{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "kind": "job",
  "role": "estimator",
  "slug": "bid-leveling",
  "title": "Leveling subcontractor quotes",
  "status": "works-with-supervision",
  "updated": "2026-08-23",
  "canonical": "https://aiagents.construction/roles/estimator/bid-leveling/",
  "audience": "US general contractor, $5–10M revenue",
  "sections": {
    "job": "Bid day compresses this job brutally: quotes arrive as PDFs, emails, and phone notes in the final hours, and someone has to line them up — same units, same scope buckets, exclusions surfaced — before award. Missed exclusions here become change orders later.\n\n“Done”: one leveled sheet per trade with every quote mapped to the same scope lines, every stated exclusion listed, and every *silence* flagged for a phone call.",
    "use": "1. **Collect quotes into one folder per trade.** PDFs and emails as-is; don't retype anything.\n2. **Run extraction.** A general-purpose model [[1]](#cite-1) or precon product [[2]](#cite-2) pulls price, scope lines, inclusions, exclusions, and alternates into a common table.\n3. **Review the mapping.** Check that differently worded scopes were not incorrectly treated as the same.\n4. **Chase the silences.** Flagged gaps become the call list before award. This is the point; don't skip it.",
    "build": "This is a strong DIY candidate: document extraction plus tabulation. A v1 is a prompt template asking for every scope line, inclusion, exclusion, and price, one row per scope item, with ambiguity marked. Run it per trade folder and output to a spreadsheet. Keep the transcript in the bid file.",
    "deploy": "Pilot on the last awarded trade package where a scope gap later caused trouble. If the agent's leveled sheet would have surfaced that gap, it earns a place on the next live bid—still with the estimator reviewing every mapping.",
    "manage": "- **The agent proposes; the estimator decides.** Every inclusion/exclusion judgment is human.\n- **Extraction errors are silent.** Spot-check totals against the raw quote for at least one quote per trade, every time.\n- **Sub pricing is confidential.** Confirm hosted-model data-retention terms before quotes go in."
  },
  "citations": [
    {
      "name": "Claude (Anthropic)",
      "fact": "General-purpose model with vision and document extraction; suits the DIY build described here. Usage-priced; no per-seat construction license.",
      "url": "https://www.anthropic.com/claude",
      "lastVerified": "2026-08-23"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ediphi",
      "fact": "Cloud preconstruction and estimating platform; documented as an export target in takeoff workflows and offers structured bid-management features.",
      "url": "https://www.ediphi.com",
      "lastVerified": "2026-08-23"
    }
  ],
  "changelog": [
    {
      "date": "2026-08-23",
      "note": "Page created."
    }
  ]
}