Directory
Glossary
The jargon you will hear on demo calls, defined in plain English. General definitions; contract and legal terms vary by state and by contract.
- Aerial measurement report
- A document produced from satellite, aerial or drone imagery that gives the dimensions of a roof or building: areas, pitch, edge lengths. Used to estimate without a site visit. Aerial measurement & roof reports
- AI agent
- Software that uses an AI model to carry out a multi-step task, such as drafting and sending a request for information, rather than only answering a question. What counts as an agent varies by vendor. Project management platformsDocuments, contracts & specs
- AI receptionist
- A voice or chat assistant that answers calls or messages for a business, collects the details of the request and may book an appointment. Phone, chat & AI receptionists
- Allowance
- A budgeted amount in a contract for something not yet chosen, such as flooring or fixtures. If the final selection costs more or less, the contract price is adjusted. Residential, remodeling & trades
- Bid leveling
- Comparing bids from several subcontractors or suppliers on the same basis by adjusting for differences in scope, exclusions and alternates. Bid management & preconstruction
- BIM (building information modelling)
- A digital model of a building where each element carries data such as size, material and cost, used for design, coordination and quantity extraction. Design, BIM & generative design
- Certified payroll
- A weekly payroll report, required on many public projects, that shows each worker’s classification, hours and pay to demonstrate compliance with prevailing wage rules. Field operations & workforceFinance, payments & back office
- Change order
- A written change to the contract scope, price or schedule that both parties agree to after the work has been awarded. Project management platformsFinance, payments & back office
- Clash detection
- Checking a combined building model for places where elements collide, such as a duct passing through a beam, before they are built. Design, BIM & generative design
- Computer vision
- AI that analyses images or video. In construction it is used to read plan sheets, measure roofs from aerial images, track progress from site photos and spot hazards on camera. Estimating & takeoffProgress tracking & reality captureSafety & riskAerial measurement & roof reports
- Critical path method (CPM)
- A scheduling technique that identifies the chain of dependent tasks that determines the earliest finish date. A delay to any task on that chain delays the project. Scheduling & planning
- Daily log (daily report)
- A record of what happened on site each day: weather, crews, work done, deliveries, visitors and issues. Field operations & workforceProject management platforms
- Digital twin
- A digital representation of a building or site that is kept up to date with real-world data, so it can be used to track progress or operate the asset. Progress tracking & reality captureDesign, BIM & generative design
- Dispatch
- Assigning a job to a technician or crew and sending them to the customer, often with a route and the job details on their phone. Field service & dispatch
- Field service management (FSM)
- Software for businesses that send technicians to customers: scheduling, dispatch, quoting, invoicing, payments and customer history. Field service & dispatch
- Job costing
- Tracking the actual labor, material and other costs of each job against its budget, so you know whether the job made money. Finance, payments & back officeProject management platforms
- Large language model (LLM)
- The kind of AI model behind chat assistants. It reads and writes text, and is used in construction software to answer questions about documents and draft messages. Documents, contracts & specsProject management platforms
- Lien waiver
- A document in which a contractor, subcontractor or supplier gives up the right to file a mechanic’s lien for the amount paid. Often required with each payment. Rules vary by state. Finance, payments & back office
- MasterFormat
- A standard system for organising construction specifications and costs into numbered divisions by trade or work type, such as Division 09 for finishes. Documents, contracts & specsEstimating & takeoff
- Pay application
- A contractor’s periodic request for payment, usually showing the value of work completed to date against the contract. The AIA G702 and G703 forms are common examples. Finance, payments & back office
- Prequalification
- Screening a subcontractor before inviting it to bid, typically on experience, financial strength, safety record and capacity. Bid management & preconstructionSafety & risk
- Prevailing wage
- A minimum wage rate set by a government authority for specified trades on public work. Contractors must pay at least that rate and often report it. Field operations & workforceFinance, payments & back office
- Pull planning
- A collaborative scheduling method where trades work backward from a milestone to agree what each needs from the others and when. Scheduling & planning
- Punch list
- A list of items that remain to be corrected or completed near the end of a project before final acceptance. Project management platformsField operations & workforce
- Reality capture
- Recording the physical state of a site with 360° cameras, drones, laser scanners or fixed cameras, for documentation and progress comparison. Progress tracking & reality capture
- Retainage
- A percentage of each payment withheld until the work is complete, held as security that the contractor will finish it. Finance, payments & back office
- RFI (request for information)
- A formal question from a contractor to the design team when plans or specifications are unclear or conflict. The answer becomes part of the project record. Project management platformsDocuments, contracts & specs
- Schedule of values
- A breakdown of the contract price into line items, used as the basis for pay applications. Finance, payments & back office
- Scope of work
- The description of what a contractor or subcontractor will and will not do on a project. Bid management & preconstructionDocuments, contracts & specs
- Specifications
- The written requirements for materials, workmanship and performance that accompany the drawings. Documents, contracts & specs
- Submittal
- Product data, shop drawings or samples sent to the design team for review before materials are ordered or installed. Documents, contracts & specsProject management platforms
- Takeoff
- Measuring and counting quantities from plans, such as square feet of drywall or number of outlets, as the basis for an estimate. Estimating & takeoff
- Voice agent
- An AI system that conducts a spoken conversation, such as answering a business phone line. Phone, chat & AI receptionists