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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Pipeline Suite

    Score7.3 out of 10
    N/AN/AN/A

    SmartBid

    Score8.3 out of 10
    N/ASmartBid is a construction bid management software for general contractors. SmartBid provides a web-based and mobile platform to streamline their bid project data, documents, and subcontractor communications. It also supports user permissions control for data security.N/A
    Pricing
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—As a cloud-based solution, our clients can scale their access annually depending on the number of users. Subcontractors invited to bid or prequalify in the system receive access at no cost.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Considered Both Products
    Pipeline Suite
    Chose Pipeline Suite
    I don't have a lot of personal experience with SmartBid, but from what I hear from other colleagues, Pipeline Suite makes it easier for subcontractors to access documents/plans and to respond to bids. The interface and design of Pipeline Suite is more modern and the user …
    Incentivized
    ConstructConnect
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Construction Project & Field Management
    Comparison of Construction Project & Field Management features of Pipeline Suite and SmartBid
    Feature
    Pipeline Suite
    8.5
    1 Ratings
    10% above category average
    SmartBid
    7.6
    4 Ratings
    1% below category average
    Plan distribution & viewing9.01 Ratings7.04 Ratings
    Plan markups & sharing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Issue tracking & punchlists8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Photo documentation9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Jobsite reports8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document sharing9.01 Ratings8.04 Ratings
    RFI tools8.01 Ratings6.03 Ratings
    Collaboration & approvals9.01 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    As-built drawings9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile app7.01 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Submittal design and management8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Estimating
    Comparison of Estimating features of Pipeline Suite and SmartBid
    Feature
    Pipeline Suite
    8.2
    1 Ratings
    2% above category average
    SmartBid
    -
    Ratings
    Takeoff tools8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Job costing9.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost databases8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost calculator8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Bid creation8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Small Businesses
    CMiC Construction Platform
    Score7.2 out of 10
    CMiC Construction Platform
    Score7.2 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Autodesk Build
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Autodesk Build
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Enterprises
    InEight
    Score8.3 out of 10
    InEight
    Score8.3 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.0
    (6 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    9.6
    (2 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Pipeline SuiteSmartBid
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Pipeline Suite
    Pipeline Suite is a very niche product, but for anyone who has ever dealt with the construction bidding process, you can understand the need for it. With Pipeline Suite, it is so easy to request bids, share documents and plans, and coordinate schedules for submittals. We are able to prequalify sub contractors and vendors at a faster pace as well with the product
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ConstructConnect
    SmartBid is also very useful for conducting sub-contracting analysis and management simulations in the didactic field. The procedures for sharing documents are helpful, but the graphic can be improved. Many forms can be pre-filled. This helps a lot in saving time and money! SmartBid is great for exporting and/or sending single or mass emails. However, as mentioned, it would be useful to simplify some pre-construction processes and improve the overall communication
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Pipeline Suite
    • Sharing documents and plans with project stakeholders is a piece of cake.
    • The product makes tracking the status of bids so much easier.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ConstructConnect
    • It's very easy to set up a job and manage who receives solicitations. You can also keep detailed notes on who've you contacted and see if they're actually downloading and reviewing the documents.
    • You can add a confidentiality agreement clause which they must accept before accessing the documents. It then stores this information if it ever needs to be accessed. This is much cleaner and easier then sending out a NDA form and having the subcontractor return it before actually sending drawings/docs.
    • You can send Invitations to Bid and set it up to continue sending these ITB's until the subcontractor responds. However, this can also be a negative point because once you set up a delayed ITB, it doesn't update as the subcontractors view and respond to the ITB's. So if a sub is "Not Responded" and you set up a delayed ITB to fire off every day for 5 days, and the sub responds after day 2, that sub will continue to receive ITB's for all 5 days.
    • Uploading drawings is quick and easy. It's especially convenient if you link to one of your cloud services such as Egnyte, Google Drive, etc.
    • The search tools are quick and easy and often very accessible from any page.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Pipeline Suite
    • The onboarding process was difficult for us just because we had some pretty disorganized databases.
    • The product is pricey for small to medium sized firms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ConstructConnect
    • We have seen intermittent problems with notes disappearing.
    • Ability to have more than one project bidding open at the same time/on multiple windows.
    • Mobile apps.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Pipeline Suite
    I have found that the customer support team has an understanding of the construction bidding process. They have been able to see issues through our eyes, so to speak, not just through the eyes of a software company. They have always been very timely in their responses and seem to go above and beyond to solve issues
    Incentivized
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    ConstructConnect
    SmartBid has an excellent support team that is always at your service. Any problem I've had (when I've even had them) has been resolved almost immediately, along with tips on how to avoid them in the future. If you're looking for a program with excellent customer service, look no further than SmartBid.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Pipeline Suite
    I don't have a lot of personal experience with SmartBid, but from what I hear from other colleagues, Pipeline Suite makes it easier for subcontractors to access documents/plans and to respond to bids. The interface and design of Pipeline Suite is more modern and the user experience is a major upgrade from SmartBid
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ConstructConnect
    SmartBid is used by more of the contractors that we happen to do lots of work with. It has basically the same features. However, SmartBid will let subcontractors view all the jobs a general contractor is bidding, even ones we were never invited to. So it has the potential to bring more opportunities.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Pipeline Suite
    • We have been able to respond to more bids using Pipeline Suite.
    • Our proposals are more accurate and organized, which has made our projects come under budget more often.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ConstructConnect
    • It is a big time saver compared to sending out individual emails.
    • It saves time in having multiple individual databases for company contact info.
    • It ensures that everyone is getting the same information.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    SmartBid Screenshots

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