a suite with four (4) Single bedrooms:
The Unit Mix allows us to view the unit specs like Area, so in this example our RA suite has an average area of 593 sf, the Single unit has 396 sf, and so on. We can also specify how many Beds, Bathrooms, and 1/2 Baths each unit has:
The Unit Mix also allows us to plug in the quantity of those types of units on each floor where they appear:
At the bottom of the page, the Unit Mix totals our Net Area, Unit Counts, Cost per Unit, and it gives us the Total Cost of Units of every single one of these rooms, as well as the total amount of Bedrooms in each.
Adding a Unit
You can always add a new unit by going to the top left of the Unit Mix, and clicking on the + sign:
A pop-up will appear, allowing you to select multiple units that have already been added to the database by an admin. You can select the unit (or units) you would like to add, then click Add Selected Units.
You'll notice that there is a pre-loaded area, but this can always be edited as applicable. After it’s been added to the Unit Mix, all that’s left is for you to specify how many times it appears on each floor.
Duplicating a Unit
If you'd like to duplicate any of the unit types you’ve added under your Unit Mix, you can do so by clicking on the duplicate button above the specific unit:
A pop-up will appear asking you to choose the Use Group you'd like to add this unit to. Please make sure to select the correct Use Group, then click "Duplicate".
A copy of that unit will appear in your Unit Mix. Everything will copy over in terms of geometry, however you will need to plug in the total quantity on every floor for the duplicate unit.
Deleting a Unit
To delete a unit under Unit Mix, simply click on the X button located above the specific unit you want to remove.
The platform will bring a pop-up asking you to confirm you want to delete that unit type. Click "Confirm".
Quantity Take-off
The next step in using the Units tab is by understanding how to use the Quantity Take-off section. Each one of these rooms has their own set of finishes. When we go to Quantity Take-off, you’ll notice that we can use quantity formulas the same way that we would on the Line Items tab, the Reports tab, the Rooms tab, or any of the other areas in Ediphi where quantity formulas are useful.
You can also add new line items from here by going up to the top left of your screen and clicking on the + button:
A pop-up will appear allowing you to select any line item from your UPC. You can click on the blue checkbox to add the wanted line item:
To duplicate or delete a line item within Quantity Take-off, you can right-click on the line item, and a dropdown will appear allowing you to choose one of those options:
Another useful tip for Quantity Take-off is understanding the different ways that you can calculate interior partitions. You’ll see in our example project that we have a handful of wall types; we have Blocking Allowance, Wood Base, etc.:
The reason why these wall types live inside Quantity Take-off is because there is a specified amount of Blocking Allowance and Wood Base in each of these units that is typical to that specific unit type. If we were to change the geometry of the building at all, or go through design iterations but keep the same standardized shape of each unit, it’s advantageous for us to track that quantity of wall within the Quantity Take-off, so that no matter how many units we decide to include in our estimate, the quantity of interior walls will always be captured.
Common Walls
Another location where you can track the total amount of walls is under the Common Walls tab.
This is a really useful section of the page because it allows us to track all of the walls for the entire building in one place. This is particularly useful when we think about walls that are shared between two rooms.
Rather than counting those walls within our Quantity Take-off on a unit-by-unit basis, or in our Rooms tab on a room-by-room basis, this allows us to avoid double-counting walls that are shared by two rooms or two units, and automatically calculates the square footage based on a takeoff of lineal feet, multiplied by the height of that floor.
You can always add a new wall type by going to the top left of Common Walls and hitting the + sign.
A pop-up will appear allowing you to select any line item from your UPC. You can click on the blue checkbox to add the wanted line item.
Area Check
Another useful feature for the Units tab within Ediphi is the Area Check. The Area Check allows us to view the Net Area and the Efficiency of a given floor, which is particularly helpful when communicating to a client how well used the space is per floor.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact our support team and we'll be happy to help!