Electrical takeoff and bid estimation with an AI employee
Electrical contractors use an AI employee for point counting and putting together material lists. The AI reads electrical drawings, counts points by distribution board, identifies cable types, and produces a material list. Point counting is the most time-consuming part of bid preparation for electrical contractors, and an AI employee cuts that time significantly.
The electrical contractor's paperwork in 2026
Running an electrical installation company means wearing three hats: installer, salesperson, and compliance manager. Days are spent on site, evenings on bid calculations and commissioning reports.
Point counting is at the heart of every electrical bid. Every socket, switch, lighting point, and data outlet has to be counted from the drawings, grouped by distribution board, and priced. A small detached house has 80 to 150 points. A block of flats can have thousands.
Finnish electrical safety law and the SFS 6000 standard require thorough documentation. Commissioning inspection reports, measurement records, verification inspection reports: all of it has to be in order before the installation is handed over. Missing paperwork can mean a formal notice from Tukes.
Speed matters too. When a client asks for a quote, the first contractor to respond usually wins the job. If calculating a bid takes two days, the competition has already been and gone.
What it actually does
Point counting from electrical drawings
The AI employee reads electrical drawings and counts all the points: sockets, switches, lighting outlets, data points, antenna points. Points are grouped by distribution board and cable types are identified. The result is a material list that the contractor can price up directly.
Point counting time drops by 2 to 6 hours per project. Faster bids mean more contracts won.
Commissioning inspection reports
The AI employee fills in a commissioning inspection template with project details: scope of installation, measurement results, inspection items. The contractor gets a ready-made document and adds the on-site measurement readings.
Report preparation time is cut in half.
Material orders and price comparisons
Based on the material list, the AI employee compares prices across SLO, Onninen, and Elektroskandia. It puts together an order draft based on the best combination of price and delivery time.
Less time spent on price comparisons, and materials stay competitively priced.
Competitor and pricing monitoring
The AI employee tracks the pricing and service offerings of other electrical contractors in the area. It puts together a weekly summary so the contractor can see the market: who is advertising, at what price, and what services they are offering.
Better market awareness without any manual research.
In practice: electrical contract for a row house
An electrical contractor received a request for quote on a six-unit row house. The drawings included floor plans by apartment type, a main diagram, and a distribution board diagram.
The contractor sent the drawings to the AI employee with a note: 'Count points by apartment type and distribution board. Main cabling MMJ 3x2.5, sauna heaters PFXP.'
The AI employee identified two apartment types (3-room and 2-room), counted points for each: sockets, switches, lighting outlets, data points, sauna heater feed, cooker connection, EV charging provision. The distribution board configuration was calculated automatically from the point count.
The material list was ready in 1.5 hours. The contractor added local wholesale prices and his margin. The quote went out to the client the same day, a day ahead of the competition.
Who it works for, and who it doesn't
Good fit
- Electrical contractors with 2 to 10 employees doing residential and commercial projects
- Companies that respond to several requests for quote every week
- Electrical contractors who do their own bid calculations in the evenings
- Companies with annual revenue between EUR 300,000 and EUR 3,000,000
Not the best fit
- Large electrical contractors with a dedicated estimating department and CADS Planner licences
- Companies that do only maintenance and minor installation work
- Industrial electrical firms where design is always done from a BIM model
Common questions
Can the AI read electrical drawing symbols (SFS-EN 60617)?
Yes. The AI employee recognises the most common electrical drawing symbols: sockets, switches, lighting outlets, data points, main switches, and protective devices. If a symbol is unusual or company-specific, it will ask for clarification.
Can the AI carry out the commissioning inspection?
No. The commissioning inspection must always be carried out in person by the person in charge of electrical work. The AI employee helps with the documentation: it fills in the inspection template, and the contractor adds the measurement results on site.
How does AI point counting compare to doing it by hand?
The AI employee counts points systematically, room by room, floor by floor. It does not skip rooms or count the same point twice. The result should always be reviewed, but the starting point is consistent.
Do electrical drawings need to be in a specific format?
PDF works best. Scanned paper drawings and screenshots from CAD software also work. The AI employee will say if the image quality is not good enough, and will tell you which part of the drawing it needs a clearer view of.
Try it for 7 days, risk-free
No lock-in, no hidden fees. If the AI employee doesn't work out, you get your money back.