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Nova, BAU AI's bid leveling agent
Nova · Agent 03 · Bid leveling

AI bid leveling that finds the scope gaps
and unbalanced bids before you award.

Nova levels the sub bids you upload to one scope. It flags scope gaps, exclusions and unbalanced lines, each cited to the proposal page, and your team makes the award.

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NovaBid Evaluation Agent
Level the four Div 03 bids
Worked for 3 min · 7 steps
A$2,700,000
B$2,570,000
C$2,120,000
D$2,480,000
Bid lines mapped to CSI214 lines
Scope normalized4/4 bidders
Gaps and exclusions32 · 3 bidders
Missing scope priced in+$575K · B and D
Larkspur ConcreteAdjusted $2,700,000 · full scope · sample
Best value

Sample bidders and figures.

Lowest is not best · sample data

Which sub bid is lowest for the same scope?

Four sample Division 03 bids on one dollar axis. Flip to Leveled: Nova prices each missing scope line back in at the median of the bidders who carried it, cites the proposal page, and the order changes.

NovaBid Evaluation Agent
Sub proposals · Division 034 bidders · PDF, XLSX, DOCX · 214 lines
Level the four Division 03 bids and recommend an award
Worked for 3 min · 7 steps

Larkspur Concrete is the provisional best-value award at $2,700,000, with one clarification open. Caliche Flatwork marks 30 lines owner-supplied, so its low base bid is not comparable until they confirm scope. Brazos Bend left out formwork and Pinyon left out rebar; both are priced back in at the median of the bidders who carried them.

RankBidderAdjustedBond
1Larkspur Concrete$2,700,000Best value5%
2Brazos Bend Concrete$2,750,0005%
3Pinyon Structural$2,875,0005%
-Caliche FlatworkClarify30 lines open5%
Award memo, PDFBid tab, XLSXYour team makes the award.
SuggestionsShow the cited lines for CalicheDraft the award memo
Leveled bid tab · Division 03Concrete · Office Building, Phase 1 · Travis County, TX
Lowest bid$2,120,000Caliche Flatwork, base bid$2,700,000Larkspur Concrete, same scope
Scope priced inNoneBids as submitted+$575,000Brazos Bend, Pinyon
Low bid to best valueNot leveledFlip to Leveled$580,000Caliche to Larkspur
Bid tabSorted by total, one dollar axis
  1. 1Larkspur ConcreteA · XLSX bid form
    Full scope
    $2,700,000Best value
  2. 2Brazos Bend ConcreteB · PDF proposal
    +$180,000 formwork, 03 11 00 p. 4
    $2,750,000+$180,000
  3. 3Pinyon StructuralD · Scanned PDF
    +$395,000 rebar, 03 21 00 p. 2
    $2,875,000+$395,000
  4. -Caliche FlatworkC · DOCX quote
    30 lines owner-supplied p. 3
    ClarifyLow bidNot comparable

One scope, four biddersBid form Sec 00 41 00 · 7 of 214 lines
A · LarkspurFull scope
B · Brazos BendFormwork excluded
C · Caliche30 lines owner-supplied
D · PinyonRebar not carried
Unbalanced line checkMobilization, 01 31 00Unbalanced · p. 2
Pinyon$310,000
Median of A, B, C$128,000
Above median+142%

Paid on the first pay application, ahead of the work. Fix it in the schedule of values before award. The other lines sit within 12% of the median.

Leveled to one scope: missing scope priced in at the median of the bidders who carried it, each adjustment cited to the proposal page.

Sample bidders and figures, illustrative. Nova levels and drafts; your team checks the cited lines and makes the award.

How to level sub bids
8+ hrs*saved leveling each trade packageSix proposals read and mapped to one scope by CSI division.
15 min*from proposals to a leveled bid tabInstead of a day of spreadsheet work.
$800+*estimator cost saved per trade8 hours at a loaded rate of $100 an hour.
90%*less time building the bid tabEvery line tied to the proposal page it came from.
2%*of trade value found in scope gapsExclusions caught before award, not in buyout.
3×*more trades leveled before bid daySame team, every package checked.

*Illustrative

Follow one dollar

Where does an adjusted dollar come from?

One exclusion on page 2 of a sub proposal, followed to the median, the adjusted total and the award memo. An estimator can check every step.

  1. 1 · In the proposal“Reinforcing steel, furnished and installed by others.”

    PDFPinyon Structural proposal, exclusions, item 4 p. 2

    The bid form, Sec 00 41 00, requires 03 21 00 reinforcing bars in the base bid. Pinyon's price does not carry them.

  2. 2 · At the median+$395,000
    Larkspur, 03 21 00
    $390,000
    Brazos Bend, 03 21 00
    $400,000
    Median, priced in
    $395,000
  3. 3 · In the total$2,875,000

    Pinyon's base bid of $2,480,000 plus $395,000. Pinyon goes from lowest of the three comparable bids to highest. Illustrative.

  4. 4 · In the award memoCarry it, or confirm it

    Level on $2,875,000, or ask Pinyon to confirm rebar before award. The adjustment and its page cite go into the memo. Your team makes the call.

Leveled against US standards:CSI MasterFormat 2020 · AIA A401 · ConsensusDocs 750 · bid bonds · alternates · unit prices · schedule of values

The team

Where does Nova's
scope come from?

Clara extracts the scope and alternates from the solicitation. Theo adds quantities. Nova levels against that scope, and Dora reviews the subcontract.

Clara, BAU AI's bids and RFPs agent
Clara
Agent 01 · Bids and RFPs

Hands over the scope.

Reads the whole bid package, flags the risks with page cites, and drafts your Go/No-Go.
Dora, BAU AI's contracts agent
Dora
Agent 02 · Contracts

Reviews the subcontract.

Checks prime contracts and subcontracts against AIA and ConsensusDocs, and flags the clauses that shift risk to you.
Theo, BAU AI's takeoff agent
Theo
Agent 04 · Takeoff

Adds the quantities.

Takes quantities off 2D PDF plan sets, each one marked on its sheet.
FAQ

What do estimators ask about Nova?

Terms in the glossary: Bid leveling · Scope gap · Unbalanced bid · Award recommendation

Guides: What bid leveling is · How to level sub bids · Spotting scope gaps · Unbalanced bids · Bid leveling template · Compare bid leveling AI

How does Nova find scope gaps between subs?

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Nova maps every proposal to one scope by CSI MasterFormat, then shows line by line what each sub included, excluded or left out. Missing scope is priced back in, so you compare totals for the same work.

Does Nova catch unbalanced bids?

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Yes. Nova compares each line with the median of the other bidders on the same scope and flags lines far above or below it, such as front-loaded mobilization. Each flag cites the line in the sub's proposal.

What formats can subs bid in?

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PDF, including scanned proposals read with OCR, Excel and DOCX. Owner bid forms and free-form quotes are both mapped to one line-item structure.

Does Nova pick the winning sub?

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No. Nova builds the leveled bid tab and drafts an award memo with its reasons. Your team makes the award.

How do we check Nova's numbers?

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Every adjusted dollar traces to a line in a sub's proposal, with the page. Open the cell and you see the source.

What does Nova cost?

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Pricing is on request. Nova is available on every plan, alone on Solo or with other agents on Duo, Studio and Enterprise. See pricing.