Creating a Project Material List

One of the powerful features of Realtime Landscaping Architect is the ability to automatically generate a list of objects used in your landscape design. This Project Material List can aid in determining what needs to be purchased in order to construct your design, as well as helping to determine the total cost.

Important: All quantities and measurements are approximate. Always double check calculations for accuracy.

To view the Project Material List, click Tools and Project Material List. The picture below shows an example of a Project Material List.

Objects you have added to your landscape design will appear on the list. To change the name of an item, simply click the name and enter a new one.

The unit price for each object is set to zero by default. To set the price for a particular object, click the unit price and enter the desired amount.

If you make changes to item names or prices, the changes will be saved when you save your landscape design. However, if you would like to use your price and name changes in other landscapes, the price list will need to be saved separately. To save the price list, click the Save Price List button and enter a name for your list. To load the price list in another landscape design, open the Project Material List and click the Load Price List button. This can be done at any time.

Creating a Comprehensive Cost Estimate of your Project

The Project Material List only includes objects in your landscape design, not additional items such as labor and excavation. To create a more comprehensive cost estimate of your project, you can export the material list to Excel or other spreadsheet program and add the additional items as needed.

To export the project material list:

1.   Within the Project Material List, click the Export button.

2.   In the dialog that appears, type a name for your material list and then click the Save button.

If you have Microsoft Excel installed on your computer, then Realtime Landscaping Architect will automatically detect it and ask you if you would like to run it after the material list has been successfully exported. In the picture below, an example is shown of a Project Material List that was exported into Excel.

Important: The unit quantities shown on the Project Material List, such as area, volume, and length, are estimates based on the sizes of the objects that have been added to your landscape design. You should always have an experienced contractor inspect your jobsite and double check your measurements before purchasing materials.

Adding a Spreadsheet to the Plan View

Excel spreadsheets, Visio drawings, Word documents, and more can be added directly to the Plan view using the Embedded Object tool. For example, a custom material list could be displayed within your landscape design when viewing or printing the Plan view.

Options

Include hidden layers

By default, objects in hidden layers are included in the Project Material List. If you want to exclude them instead, then uncheck the Include hidden layers option

Include product information

Check this option to include additional product information for branded products.

Plant Information

Use these options to determine how plant names are displayed (common, botanical, or both). You can also determine whether or not to include the key and size of each plant.

To create a project material list that only includes certain objects:

1.   Move the objects you wish to be excluded from the Project Material List to a hidden layer. See Using Layers for details.

2.   Open the material list by clicking Tools and Project Material List.

3.   Click Options.

4.   Uncheck the Include hidden layers option and click OK. The objects in all hidden layers will now be removed from the material list.

To hide a layer, click the layer to the lower-right of the screen that you wish to hide. Next, click the right mouse button on the layer and select Hide objects in this layer.

For more information about layers, see Using Layers.