Plumb-EZ's objective is to:

1. Provide a Commercial / Industrial – Plumbing – Piping Estimating Software that every
Mechanical – Plumbing – Piping Estimator,  beginner or advanced,  will find Simplistic
to use,  yet Accurate.

2. Provide a Cost Affordable Software System to both Small and Large businesses.
Plumb-EZ Cost is a savings of as much as 70% or more compared to other plumbing and piping software programs.

3. Include each Necessary System that may be required in a Commercial / Industrial
Plumbing – Piping Estimate. Plumb-EZ incorporates into this software the following
systems for estimate:

Utilities – Plumbing – Med Gas – Heating / Cooling – Industrial Piping – Pipe Insulation – Seismic Bracing.

4. Incorporate into the Software an Auditing System that breaks down every separate
Phase of the estimate to account for all individual costs and labor to:

material $  –  labor hrs. – labor $ – misc. digging $ / welding $.

Plumb-EZ understands that every contractor will be required at some time, to provide an
accounting of their estimate costs and labor hours of their projects. Plumb-EZ’s  Cost
Code Sheet provides a full accounting of each cost and labor hour into each of the 230
separate phases of the estimate, in an EXCEL Format, all in 15 pages.

5. Inclusive in Plumb-EZ Software are Mathematical Formulas that automatically
Count – Calculate – Cost to:

Digging – Pipe Welding – Pipe Hangers.  Pipe Welding is calculated per diameter
inch.  An Example of Pricing Pipe Welding and Cost Calculating is provided within the
program. 

Beginnings

The owner, designer, and builder of Plumb-EZ has been in Commercial and Industrial Plumbing and Piping for more than thirty years. He served a full five year apprenticeship consisting of 10,000 hours on-the-job training and 786 classroom hours in Plumbing, Pipe Fitting, and Pipe Welding. After a five-year apprenticeship, he worked as a Journeyman Plumber / Pipe-Fitter building Schools, Colleges, Medical Facilities, Airports, 5 Power Plants, 4 Computer Chip factories, and others. It was during his journeyman years; he was taught Estimating of Plumbing and Mechanical Piping Systems by three of the most proficient and talented people encountered in his entire career.

He then opened his own Mechanical Contracting business which he owned, managed, and estimated for. He contracted work on Government Military Facilities, City, State, and Federal Government Facilities, Industrial Facilities, Penal Facilities, Medical Facilities, Airports, Schools, and Commercial Retail Centers.

Aside from his Apprenticeship Education, he obtained two Bachelor of Science Degrees; graduating Cum Laude with a 3.735 GPA. One degree is in Systems Management, and one degree in Logistics Systems Management. With the two BS Degrees, he also obtained Professional Certificates in Government Contract Management, Logistics Systems Management, Total Quality Management, and Professional Communications. During his time in college, he took classes in Algebra, Linear Algebra, Statistics, Trigonometry, Geometry, Calculus, Differential Equations, Physics, and Computer Science. In Computer Science, he was given a project to build a computer program that had to physically accomplish something. He built an Excel Program that estimates commercial / industrial plumbing and piping systems.

This was the beginning of “PLUMB-EZ   ESTIMATING   SOFTWARE.”
Plumb-EZ was expanded to meet all of the needs for a full Mechanical Plumbing and Piping Estimate. He demonstrated Plumb-EZ to many of his peers. In every case, he was  told “This is SO EASY to use, compared to other software systems on the market. If you don’t sell this, you are a fool.”  This is where he titled, copyrighted, and incorporated Plumb-EZ as a business.

 

Introduction

Plumb-EZ Software has thirteen SHEETS. Six of the thirteen sheets are used for planning, preparation, and results.  The other seven Sheets (Utilities, Plumbing, Med Gas, Heating/Cooling, Industrial Piping, Pipe Insulation and Seismic Bracing) are used for making self-entries of quantities of materials acquired from material take offs from blue prints for the purpose of acquiring a Total Mechanical Estimate with an Audit Sheet that breaks down  230 Phases/Categories for Totals in: Material Costs, Labor Hours, and Labor Costs.   Digging/Compaction, Pipe Hangers, and Pipe Welding are automatically counted and calculated for costs. Hanger Costs are automatically divided into material and labor. Welding costs are based on diameter and circumference of pipe right down to the fraction of an inch.

Instructional Videos

  1. At purchase of Plumb-EZ-Software, buyer receives 6 Instructional Videos to be used as User Manuals at Start-Up and for Future Reference.

6 Instructional Videos Included:

  1. Introduction
  2. Set Variables
  3. Enter Take Off
  4. Welding & Seismic Bracing
  5. Totals
  6. Open Data Files & Print Preview

Contents of Program

Plumb-EZ is designed to cover every type of Piping System used for:
Utilities – Plumbing – Med Gas – Heating / Cooling – Industrial Piping
The Contents of each System / Sheet are as follows:

1. UTILITIES: Underground Piping Systems to provide outside services to building.

1. Sewer
2. Storm Drain
3. Water Main
4. Water Line
5. Gas

2. PLUMBING: All Sanitary & Commercial Piping Systems & Fixtures inclusive in
Commercial Buildings.

1. Soil Pipe: (BG) Below Grade AND (AG) Above Grade
2. Acid Pipe: (BG) Below Grade AND (AG) Above Grade
3. Roof Drains: (BG) Below Grade AND (AG) Above Grade
4. Cold Water (CW)
5. Hot Water (HW)
6. Hot Water Circulate (HWC)
7. Details: Water Entry AND Water Heater
8. Details
9. Gas Pipe
10. Air Pipe
11. Fixtures
12. Kitchen Equipment
13. Rental Equipment
14. Demolition
15. Concrete
16. Core Drill & Flat Saw
17. Fire Caulk
18. Tests & Inspections

3. MEDICAL GAS PIPING: Lifesaving Gas Piping Systems for Medical facilities.

1. Vacuum ………………………………….. VAC
2. Medical Air ………………………………… AIR
3. Oxygen ………………………………………. OXY
4. Nitrogen ……………………………………. NIT
5. Nitrous Oxide ………………………………. N2O
6. Carbon Dioxide ………………………….. CO2
7. Waste Anesthetic Gas Disposal …………….. WAGD
8. Anesthetic Gas Scavenging System ………. AGS
9. Piping System 1.
10. Piping System 2.
11. Piping System 3.
12. Equipment
13. Rental Equipment
14. Demolition
15. Concrete
16. Core Drill & Flat Saw
17. Fire Caulk
18. Tests & Inspections

4. HEATING / COOLING: All Piping Systems required for Heating & Cooling.

1. Hot Water Supply / Return …………….. (HWS/R)
2. Chill Water Supply / Return …………….. (CHWS/R)
3. Condenser Water Supply / Return ……… (CWS/R)
4. Condensate Drain
5. Steam Piping
6. Condensate Return
7. Details
8. Refrigeration Piping
9. Equipment
10. Rental Equipment
11. Demolition
12. Concrete
13. Core Drill & Flat Saw
14. Fire Caulk
15. Tests & Inspections

5. INDUSTRIAL PIPING: Piping Systems used to convey Gases & Liquids in Industrial Facilities. Plumb-EZ weld pipe goes from ½ inch to 48 inch pipe in all types.

1. Hydraulic Piping
2. Steam Piping
3. Condensate Return
4. Piping Systems 1 – 8: Type of Piping to be labeled by user.
5. Drain Line
6. Pneumatic Piping
7. Equipment
8. Rental Equipment
9. Demolition
10. Concrete
11. Core Drill & Flat Saw
12. Fire Caulk
13. Tests & Inspection

6. PIPE INSULATION: All pipe measurements and pipe fittings entered for estimation in Plumbing, Heating/Cooling and Industrial Piping that may be subject to Insulation Requirements are automatically brought over to Insulation. Enter only the material costs and labor calculator constants in the sections required to be insulated.   

7. SEISMIC BRACING: Seismic Bracing is defined as: “Reinforcement added to a structure to prevent collapse or deformation of building elements as a result of earthquakes.”

Different areas around the world may require Seismic Bracing on mechanical piping systems inside of buildings as defined by local building codes and mechanical / structural engineers.
All piping systems above floor grade require hanger support. The pipe footages from each piping system that have pipes above floor grade, are automatically brought over to Seismic Bracing and placed in their appropriate sections and cells for pricing. The estimator using Plumb-EZ only needs to estimate Seismic Bracing If the specification requirements to a said project call for Seismic Bracing by placing prices in the required cells.
Seismic Brace Spacing is always designed by the Project Mechanical Engineer. This spacing will be identified in the Mechanical Section of the Specifications of the project.
Plumb-EZ offers spacing options for every 20 feet – 30 feet – 40 feet – 50 feet – 60 feet for EVERY Piping System Above Grade requiring Hangers in Plumbing – Heating / Cooling – Medical Gas Piping – Industrial Piping.
For every pipe system above grade, where a pipe footage is entered for pipe footage quantity, Plumb-EZ automatically brings the pipe footage entered in the pipe footage quantity cell over to the Seismic Bracing SHEET and places that footage in the appropriate cells for estimating Seismic Bracing. From there, the estimator enters Seismic Bracing Material Cost AND Labor Factor in the appropriate cells for the Brace Spacing required. This will calculate the cost of Material, Labor Hours, and Labor costs only for the spacing required.

8. ESTIMATE TOTAL SHEET: All totals estimated from entries in: Utilities – Plumbing – Med-Gas – Heating/Cooling – Industrial Piping – Pipe Insulation and Seismic Bracing are automatically brought over to Estimate Total Sheet.

9. COST CODE AUDIT SHEET: This Sheet was inspired by a very unpleasant experience witnessed on a job site. A Project Manager from the mechanical contracting company, doing the project, came out to the job site one day towards the very end of the project. This PM was mad and furious. He was screaming at the General Foreman because the company was losing money on this job. The PM was asking the GF; “Where did all the money go??” The PM was acting very unprofessional and was a Total Failure. It is not the GF’s place to track the money. This is the PM’s job. If the PM had done his job properly from the beginning of the project, he would have had an account, or an audit sheet, for the project that gave him TOTALS for each phase of the project.

WHY ?? WHY did he wait till the end of the job to find out he was losing money?? If he had an audit sheet giving totals to each phase of the job for:

Material $ – Labor Hours – Labor $ – Misc. $

THEN; Maybe,,, the Project Manager could have made adjustments from the beginning of the project to keep the Money Alive,, not DOA at the end of the job as a surprise…???

Advantages

Advantages of each separate estimating software system on the market today can only be determined by each separate individual’s needs. However, it is possible to list details of Plumb-EZ that stand out as being exceptional. These details are:

1. Simplistic: to use. User friendly. Plumb-EZ prides itself on its Simplicity of use. This is a determined input for the benefit of the user. Plumb-EZ understands that if something has complications in use, these complications can return at later dates. Plumb-EZ does not require instructional classes. Plumb-EZ’s videos allows one to refer to instruction anytime.

2. Cost Affordable: to both start-up and existing companies. Plumb-EZ can be
Acquired by purchase at Plumbing & Piping Supply Stores. 

3. Mobile: in usage. Plumb-EZ can be installed on a PC and transported anywhere.

4. Digging: Calculation & Cost. Every foot of sub-soil pipe equals one foot of dig.

5. Hanger: Count, Calculation, & Cost. Hangers are automatically counted per plumbing
and mechanical codes; and priced to split partial cost in material and partial cost in labor.

6. WELD COUNT & CALCULATION: Plumb-EZ  automatically counts welds. There is 1 weld per length of pipe, plus 1 weld per fitting outlet. Outlets smaller than the pipe size calculated are counted as a decimal fraction to the pipe size. 

Example:
A  4×2 Tee has two 4 inch welds plus one 2 inch weld. The 2 inch is 50 % of the 4
inch. Therefore, a  4×2 Tee is counted as 2.5 ,,, 4 inch welds. By simply entering the
quantities of pipe and fittings, Plumb-EZ will count all the welds.

7. Accurate: All math formulas inside Plumb-EZ have been tested for accuracy.

8. Seismic Bracing: included as a must by many building codes.

9. Audit: Capability, with a complete breakdown of all costs & labor to each separate
phase of the entire project estimated.

10. Visual Instruction: 6 Instructional Videos come with Plumb-EZ.

11. Metric: Plumb-EZ is available in METRIC for those outside the United States. 

DIFFERENTIATION

Plumb-EZ differentiates itself from other Commercial Plumbing / Mechanical Estimating Software by:

1. TYPE of SOFTWARE: Plumb-EZ is a Microsoft Excel Program. Plumb-EZ is Not an On-Screen software system which may have to incorporate Excel into its own system in order to produce an Auditing Spreadsheet. Since Plumb-EZ is an Excel system, it has its own Audit spreadsheet built in.

2. SIMPLICITY: Most people are MS Excel skilled. Whether one is skilled in Excel, or not, Plumb-EZ incorporates 6 Instructional Videos for Tutoring, versus hours of instructional classes. The Plumb-EZ buyer can be totally up and running in one’s own office in less than one day. Within just a few days, the Plumb-EZ buyer can be completely experienced and comfortable with usage of Plumb-EZ Software.

3. COST: Plumb-EZ purchase for one computer is $1,999. Compared to other mechanical plumbing / piping software systems, Plumb-EZ is around 32% the cost of others OR 68% less.

4. MOBILITY: Plumb-EZ can be installed and carried on a Lap Top. This allows one to transport their entire estimating software to job sites. Other estimating software systems may OR may not have this capability.

5. WELDING & GROOVE PIPING CALCULATION: Welds and groove cuts are counted and calculated for cost automatically. Welds and groove cuts are based on the mathematical formula of circumference. By calculating the circumference of the pipe, one can determine the amount of inches / mm to be welded. From there, Plumb-EZ offers a demonstration formula inside the program for one to determine their cost per inch / mm to weld.

6. SEISMIC BRACING: is a required mechanical / structural engineering system required by many local building codes around the world. For this reason, Plumb-EZ has incorporated Seismic Bracing within its Software. Not all Mechanical Estimating Software include Seismic Bracing.

7. METRIC: To meet the needs of commercial and mechanical contractors outside the U.S. and to contractors working on U.S. military facilities around the world. Other software may or may not offer Metric.

SIMPLY ENTER

Necessary Variables:
labor cost –  digging costs – hanger costs – material prices – labor factors

TAKE-OFF QUANTITIES

pipe footages – fittings – fixtures – equipment

PLUMB-EZ DOES THE REST

Plumb-EZ, Inc.
P.O.Box 62383
Colorado Springs, CO. 80962