How can Beam AI help with Flooring Takeoffs?

Summary:

You have been in the flooring business for over a decade. You know the ins and outs of installations, materials, and project timelines. But there is one part of the job you dread—takeoffs. Every project started the same way: long hours spent manually doing takeoffs, double-checking calculations, and scrambling to update site plans whenever the client made a change. One miscalculation means fluctuation in ordering material, which ultimately delays the project. No matter how experienced you are, manual takeoffs will always be a bottleneck.

That is until you experience Beam AI.

With automated flooring takeoff software, you’ll no longer have to sift through endless sheets or second-guess the numbers. The AI reads specs, summaries, and notes and auto-detects material quantities for you. Now, instead of drowning in paperwork, you can focus on strategic tasks such as refining estimates, value engineering, raising tender queries, and easily coordinating with suppliers and stakeholders. With AI fully automating takeoffs for you, you save 90% of your time while boosting the bid volume up to 30%, winning more projects. 

So, if you’re still doing flooring takeoffs manually, it’s time to switch to Beam AI and take the guesswork out of flooring takeoffs. But before we dive into how Beam AI transforms flooring takeoffs, let’s first explore why they are a critical part of any flooring construction project.

What are Flooring Takeoffs?

When planning a flooring project, one of the most important steps is determining how much material you need to kick off the project. That’s where flooring takeoffs come in. A flooring takeoff is a process of calculating the exact quantity of materials required for a space, whether it’s hardwood, tile, carpet, vinyl, laminate, or epoxy flooring.

Key factors in a flooring takeoff include:

• Total floor area – Measurements must be precise to avoid shortfalls or excess materials.
• Waste factor – Accounting for cutting, pattern alignment, and installation errors ensures sufficient material availability.
• Transitions & edge details – Different flooring types may require specific transition strips or additional materials.
• Adhesives & underlayment – Certain flooring types demand subfloor preparation, adhesive coverage, or padding.

Instead of roughly estimating and risking material shortages, takeoffs provide accurate material quantities based on site plans. Let’s understand why flooring takeoffs are so complex in detail.  

What Makes Flooring Takeoffs So Complex?

Doing a flooring takeoff is a complex task that requires careful planning. Several factors influence the accuracy of a takeoff, and even a small miscalculation can lead to errors. 

Here’s why flooring takeoffs can be challenging:

1. Irregular room shapes:

‍Not every room is a perfect square or rectangle. Curved walls, alcoves, and odd angles make it tricky to calculate the exact flooring area.

2. Multiple flooring types:

Some large-scale projects, such as commercial buildings, hotels, or multi-unit developments, require multiple flooring materials across different areas—luxury vinyl in office spaces, ceramic tiles in lobbies, and carpet in hotel rooms. Each material comes with unique dimensions, installation techniques, and waste considerations, making accurate takeoffs crucial for cost efficiency and project success.

3. Waste and cutting adjustments:

Flooring materials often need to be cut to fit around obstacles like columns, staircases, and built-in furniture. Factoring in extra material for these adjustments is crucial to avoid shortages.

4. Pattern and layout considerations:

Some flooring, like tiles or patterned hardwood, requires precise alignment. This can lead to more material waste and additional calculations to ensure a seamless look.

These challenges make manual flooring takeoffs a time-consuming and error-prone process. Even experienced estimators spend days measuring, calculating, and adjusting. A single miscalculation can cause material shortages, cost overruns, and project delays. That’s where Beam AI flooring takeoff changes the game.

Key Features of Beam AI for Flooring Takeoffs

Beam AI simplifies the flooring takeoff process. No more going through thousands of sheets, AI automatically tracks and detects changes, including notes and specs, and updates takeoff calculations. Let’s dive into the details below.

100% automated takeoffs for you

​​With Beam AI, you can easily get your flooring takeoffs in just 4 simple steps. The AI-based flooring takeoff software completely automates the process and delivers the final outcome within 1-3 days, depending on the complexity of the project. This is all you need to do:

• Upload site plan in PDF format
• Define scope of work and hit submit
• AI takes quantities off plans
• An expert estimator reviews and delivers your takeoff in 1-3 days

No more sifting through 1000s of sheets for every addendum issued

Flooring takeoffs can be complex, changes in material types, room layouts, or pattern alignments often require multiple adjustments, making manual updates time-consuming. Beam AI streamlines this process by automatically syncing changes across all addenda, ensuring your flooring takeoffs remain precise and up to date.

Whether it’s tile, hardwood, carpet, or vinyl, any revision in the main takeoff is reflected across all linked addenda—eliminating the need for manual edits. Updating your takeoff is fast and effortless with three simple methods, as shown in the image below.

With the resubmit takeoff feature you can: 

• Add addendum for the existing plans: You can add an addendum for the existing plans; this is when you have updates and changes in the existing plans.
• Request takeoff for a new workable sheet: You can use this option if you want takeoff for sheets that were not part of the initial scope.
• Add corrections in the existing takeoff: You can request a correction in the existing takeoff if you want to reprocess the takeoff for the existing workable sheets.
• Compare plan versions with the built-in variance report: Compare up to 10 addendum versions, toggle between changes in-platform, and export Excel reports with color-coded, trade-wise side-by-side breakdowns.

Advanced editing toolbar

The toolbar is designed with essential features for flooring takeoffs, including edit, add elements, rotate, split, and create openings. Need to adjust room sections, refine measurements, or account for cutouts around fixtures and columns? Beam AI makes it easy to modify takeoffs in real-time, improving accuracy and streamlining workflows.

You can also add missing flooring elements such as underlayment, adhesives, transition strips, and edge trims. If project requirements change, you can effortlessly reclassify materials into different zones or categories, ensuring precise and organized takeoff material quantities.

Effortlessly share and export takeoffs

With Beam AI flooring takeoff, sharing, reviewing, and presenting your takeoff results is effortless. Estimators can export detailed Excel reports, generate clean PDF summaries, or share secure, interactive links—all designed to simplify collaboration and enhance accuracy. 

• Excel export: Export a complete, well-structured Excel report of your flooring takeoff data, including area measurements, materials, and assemblies. Each trade or flooring type—whether tile, vinyl, or carpet—is neatly organized into separate tabs for quick analysis and seamless cost breakdowns.
• PDF output: Control exactly what appears in your PDF exports—enhance image quality, maximize space, hide irrelevant annotations, and exclude unnecessary material details for cleaner, trade-focused takeoff reports both in A3/A4.
• View only links: Need to share your tile and carpet takeoff without sending large files? Simply generate a secure, read-only link. Viewers can pan, zoom, and inspect every measurement in detail—complete with unit display (Metric or Imperial). It’s a fast, interactive way to review flooring takeoffs remotely while maintaining full data integrity.

Easy takeoff sharing & collaboration

Beam AI flooring takeoff runs entirely on the cloud—no downloads, no installations, and no waiting for software updates. All you need is an internet connection to access your takeoffs anytime, anywhere. This makes submitting plans and collaborating with your team effortless.

Since Beam AI is cloud-based, there’s no limit to how many users can join a single business account. Whether it’s project managers, estimators, or clients, everyone can access, review, and contribute to flooring takeoffs simultaneously, keeping workflows transparent and efficient.

• Share flooring takeoff instantly: Grant access to teammates from the share icon. They’ll get a notification, and the takeoff appears under Shared with me for easy access.
• Duplicate and customize freely: Create a personal copy of your done-for-you flooring takeoff to test changes, add features, or apply addenda without affecting the original shared version. Edit, export, and resubmit with confidence.
• Filter by team member: Use the Team tab to view takeoffs submitted by specific members. Open, edit, and even receive submission updates, ensuring no project update slips through the cracks.

Beam AI flooring takeoff features don’t end here. Check out Beam AI Academy to know more out our AI-based flooring takeoff features. 

What switching to AI flooring takeoff software means for your business

With Beam AI completely automating your flooring takeoff process, you can submit bids faster and with greater accuracy than competitors still using manual methods do. This incredible time savings while doing takeoffs gives you a competitive edge in winning more projects. Read on to discover why switching to Beam AI is the smart choice today.

Bid on 2X more jobs

With Beam AI flooring takeoff software, you can easily push up to 2X more bids. How? You can process multiple takeoffs in parallel with the same accuracy.  So you start bidding on jobs that you had to previously pass up because of limited bandwidth.

Save 90% of your time on flooring takeoffs

What if you could reduce your takeoff time by 90%? With Beam AI flooring takeoff software, that’s possible. By eliminating manual calculations, Beam AI streamlines the entire takeoff process. Now, all you have to do is review the takeoffs instead of spending hours doing them. This allows you to focus on what truly matters: raising tender queries, risk assessment, refining estimates, collaborating with clients, and securing more projects.

Let AI auto-detect specs and notes

With Beam AI flooring takeoff software, you no longer have to manually sift through sheets to find important plan details. AI automatically detects specifications, keyed-in notes, and critical annotations, ensuring no detail is overlooked. Whether it’s material types, pattern alignments, or special installation instructions, Beam AI captures and integrates these elements directly into your flooring takeoff.

The Bottom Line

With the right flooring takeoff software, you can streamline your entire takeoff process, reduce waste, and submit bids that actually win. Beam AI takes the guesswork out of takeoffs by automating material quantities, detecting changes instantly, and ensuring every detail is accounted for—saving you time and effort. Let Beam AI help you bid faster and win more. Ready to make a move? Experience Beam AI today! 

FAQs

1. What is Beam AI flooring takeoff software?

Beam AI flooring takeoff is a cloud-based, AI-powered tool that automates the measurement and quantity calculation process for flooring projects. It supports multiple flooring types, including hardwood, vinyl, tile, and carpet, and delivers bid-ready takeoffs faster and more accurately than manual methods.

‍2. How does Beam AI improve floor finish estimation?

With AI-driven takeoffs, floor finish estimation speeds up. Beam AI flooring takeoff software automatically calculates material quantities, waste factors, and transition requirements. This ensures precise estimates for every project, helping you avoid shortages, reduce waste, and save time.

‍3. Can Beam AI handle tile and carpet takeoff?

Yes. Beam AI supports tile and carpet takeoff along with other flooring types. The software accounts for patterns, layouts, and cut adjustments, providing accurate material counts for all floor finishes.

‍4. How long does it take to get a takeoff using Beam AI flooring takeoff?

Depending on the project size and complexity, Beam AI flooring takeoff software can deliver completed takeoffs in 24–72 hours. This drastically reduces the time compared to manual takeoffs that can take days or weeks.

‍5. Can I collaborate with my team using Beam AI?

Absolutely. Beam AI flooring takeoff software is cloud-based, so multiple team members can access, review, and edit flooring takeoffs simultaneously. Whether it’s floor finish estimation or tile and carpet takeoff, updates are synced in real-time for seamless collaboration.