I'm a new Maxwell Estimation Logistics user, but have come up to speed quickly and am already fairly proficient with the application. One feature I love is Estimation's interface to Trade Service's Supplier Xchange function, which comes at no extra cost with my TRA-SER SX pricing service subscription. Supplier Xchange lets me connect, in real time, to my specific supplier's pricing, which I can then import instantly into my bid. Supplier Xchange is easy to use, it's super fast, and best of all, it's helping me win bids I'd not normally have gotten.

Just recently, I bid on a $100K commercial project and came in as one of the top two bidders. I was given a short deadline to re-work my bid and come back with a 2nd estimate. I had just gotten Supplier Xchange and decided to use it for this job. After quickly importing my actual supplier's quoted pricing, I discovered I could knock $11,000 off my original bid, without losing profitability. And the best news of all: I was awarded the job! Without Supplier Xchange, I wouldn't have had the confidence to come in as low as I did.

I am currently using Supplier Xchange with two of my suppliers and showed each of them the live process so they could watch their pricing come across, in real time, into my estimating program. They loved the application and saw that this tool had the potential of earning them even more of my business. I'm using Supplier Xchange mostly for wire, conduit, and fittings, getting separate quotes for my switch gear and lighting. My suppliers are discovering that if they give me good pricing on lights and gear, they have an excellent chance of getting my commodity business as well.

Jan Ratzlaff

Hattaway Brothers, Inc.:

I want to take this opportunity to thank you and your team for the development of “Supplier Exchange”. I have been in the electrical business for over 25 years, and am still actively involved in the day to day estimating and bidding process, and I must say that ‘supplier exchange’ is the most powerful tool that I have ever seen for the contractor!!!! No more checking your database discounts against column 3, which is a time consuming task, just take off the job, point and click, and in a matter of seconds, you have real time, REAL prices that are what my company would actually pay for a particular item. Next, simply export them into my database and bid the job with confidence knowing my prices are accurate and current!

No more guessing if my database is going to cost me another job that I desperately need to land, and not to mention the time required to adjust all the discounts in order to get the prices ‘somewhat close’ to actual. What a powerful tool to have in my estimation department, I wish I could keep this a secret against my competition!!

Thank you for making our estimating job easier, but more importantly, making our estimates more accurate, where we can bid projects with greater ease, less time and with the confidence knowing what our true cost is, . . . . . what a difference this has made in our office. We will never go back to the old fashion methods again. Thanks Trade Service for providing  my company with cutting edge technology, and the resources available to win more projects in a very competitive market!!

Terrell Hattaway
Vice President