QuickPen's 2010 Educational User's Conference is only five-and-a half months away (not that we're counting) - will you be joining us?  We are lining up our best ever educational opportunities this year - we can't wait until we can share the details with you!  During our last two conventions, one of the things that has become abundantly clear is that our customers learn as much from each other as they do from us.  With that said, we want to expand upon these learning opportunities by having customers behave as formal presenters.  We WANT you!  Come help us put on our best event yet - share your knowledge (I often find that I learn the most when I share with others).  Think about it!  Have you used AutoBid® to assist in your project management?  Maybe used one of the 3D CAD products to implement Lean construction processes?  If you'd like to participate, please click here for more information.

Not a fan of speaking in big groups?  You can still help us.  Did you know that QuickPen software has been used on some incredible projects?  Picture a skyline that includes such memorable structures as the Freedom Tower, the Statue of Liberty, a Google Server Farm, and Broncos Stadium.  Help us "build our skyline" - let us know what projects you've used QuickPen software to win, draw, or fabricate.  Contact us by This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  We hope to see you in Las Vegas!

QuickPen's Educational Users' Conference will be held in conjunction with Trimble Dimensions on November 8 - 10 in Las Vegas, NV.  We are lining up some really great classes and opportunities for our attendees.  Many of our customers requested more sessions from industry experts - and we are happy to comply.  Mark Terzigni will be joining us from SMACNA (Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association).  Mark is a technical engineer for SMACNA and travels across the country to host educational sessions for the organization.  Mark will provide detailed information on the SMACNA 2005 Duct Construction Standards, and he'll unravel the mystery behind Seismic Hangers for piping, plumbing, and sheet metal contractors.  Registration is now open - check the Trimble Dimensions page for more information!

QuickPen's technical support group will be closed on Monday, July 5th in observation of the 4th of July holiday.  We will reopen on Tuesday, July 6th. 
Operating hours for Tuesday, July 6th - Friday, July 9th will be 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Mountain Time.  You can contact technical support by calling us at 303-799-6500 x 0 or you can submit a request through this link.

One of the most powerful elements of AutoBid's Rapid Reports is our ability to "slice and dice" the data---anyway you want it. 

Pivot Tables aren't QuickPen technology - they are a tool that Microsoft created to work with large amounts of data.  They were initially included in Excel 2003, but they were greatly improved in Excel 2007.  We've just taken those pivot tables tools and made them easier to use.

Here's a helpful video that reviews the basics of Rapid Reports in AutoBid:




Coming up next - more detailed information on how to use that data to create the kind of report that you are looking for.

 When I was recently at the MCAA convention, I had a customer tell me "Rapid Reports is the best project management tool that you guys have ever produced!"  And to think, we didn't even design it for that!

Rapid Reports was really our response to our customers demands to have instant access to ALL their data in Microsoft Excel.  Not just summary information that we could dump into the Final Estimate Spreadsheet or through the Code Manager, all the information that we had available.  Given the level of accuracy and detail that AutoBid provides, that was no small request.  Why would you want to even consider using Rapid Reports?

Use AutoBid's Rapid Reports so that you can integrate your bid summary with AutoBid.  Are you one of our many customers who spend hours each day entering information from the Recaps summary into your own Excel bid spreadsheet?  With Rapid Reports, you can reduce your data entry time and  the risk of "fat finger" errors.  In AutoBid SheetMetal (and soon AutoBid Mechanical), you can find Rapid Reports behind this button:



Currently in AutoBid Mechanical, Rapid Reports is in the Excel Generator screen of Reports - it's its own separate Excel Report.

Once you are in a Rapid Report for either Piping, Plumbing, or Sheet Metal, the layout will be fairly similar:

     - Summary Tab
     - Labor Adjustment Tabs (one for Mechanical and two for SheetMetal)
     - Crew Mix Calculator
     - Quoted Items Tabs (four for both products - although the names vary by trade)
     - Subs - to enter Subcontrator information
     - G&A - to enter General & Administrative Cost information
     - Pivot - this is where you can "slice & dice" your data any way you want to see it
     - Changes - if you update a spreadsheet, we'll let you know what was changed
     - Customization - information if you want to customize the spreadsheet
     - RawData - all of our information exported in a very detailed format

Don't worry, we'll cover each of these in more detail over the next few weeks.  In the meantime, here is some important items to remember with Rapid Reports:

     - Adjusted labor information is exported to Rapid Reports.  If you use Correction Factors or the Labor Adjustment Worksheets (LAW), then the total adjusted hours will be sent to the Rapid Report.
     - Labor rates from AutoBid are not used in the Rapid Reports summary.  Labor rates are applied from the "Crew Mix" calculator tab.
     - G&A (General & Administrative) and Subcontractor information is not exported to AutoBid.  You will enter this information within Excel.
     - In AutoBid SheetMetal, information for items created through Definitions (Turning Vanes, Connectors, Liner, etc) are summarized at the definition level.

Our next blog post in this series will be next Friday - "Give me some of that pivot table magic!"  If you haven't worked much with Pivot Tables, I think you'll be inspired by their flexibility and power that they give you.

I'm off to celebrate my twins' 6th birthdays today.  It's hard to believe how quickly time flies.