Part 1 · Initial Setup
For administrators and catalog owners preparing a company: reference data and review roles. Start Setup →
The Darwin User Manual
Your company already knows how to price this. This manual shows you how Darwin keeps that knowledge inside the company — from initial setup to an approved baseline and beyond.
How to Use This Manual
Section titled “How to Use This Manual”Darwin keeps your company’s estimating knowledge in reusable modules. Your team reviews an estimate, approves the baseline, and tracks real costs against it. When costs differ from the plan, people review what happened and decide what to improve. Every project teaches the next one. That’s why it’s called Darwin.
Follow the work from the first request:
request → clarify → estimate → review → approve → track → learn
If your company already uses Darwin, start with your first project. If you are preparing a new company, complete setup and capture your first modules first. Use the other chapters as a reference when you need them.
Where to Start
Section titled “Where to Start”Part 2 · Your First Project
For estimators joining a prepared team: request, estimate, review, approval, and a first recorded variance. Begin the Journey →
Your First Module
Capture one assembly your team already prices. Review its quantities and assumptions before using it. Capture Your First Module →
Introduction
See how modules, prices, approvals, and project feedback fit together. Read the Introduction →
From Request to Learning
Section titled “From Request to Learning”Request
Start with intent: what needs to be estimated, clarified, reviewed, changed, or approved. Start From a Request →
Clarify
Keep drawings, files, comments, assumptions, and missing context attached to the work. Project Documents →
Estimate
Pull the modules your company already has, load the quantities, apply today’s prices. Build the Estimate →
Review
Challenge pricing, assumptions, quantities, and revision history before commitment. Review Prices →
Approve
Record the decision that turns an estimate into a committed cost-control baseline. Request Approval →
Track & Learn
Capture actual costs, compare against baseline, and use variance to improve future estimates. Record a Cost and Review a Variance →
Reference
Section titled “Reference”Catalog
Materials, labor, expenses, modules, bundles, and price lists — your Cost DNA. Browse Catalog →
Projects & Collaboration
Documents, Darwin Drive, clients and suppliers, approvals, and activity history. Explore →
3D & 2D Inputs
Upload BIM models or 2D drawings, inspect geometry, and map quantities into cost logic. Import a Model →
Proposals & Bidding
Package approved estimates into client proposals, manage bid packages, and run what-if scenarios. Explore Proposals →
Workflows
The full request-to-baseline journey, work requests, approvals, and revisions in depth. Explore Workflows →