Takeoff

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Counting and measuring everything a job needs from the plans or the site: the material list behind the price.

A takeoff is the list of quantities: squares of shingles, sheets of drywall, feet of fence, yards of concrete. It comes from measuring the site or reading the drawings, and it is the foundation of an accurate bid. A takeoff that is ten percent short is a job that loses money.

The material calculators on this site do the arithmetic for the common ones. The measuring is still yours.

Related: Bid · Square (roofing) · Linear foot · Cubic yard

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