Overview
Estimation on Opportunities adds a built-in Estimate tab to CRM+ Opportunities. From this tab, your team can build complete estimates (labor, materials, sections, and tax) directly on the Opportunity, using the same layout and workflow as estimation on Quotes in BuildOps Core.
Who can use this feature?
This feature is available for BuildOps customers who:
Have CRM+ enabled
Any CRM+ user with access to Opportunities can view, create, and edit the Estimate on an Opportunity.
If CRM+ is enabled on your account and you’d like to use this feature, please reach out to BuildOps Customer Support.
Estimate tab
The Estimate tab on an Opportunity is a dedicated workspace where you can:
Add a Scope of Work description.
Choose a Pricebook (required).
Add labor lines and item (material) lines.
Organize work into sections, each with its own subtotal.
See profit, cost, margin, markup, tax, and total summaries at the bottom of the estimate.
The Estimate tab on Opportunities uses your existing Pricebooks and Tax Rates from Core:
You do not need separate Pricebooks or Tax Rates for CRM+.
Any Pricebooks or Tax Rates already configured in your BuildOps environment are available when creating an estimate.
Account type behavior:
Prospect Accounts: Do not have a default Pricebook, so users must manually select a Pricebook for each Opportunity estimate.
Active Accounts: Can have default Pricebook preferences; the system will auto-apply that default when creating an estimate.
Creating an estimate on an Opportunity
Follow these steps to build your first estimate:
Open the Opportunity
Go to Opportunities in CRM+.
Select the Opportunity you want to estimate.
Go to the Estimate tab
Click the Estimate tab on the Opportunity.
If no estimate exists yet, you’ll see “No Estimate Yet”.
Click CREATE ESTIMATE to start.
Scope of Work and Pricebook
Enter the Scope of Work – a free-text description of the work being estimated.
Select a Pricebook from the dropdown (this is required before adding lines).
Add labor lines
Within a section, click + ADD LABOR.
Choose a Labor Group/Type (e.g., “Construction Laborers – Electrical”).
Set key fields, such as:
Payroll Hr Type (e.g., “Holiday time”),
Cost Type,
Unit Cost,
Hrs (hours),
Billing Hr Type,
Unit Price,
Bill Hrs (billed hours).
Markup and Margin automatically calculate from Unit Cost vs. Unit Price.
Add item (material) lines
Click + ADD ITEM.
Search for an item (e.g., “Conduit (PVC or metal)”).
Set Cost Type and adjust Unit Cost, Markup, Margin, and Unit Price as needed.
Set Quantity.
Toggle Tax on or off per item, depending on tax requirements.
Organize with sections and adjust totals
Use + ADD SECTION to split the estimate into multiple sections (e.g., “Demo”, “Rough-In”, “Finish”).
Each section can have its own labor and item lines with a section subtotal.
At the section subtotal area, you can also:
Add line items (e.g., additional one-off charges) via + ADD LINE ITEM, and
Apply discounts using + ADD DISCOUNT.
Review summary and save
At the bottom, review:
Profit, Cost, Margin, Markup
Section Subtotal
Taxable Subtotal
Tax Rate and Tax Amount
Estimate Total
Click SAVE to store the estimate and update the Opportunity.
Editing an existing estimate
To update an estimate that’s already been created:
Open the Opportunity and go to the Estimate tab.
Click EDIT ESTIMATE.
The estimate builder opens with existing data pre-filled.
Make your changes (e.g., adjust hours, change pricing, add/remove sections or items).
Click SAVE to apply the updates.
Note: Editing an estimate overwrites the previous version.
How Totals are Calculated
The Estimate tab uses standard estimation formulas. Key calculations include:
Markup % = (Unit Price − Unit Cost) / Unit Cost × 100
Margin % = (Unit Price − Unit Cost) / Unit Price × 100
Section Subtotal = Sum of all labor subtotals + all item subtotals in the section
Taxable Subtotal = Sum of line items where Tax is enabled
Tax Amount = Taxable Subtotal × Tax Rate
Estimate Total = Sum of all Section Subtotals + Tax Amount − Discounts
How the estimate updates the Opportunity
When you click SAVE on the estimate, BuildOps automatically updates key fields on the Opportunity header:
Opportunity Amount ← Estimate Section Subtotal (pre-tax)
Budgeted Cost ← Estimate Cost
Budgeted Hours ← Total Bill Hours from labor lines
Margin ← Estimate Margin %
Profit ← Estimate Profit
Weighted Amount ← Opportunity Amount × Opportunity Confidence %
This keeps your pipeline metrics aligned with the latest estimate without requiring manual updates.
Warnings and validation
If required fields are missing on a labor or item line, you may see a warning icon at the end of the row:
A warning means that something important (such as Labor Group/Type, Cost Type, or Quantity) is incomplete.
Review the row and fill in any missing required fields.
The estimate cannot be saved until all warnings are resolved.
FAQs
Can I create multiple estimates on a single Opportunity?
No. Each Opportunity supports one estimate at a time. Multiple or competing estimates and versioning are not supported in this release.
Does estimate data automatically populate into Proposals?
Not yet. While Opportunities have a Generate Proposal action, estimate data does not auto-populate into Proposals in this release.
Is there an approval workflow for estimates?
No. There is no built-in approval process for estimates. Any CRM+ user with access to the Opportunity can create or edit the estimate.
Can I import or export estimates to/from a spreadsheet?
No. Estimates cannot be imported from or exported to spreadsheets or other external formats in this release.
Is there a change history for estimates?
No. Editing an estimate overwrites the previous version; there is no revision history or audit trail at this time.