Libraries

Structured Libraries for Consistent and Scalable Estimating

Standardise how you build estimates using reusable libraries for breakdown structures, cost items, resources, and more. Improve consistency, reduce effort, and enable benchmarking across projects.

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Eight Default Libraries

Eight Default Libraries

Build once, reuse everywhere, and continuously improve your estimating data.

Consistency is critical to accurate estimating. Without structured data and standard approaches, projects become difficult to compare, benchmark, and improve. Sterling libraries provide a centralised foundation that enables teams to build estimates in a consistent, repeatable way.

By storing breakdown structures, cost items, resources, and more in reusable libraries, organisations can standardise their estimating approach across all projects. This not only improves efficiency, but also creates a reliable dataset that can be used for benchmarking, analysis, and continuous improvement over time.

Breakdown Structures and Cost Coding

Define how your estimates are structured using standard or custom frameworks.

Create and manage breakdown structures such as NRM, CESMM, ICMS, RMM, and HMM

Build custom structures aligned to your organisation or client requirements

Define cost codes that support consistent reporting and analysis

Collaborate across teams working on the same drawings

Apply multiple breakdown structures to the same estimate

Link resources directly to measured quantities

Maintain alignment across projects, teams, and regions

Support both cost planning and detailed estimating workflows

Breakdown Structures and Cost Coding

Define how your estimates are structured using standard or custom frameworks.

Create and manage breakdown structures such as NRM, CESMM, ICMS, RMM, and HMM

Build custom structures aligned to your organisation or client requirements

Define cost codes that support consistent reporting and analysis

Collaborate across teams working on the same drawings

Apply multiple breakdown structures to the same estimate

Link resources directly to measured quantities

Maintain alignment across projects, teams, and regions

Support both cost planning and detailed estimating workflows

Resource Libraries

Capture the real drivers of cost and carbon through structured resource data.

Build libraries of labour, plant, materials, and subcontract resources

Assign both cost and carbon values to each resource

Maintain transparency of rates and assumptions

Support accurate bottom up estimating

Align resource data across all projects

Enable consistent reporting and benchmarking of resource performance

Resource Libraries

Capture the real drivers of cost and carbon through structured resource data.

Build libraries of labour, plant, materials, and subcontract resources

Assign both cost and carbon values to each resource

Maintain transparency of rates and assumptions

Support accurate bottom up estimating

Align resource data across all projects

Enable consistent reporting and benchmarking of resource performance

Cost Items and Activities

Standardise how work is defined and priced across your organisation.

Create libraries of priced cost items and activities

Map cost items to one or multiple breakdown structures

Reuse cost items across projects to improve efficiency

Maintain consistent pricing approaches and assumptions

Support both high level and detailed estimating

Link resources directly to measured quantities

Enable easier comparison and benchmarking between projects

Standard Bid and Trade Packages

Standardise how work packages are structured, issued, and analysed.

Create libraries of standard bid or trade packages

Define consistent structures for subcontractor enquiries

Reuse package formats across projects

Improve clarity and consistency in procurement processes

Enable benchmarking of returned prices across projects

Support better commercial decision making

Standard Bid and Trade Packages

Standardise how work packages are structured, issued, and analysed.

Create libraries of standard bid or trade packages

Define consistent structures for subcontractor enquiries

Reuse package formats across projects

Improve clarity and consistency in procurement processes

Enable benchmarking of returned prices across projects

Support better commercial decision making

Complex Resources

Model real construction activities using structured combinations of resources.

Create complex resources driven by multiple simple resources

Build nested complex resources to reflect real construction methods

Use single drivers to control calculations across multiple components

Example use cases such as brickwork gangs or installation teams

Improve accuracy and consistency in resource based estimating

Reuse complex resources across multiple projects

Supporting Libraries and Standards

Extend consistency across all areas of the platform with additional reusable data.

Maintain libraries of standard units of measure

Store and reuse report templates across projects

Define consistent measurement and reporting standards

Support alignment across estimating, reporting, and analysis

Reduce setup time for new projects

Ensure consistency across all outputs and deliverables

Explore Libraries

Sterling supports the full range of roles involved in preconstruction, giving each team the clarity and confidence they need, without forcing change for the sake of it.

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