Know your scope before you price it—and before you fabricate

Your work is spread across other disciplines' sheets, your spec sections, Division 01, and three addenda. Groundbook AI reads the whole bid set and shows where your trade is drawn, specified, noted "by others," or missing—then checks your shop drawings against the contract documents before they go out.

Pay as you go. Project reviews start at $100.

Groundbook AI for subcontractors is an AI plan review that reads the bid or contract set—every discipline's drawings, your specification sections, Division 01, addenda, and later your shop drawings—and surfaces where your trade's scope is inconsistent, split between trades, changed by an addendum, or missing, with the exact sheet and section. Trade contractors use it before bid, before buyout, and before submittals go to the engineer of record.

Price the real scopeFind work drawn on another discipline's sheets, split by "furnish" and "install" notes, or specified but never drawn.
Fabricate from consistent documentsCheck shop drawings and product data against the contract set before the first rejection, not after.
Document what changedKnow which addendum, bulletin, or ASI touched your scope, with the references you need for a qualification or change order.

A trade contractor's scope is never on one sheet

Groundbook AI cross-checks your trade against every document in the set so the estimator, project manager, and detailer are working from the same reading.

01 · SCOPE

Find the work hiding in other disciplines

Housekeeping pads on structural, power and disconnects on electrical, access panels on architectural, sleeves and curbs on someone's sheet—or no one's. Surface furnish-and-install splits, "by others" notes, and NIC items before they become your problem.

02 · SUBMITTALS

Get shop drawings through the first time

Compare dimensions, materials, ratings, and interfaces in your shop drawings and product data against the plans, schedules, and specs before the engineer of record marks them up.

03 · CHANGES

Track addenda, bulletins, and ASIs

See what changed, whether the related sheets and spec sections were updated with it, and which changes affect your price, your fabrication, or your sequence.

What subcontractors check

Upload the bid package or contract set with your trade's sections and the adjacent disciplines, then focus the review on the risks that land on your contract.

Scope across disciplines

Find where your work is drawn, noted, or assumed on architectural, structural, MEP, fire-protection, and civil sheets: pads, curbs, sleeves, penetrations, blocking, access doors, power connections, controls, fire-stopping, seismic bracing, and "by others" or NIC notes that shift scope between trades.

Drawings vs. your spec sections

Compare schedules, plan notes, and details with your Division sections and Division 01: materials, ratings, efficiencies, voltages, finishes, testing, warranties, submittal lists, and delegated-design requirements that make you responsible for stamped engineering.

Shop drawings and submittals vs. the contract set

Review your shop drawings or product data against the design documents for scope, dimensions, materials, performance requirements, interfaces, deviations, missing information, and coordination with adjacent trades—before the formal submittal review.

Trade constructability

Surface routing against structure, ceiling-cavity and shaft fit, working and service clearances, equipment access and rigging paths, roof openings, structural support for your equipment, and sequencing that closes a wall before your work is in.

Counts, tags, and sizes that disagree

Flag fixtures, devices, equipment tags, and sizes that differ between floor plans, schedules, risers, one-line diagrams, and specifications, so the estimator confirms the number before it is priced.

Addenda, bulletins, and revisions

Identify what changed, check that related sheets, schedules, details, and spec sections were updated consistently, and flag requirements left behind from the earlier issue.

Your bid and pre-fabrication checklist

Run your company's bid checklist, the GC's scope sheet, or a pre-fabrication checklist across the set, including Division 01 items that carry cost: hoisting, temporary facilities, BIM coordination duties, testing and commissioning, and closeout.

By trade

The same review, focused on the documents that carry your scope. Each specialist guide lists the checks reviewers use for that discipline.

MECHANICAL · HVAC

Equipment, ducts, and clearances

Schedule capacities vs. spec efficiencies, duct routing vs. structure and ceiling cavity, curbs and pads, controls scope, and service access. Mechanical review checklist

ELECTRICAL · LOW VOLTAGE

Loads, panels, and pathways

Panel schedules vs. one-lines, connections for other trades' equipment, working clearances, emergency power, and device counts vs. plans. Electrical review checklist

PLUMBING · FIRE PROTECTION

Fixtures, risers, and penetrations

Fixture schedules vs. plans, riser diagrams, slopes and sleeves through structure, hydraulic and delegated-design responsibilities, and coordination with mechanical. Plumbing checklist · Fire sprinkler checklist

STEEL · CONCRETE · FRAMING

Members, connections, and embeds

Framing plans vs. schedules and details, delegated connection design, embeds and openings for other trades, and revisions that changed a member without updating the detail. Structural review checklist

GLAZING · ROOFING · ENVELOPE

Openings, schedules, and interfaces

Window and door schedules vs. elevations and details, performance requirements in the specs, flashing and transition details, and structural support for curtain wall and roof equipment. Window schedule checklist · Door schedule checklist

INTERIORS · SPECIALTIES

Finishes, blocking, and accessibility

Finish schedules vs. plans and specs, blocking and backing shown for casework and fixtures, accessibility mounting heights and clearances, and items specified in one place and drawn in another. Accessibility checklist

Useful before bid. Valuable before the first submittal

1

Upload the bid package

Add all disciplines' drawings, your specification sections and Division 01, addenda, the GC's scope sheet, and later your shop drawings or product data.

2

Choose the review

Pick your discipline, or the drawing-and-specification, constructability, shop drawing and submittal, or addendum and revision review. Add your own checklist if you have one.

3

Route confirmed items

Verify the cited evidence, then turn confirmed findings into bid qualifications and exclusions, RFIs to the general contractor, or corrections before the submittal goes out.

Use the findings to ask—not assume

Groundbook AI helps trade contractors surface possible scope, specification, and coordination issues with supporting evidence. Final design, engineering, means and methods, code, safety, and construction decisions remain with the responsible parties, and the design team's submittal review still applies.

  • Evidence for focused questions to the general contractor and design team
  • Findings organized by severity, discipline, and impact
  • Results typically ready in 20 minutes to 24 hours, depending on project size

What subcontractors ask

Can Groundbook AI review only my trade's scope?

Yes. Upload your specification sections, Division 01, the drawings for your discipline, and the adjacent disciplines that touch your work, then choose the discipline or review goal that matches your trade. The uploaded documents and selected checks define the scope, so the findings stay on your work while still catching items drawn on another trade's sheets.

Can it check shop drawings before I submit them?

Yes. The shop drawings and submittals review compares your shop drawings or product data against the design documents for scope, dimensions, materials, performance requirements, interfaces, deviations, missing information, and coordination with adjacent trades. Verify each finding before you correct the submittal; the engineer or architect of record still performs the formal review.

Does Groundbook AI do quantity takeoff or pricing?

No. It does not produce quantities or an estimate. It flags where plans, schedules, risers, and specifications disagree about counts, tags, sizes, or products, so your estimator knows which numbers to confirm before pricing.

Can it tell me what changed in an addendum or bulletin?

Yes. The addendum and revision review identifies what changed and checks whether related sheets, schedules, details, and specifications were updated consistently. Side-by-side drawing version comparison is available to beta users on request.

Which trades can use it?

Any trade whose scope is documented in drawings and specifications: mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, structural steel, concrete, framing and drywall, glazing, roofing, elevators, and low-voltage systems, among others. Published examples on this site come from building projects; see the sample review report.

Bid the scope that is actually in the documents

Run a free first review on a live bid set, or talk with us about checking shop drawings before submittal.