Structure an estimate by CSI MasterFormat division

A distinction worth making

MasterFormat, published by CSI and CSC, is a classification and numbering system for construction specifications and project information. It tells you where cast-in-place concrete belongs in a document and what number it carries. It does not tell you how to measure it, what a description must contain, or what a rate is deemed to include.

That is a real difference from NRM2, ASAQS SMM or BESMM4, which are methods of measurement. North American practice generally leans on unit-price estimating with the measurement conventions set by the estimator or the contract rather than by a national rule set. Any tool implying that "MasterFormat support" means measurement rules is confusing two different things.

How BillMate handles it

• A MasterFormat division section template as a project starting point, so an estimate is organised the way a North American reader expects.
• USD and CAD as supported currencies.
• Imperial-unit work is handled by pricing in whatever unit your library holds — BillMate checks that a matched rate's unit agrees with the item's before applying it.
• Rate build-ups, library provenance and staleness exactly as elsewhere.

What it does not do. No RSMeans or other published cost data is included or resold — you import your own. No assemblies estimating, no quantity take-off from drawings, and no integration with a specification-writing system.