Estima Plan

Project Planning
Toolkit

Before you price a project, scope it properly. Work through the budget math, a five-step scoping wizard, per-project checklists, and a feasibility check — all before you touch the estimator.

✅ Pre-construction checklists 🧮 Budget calculator 📐 Scoping wizard 🪧 Feasibility scorecard

Start here

The three phases of planning

Every project — from a boundary wall to a commercial building — moves through the same three planning phases before ground is broken. Skipping one is the single biggest cause of cost overruns and disputes later.

PHASE 1

Scope & Site

  • Define project type, size, and quality level
  • Confirm land ownership / boundary survey
  • Check soil condition — flag if geotechnical testing is needed
  • Note site access, terrain, and utility availability
PHASE 2

Budget & Approvals

  • Get a preliminary cost range (Estima Estimator)
  • Add design fees, permits, and utility connection costs
  • Set an owner's contingency — 10–20% on top of the estimate
  • Confirm financing before committing to a contractor
PHASE 3

Procure & Mobilise

  • Freeze drawings before mobilisation — avoid scope creep
  • Bulk-procure volatile materials (steel, cement) early
  • Line up contractors/subcontractors with programme obligations
  • Move into execution — track it in EstimaOS

Interactive

Planning tools

Five tools, one flow: size the full budget, scope the project, track your documents, sanity-check the site, and compare scenarios once you've run a few. Everything below is saved on this device — nothing is uploaded.

Budget calculator

Construction cost is only the core of the budget. This adds the fees, permits, utilities, contingency and tax that sit on top of it.

Applies across the calculator, saved scenarios, and the estimator handoff
From your last Estima estimate, or entered manually
Estimated total project budget
—

Pre-estimate scoping wizard

Five short steps. Finish it and we'll hand the details straight to the estimator so you don't retype anything.

1. What are you building?

2. Size and quality level

Economy
Standard
Premium

3. Site conditions

Yes
Planned
Not yet
Flat
Gentle slope
Steep / unstable

4. Location and timeline

5. Review

Document checklist

Pick a project type. Progress is saved on this device, so you can leave and come back.

0%

Site feasibility scorecard

Eight quick questions. This is a directional risk read, not a substitute for a survey or geotechnical report.

Saved scenarios

Scenarios saved from the budget calculator, side by side.

Reference

Plan by project type

Each project type has its own scoping questions. Read the relevant guide before you estimate — it takes ten minutes and can save weeks of rework.

🏠
House Construction
Bedrooms, floors, quality level, and soil condition — the inputs that actually move the number.
Plan a house →
🏢
Commercial Building
Shell & core vs fit-out scope, floor count, and facade grade decisions.
Plan a commercial build →
🏗️
Foundation Works
Why soil investigation should happen before, not after, you commit to a foundation type.
Plan foundations →
🛣️
Road Construction
Width, surface type, and drainage decisions that drive per-metre cost.
Plan a road →
⚡
Electrical Works
Load type and phase requirements — get these wrong and the whole design shifts.
Plan electrical works →
🔌
Power Transmission
Route survey, way-leave, and voltage-level decisions before design starts.
Plan a transmission line →
🪨
Retaining Wall
Terrain and surcharge loading questions that determine wall type and height.
Plan a retaining wall →
🧱
Boundary Wall
Length, height, and gate count — plus the survey step people skip.
Plan a boundary wall →
🔧
Renovation
Scope definition — cosmetic vs structural — and why building age changes everything.
Plan a renovation →

Scoped your project? Get the number.

Once you know what you're building, Estima's estimator turns it into a full BOQ, materials list, labour breakdown, and PDF report.

Start Your Estimate →