Update Items in the Catalog

Use the Global Update feature on the Catalog tab to update selected cost items. The global update enables you to update multiple cost items with the same information at the same time.

You can update the details of cost items in the selected catalog. This feature enables you to update details for items you individually select or that match search criteria you specify.

There are a number of update actions you can perform, depending on the information you are updating. For example, you can add an additional 10% to the cost of all concrete cost items in the catalog. You can replace the unit for all 2x4 lumber from inches to linear feet. You can add text to the end of the description for all subcontract cost items.

To update cost items in the catalog with cost items in another catalog or estimate, use the Estimating Explorer. See Update Cost Items Using the Estimating Explorer.

You can replace the reference numbers for a group of selected cost items all at once, through the use of automatic sequence numbers.

To create the sequence, specify the following items:

  • Starting Index Number: The first number in the sequence.

  • Increment: What to add to a number in the sequence to get the next number.

  • Length (digits after): How many total digits each number in the sequence contains.

Note: For example, say you have 10 cost items in a folder that you want to change the reference numbers to 01.01.XX where XX starts with 01 and ends at 10. You would enter a value of 01.01 into the Value field as a starting value while allowing it to add the ending digits. After starting the update, you would set the Starting Index Number to 1, which is the first XX value in this example. You would set the Increment field to 1 to add 1 to the previous value, which results in a sequence of 01, 02, 03, and so on. If you were to set the increment to 3, the resulting sequence would be 01, 04, 07. You would set the Length (digits after) to 2, meaning that the sequence contains two digits. Since you started with a single digit (1), the application adds a leading zero (01) to correct the length.

To open a job in the Manage Estimates screen, click Estimating > Estimating > Manage Estimates in the All Tasks pane. Then select the job you want to open, and click OK.