Working with Timber

Quick start

1. Use Project actions → Open example to open a building to practise with.
2. Click a wall. Its settings appear on the right.
3. Open Estimate at the top. Use Fill test prices to fill missing amounts and time standards.
4. In Overview, check the price of each wall and then the total row.
5. Choose Save, and use Download to keep your own project file.

Your workspace

At the top you will find the language, project name, file actions, help and the choice between the building and estimate. On the left you choose what to view in the project. On the right you edit the details of your selection.

Drag a panel edge to make it wider or narrower. Use the arrow in the panel heading to collapse it. Timber remembers panel widths and expanded sections after a refresh.

There is a building tour and a separate estimating tour. Choose Quick start, Key features or Extended tour. You can pause the extended tour and resume it later.

Drawing walls

1. Choose Draw, then Wall by wall or Rectangle.
2. Choose wall height and thickness, or an existing wall template.
3. For a rectangle, click two opposite corners. For Wall by wall, click the corners in sequence. The preview shows the walls and dimensions.
4. For precise sizes, open Draw to size. Enter length and direction, or the rectangle length and width.
5. Check the preview and choose Finish. Cancel or Escape discards only the preview. Undo reverses the last placed wall chain.

Under Wall position, choose left, centre or right of the drawing line. The main grid and snap grid help you position corners. Click a wall dimension later to change its length; connected walls move with it.

Openings and wall layers

To place the same frame again, select its existing opening and choose Place another like this. The frame type, dimensions and construction are retained. Indicate the new position; cancelling leaves the design unchanged.

Select a wall and open its wall workspace to view it face-on. The tabs on the right include General, Openings, Sheathing, Anchors and parts. Selecting another wall updates the details.

Placing a window or door

1. Select a wall and choose Window or Door above the drawing. The elevation opens immediately.
2. Choose a frame type, or enter the size of a free opening. Its bottom stays at the specified height; doors start at floor level.
3. Move across the wall and check the preview. Click to place.
4. With Place repeatedly, the same frame stays ready for the next click. Choose Done or press Escape to stop. Each placed opening can be undone separately.

Select the opening to drag it. Drag an edge to resize it, or click a dimension label to enter an exact value. Press Del to remove the selected opening. Click outside an input field before using this key.

An opening has Dimensions, Edge details and Construction tabs. Construction contains Studs, Subframe and Reveals. These include extra studs or members at the left, right, top and bottom, and short studs above and below the opening.

Material quantities follow the parts and sheathing in the model. Changes to the wall build-up therefore update the active estimate.

Changing existing frames

Open Window & door types → Placed for a type or project template. Select a row to see that frame in its wall and a picture of its connection detail with the full name. Edit ordinary dimensions directly in the table. Show opens the frame in the model.

1. Choose the scope: this frame, placed frames of this type, or everything in this list.
2. Choose a dimension and Add / subtract or Set to. For example, add 100 to Width. Use -100 to reduce it.
3. Check the old and new values before choosing Apply. Previewing does not change the project.
4. The message shows how many frames changed. Undo restores the whole operation. Invalid operations are rejected completely.

Sill heights apply only to windows; doors stay at floor level. These operations change existing placements. Change defaults for new frames under Frame & details; placed openings still using the standard dimension follow that change, while custom dimensions are preserved.

Choose an edge in the right panel to see its detail. The dropdown changes only this frame's assignment. Only this frame marks an exception; Follow frame type restores inheritance. The detail itself is shared: editing it after Open 2D detail also affects its other uses.

Working with phases

Phases divide a project into recognisable groups, such as Ground floor, First floor or Delivery 1. Open Phases to manage them.

1. Create a phase with a number, name and optional description.
2. Select the walls that belong together.
3. Use Assign selection to this phase on the required phase.

The current phase applies to newly drawn walls. Changing the current phase does not move existing walls. Use Assign selection to this phase to do that.

You can select every wall in a phase, show only that phase or hide it. Use Show all phases to show them again. When deleting a phase, choose where its walls should move; the walls are kept.

In the estimate, choose a phase under Estimate scope to view its wall totals and net material quantities. Phase prices add up the already allocated wall prices; ordering and waste are not recalculated for each phase. A phase CSV contains the wall, cost and hour subtotals for that selection. A frozen quotation and its printable quotation sheet cover the whole project.

Estimating in 6 steps

The estimate uses your own walls and materials. You do not need to type those quantities again. Follow these steps to build a price you can check.

1. Check materials and order quantities.
2. Choose the customer and supplier, then enter prices.
3. Set the production method, time standards and hourly rates.
4. Check wall prices, additional costs and the total.
5. Check the VAT percentage.
6. Freeze a quotation version and download it.

Use the separate Estimating tour at the top to see this guidance alongside the controls. You can stop at any time to try something yourself.

1Materials and ordering

Open Materials. Read quantities and edit the purchase price directly in the table. More settings opens additional agreements and the walls using the material below that row.

Net is what is in the model. Order adds the specified waste and rounds up to the order increment.

Price per quantity states how much material the price covers. Timber divides the order quantity by this amount, then multiplies it by the price.

Order increment 0 means no rounding to packs. Waste 0 means no extra allowance above the net quantity.

Selecting a wall filters its net quantities. Order quantities and article costs are still calculated for the project, so the same combined order is not rounded again for each wall.

2Prices and customer agreements

1. Choose the Customer and Supplier at the top.
2. Open Price agreements. Add a customer or supplier if needed.
3. Enter the purchase price directly in the material row. Open More settings for the pricing unit and price quantity.
4. Enter an optional sales base or customer agreement. Check the Effective sales price and its stated source.

Purchase price is what you pay. Sales base is the starting amount charged to the customer. Leave the sales base empty to use the purchase price with the configured sales markup.

Which agreement takes priority?

1. A fixed project price for the material.
2. An article agreement for this customer and supplier.
3. An agreement for the material group.
4. The standard customer discount.
5. The supplier base price.

These discounts do not stack. The first applicable agreement sets the sales price. Under Materials, you can also assign an individual article to a different supplier.

Using prices from Excel

Download the CSV template, enter the amounts in Excel and save it as CSV. Then choose Import CSV. Keep the article keys and column headings unchanged. Blank prices remain unknown; 0 means an intentional zero price.

Download profiles also transfers suppliers, customer agreements and production standards to another project. Import profiles replaces those settings in the open project. You can undo this, and frozen quotations are retained.

If you change the pricing unit or Price per quantity, enter the prices again. Dependent article agreements are cleared to avoid calculations using the wrong unit.

3Production and man-hours

Open Production & labour. A production profile describes how you make the walls, such as manually in the workshop. First enter the labour rate per man-hour.

1. Select an operation, such as fitting sheathing.
2. Choose its calculation basis, such as m² of sheathing, number of openings or number of walls.
3. Enter minutes per unit, any setup time and crew size.
4. Enter machine costs per hour if needed, and choose workshop, site or outsourced work.

A time standard describes elapsed minutes per unit. Setup time is counted once per profile and operation. It is added to the quantity multiplied by the time standard. Machine costs follow elapsed time; labour costs follow man-hours.

Use Copy profile to create another production method. Select a wall on the left to give it its own profile. Choose Use project profile to return it to the general production method.

Changing a profile affects all walls that use it. The operation table shows hours for that entire profile group.

4Wall prices and totals

The top of the overview shows cost, selling price, labour hours and counts. Complete prices and Complete labour lead to missing entries. When all active lines are complete, continue with Review quotation.

Open Overview. The wall table shows materials, labour and sales for each wall. With Whole project selected, the final row is the project total; with a phase selected, it is the phase total. Click a wall to see its cost breakdown.

Material waste and order rounding are allocated to walls according to consumption. General project costs are allocated by wall area. Costs assigned to a particular wall go to that wall. Overhead and VAT are allocated too: the wall amounts add up to the project amount.

Adding extra costs

Choose Cost item for items such as membranes, tape, transport, installation or outsourced work. Enter quantity and price. Choose Whole project or assign the line to a wall.

Overhead and sales markup

The estimating settings appear alongside the cost breakdown in Overview. Overhead is calculated on materials, labour and additional costs. Sales markup increases cost to a sales amount. A fixed material sales price replaces that markup for the material. Markup also applies to labour, additional costs and overhead.

Check the Missing information list. An incomplete total only contains known amounts; it is not yet a full price.

5Checking VAT

Enter the percentage in VAT (%) at the top of the estimate. New estimates start at 21%. Existing projects keep their saved percentage.

Quotation & export shows sales excluding VAT, the VAT amount and the total including VAT. VAT is calculated on the sales amount.

The input changes the active estimate. When you view a frozen quotation, its saved rate and amounts stay unchanged.

6Freezing a quotation

1. Fill all missing prices and time standards.
2. Check the customer, wall prices, hours and VAT.
3. Open Quotation & export and choose Freeze whole-project quotation. The version receives its own quotation number.
4. Choose the version under Estimate version.
5. Download CSV / Excel for the detailed calculation, Download quotation data for the data file, or Printable quotation for a quotation sheet. The printable sheet is available for a frozen version.

A frozen quotation keeps the quantities, prices, hours and VAT from that moment. Later changes to the model or prices do not change it. Choose Current estimate to return to the current calculation.

A project can contain up to 10 quotation versions. Download an old version before deleting it. Then use Save or Download for the complete project as well.

From PDF detail to materials and costs

1. Choose your detail

Open Details → Import PDF and choose a page. If it contains one detail, click Use this page. For several details choose Extract detail, hold the mouse button and drag a box around the required detail and choose Use this detail. Check the name. Cancel crop returns to the whole page.

2. Click a component

The right panel shows Components in this detail. Click a thumbnail to highlight its lines. Saved components appear first; suggested groups do not affect the estimate until confirmed and linked.

Use Previous/Next or the dropdown at the top of the component to browse without returning to the list.

You can also click directly in the drawing. Choose Groups for a complete profile or screw, or Lines to select individual lines. Blue previews the target; yellow shows your selection. Hold Ctrl or Shift to add or remove lines or groups.

With Selection box, hold the mouse button, drag to the second corner and release. Left to right selects lines fully inside; right to left also selects crossing lines. Cancel or Escape stops selection.

Check the yellow highlight and choose Yes, correct. Recognised callout leaders are filtered out. Use Not a component — exclude for remaining annotations. The overview lets you restore excluded suggestions. Recognition remains a suggestion: check that all parts of a screw or profile belong together.

3. Choose or create a material

Search for an existing material or item number. If it is missing, choose Create new material, enter a name and unit, and click Create and link material. You stay in the detail. The new material is available to other components in this project.

4. Follow the quantity, price and labour steps

The component panel shows one step at a time: check the selection, choose or create a material, enter consumption, set the supplier price, enter labour and review. Use Back and Next. Cancel during material creation returns to the material search.

Existing components open on a compact review. Click a row to edit it. Continue setup takes you to the first missing value. Next component moves straight to the next item. Waste and execution opens waste and workshop/site options on a separate page. Inputs update the project directly; use Save to keep the project locally.

5. Apply the detail

Choose edge details in Window & door types or Wall templates, then apply the type to an opening or wall. Actual edge lengths drive quantities. Estimate → Materials shows the breakdown; Overview shows wall prices and the total.

A confirmed line group is a selectable and estimatable component, not an automatically inferred 3D profile. To create a real cross-section, use Detail settings: calibrate the scale, trace the membrane or closed section and set its origin. Existing 3D components remain supported. Manually entered consumption per metre does not require paper-scale calibration.

Save and organise

The PDF and selected page remain on this device after refreshing. Open source PDF returns to the bundle. Zoom uses the original PDF for a sharp image. Scans contain no selectable vectors; use the tracing options in Detail settings.

Drag details between folders; the destination is highlighted. Right-click to move or delete. Deletion requires confirmation. Save stores the project locally; Download in the main header exports the complete project. Download library includes details and templates while project prices remain in their project. Import the same source PDF on another device to restore sharp rendering and line selection.

Using DWG

Import DWG / DXF remains available. Find a detail label, select a crop and save it. Review Import notices: some CAD objects and embedded images are unsupported. Compare with the PDF before linking materials.

Detail settings in three steps

The component panel has two tabs: Linked and Suggestions. Click a component to highlight it, then use the button on the right to continue or edit.

Detail settings contains only Name and folder, Check scale and Position in 3D. Back and Next guide you through one short step at a time. Edit materials, prices and labour on the component. Waste and execution opens a separate short page. To create a cross-section, choose Create 3D profile under Position in 3D, then follow Selection, Shape and Material.

Dragging shows a floating preview with the destination folder. The right-click menu contains only Move and Delete.

Dimension lines and layout

Set dimension is only needed for measuring and 3D profiles. Choose Select dimension line, click a straight dimension line and enter its printed value in millimetres. Use two points for scans or interrupted dimension lines. Manually entered material consumption does not require scale calibration.

Pause over a folder while dragging to open it. The indented insertion slot shows the destination; you can insert before or after another detail. Type & details shows the visual frame on the left and settings on the right. Used in openings has its own panel on the right, also under Operations and Estimate.

Set up window and door types together

If types A, B, C and D share details and operations, create one project template in Windows / doors.

1. Choose Add project template and give it a name.
2. Under Type & details, choose the connection detail for each edge.
3. Open Operations. Add installing, taping or protecting. Edit the name, basis, minutes and setup time directly in the table. More settings opens crew size, hourly rates and execution below that row.
4. Use Add window / door type for each type. Each has its own dimensions, supplier and purchase price. Link existing types assigns several existing types together.
5. Select the type for an opening in the building. Actual opening dimensions determine metres and m².
6. Open Calculation within this workspace for the selected type or all types under the template. The main Calculation workspace also includes other wall costs, wall totals and the project total.

Choose the quantity basis

• Per window / door: for example, 20 minutes to install each item.
• Per metre of selected edges: for example, taping the left, right and top edges.
• Per m²: width × height, for example for protection.
• Per fixing: multiplied by the fixing count entered for the type.

Setup time applies to each placed item. Time is multiplied by crew size to obtain person-hours. An empty operation rate follows the project template, then the wall production profile. Missing prices or time standards keep the estimate incomplete. Enter 0 deliberately when no cost applies.

Update once for every linked type

Change an edge detail or operation in the project template and linked types follow. Change a value on type B to create a visible override. Follow template restores the shared setting. You can also add an operation for just one type.

Linking to another template replaces type-specific details, operations and overrides after confirmation. Unlinking retains the current settings as the type’s own settings.

Save stores templates, types, prices and links in the project. A library download includes definitions, but excludes supplier prices and customer agreements. Download the complete project to transfer everything. Older types only include a complete purchase item after you enable that option.

Windows / doors uses the same fixed right sidebar as the Viewer. Settings and Used in openings are stacked collapsible sections. Click a section header to open or close it; drag the sidebar edge to resize it. These preferences are remembered. Used in openings remains in this sidebar under Operations and Estimate.

Draw your own details

1. Choose Details → Draw detail. Then choose a standard opening or edge detail: bottom, right, top or left. No PDF or DWG is required.
2. Choose a rectangle, circle, closed shape or line with thickness. For rectangles and circles, hold the mouse button, drag to the desired dimensions and release to place. Confirm lines and closed shapes with Add shape or Enter. Escape cancels.
3. Drag a component to move the whole shape. Click to choose its colour, link a material and enter its price and labour. Under Shape and dimensions, change points, exact dimensions, thickness and corner radius. Material data stays linked. Dimensions appear on the drawing. Select a circle to edit its radius directly in the right panel. Escape clears the selection.
4. Under Window & door types, assign the detail to an edge of a type or project template. It follows the actual opening in the estimate and 3D model.
5. Use Save for local storage and Download for your own project copy. The detail library exchanges editable details.

The frame reference shows a section through actual timber frame parts. Choose its wall, opening and connection under Frame reference. Refresh retrieves the current frame shape and preserves your drawing. This reference adds no duplicate material quantities.

Dimensions are millimetres. A strip's corner radius follows its centreline; an impossible radius produces a message. Consumption follows the shape: metres per metre of connection, square metres from strip width, cubic metres from cross-section area. The full estimate applies actual connection lengths, rates and purchasing agreements.

Screws and hatches

Choose Screw, select a size or enter length, diameter and direction. The preview follows the pointer; click where the head should go. Select the screw to edit its dimensions directly. The head, tip and schematic thread remain visible.

Enter Quantity per metre of connection and link your article, unit price and installation time. Calculation rounds up to whole screws per connection; 3D shows the same number of individual fasteners. Default names follow dimension changes; custom article names remain unchanged.

Choose Hatch for a component: none, diagonal, cross hatch or wood grain. Colours and hatches survive copying, moving and saving. Assign your detail to a frame type or edge and reuse it through the library.

Include materials from construction details

Membranes, tape, foam, EPDM and installation fixings can be estimated without modelling every item in 3D. Open Estimate → Additional materials to connect reusable details to walls, openings, connections or manual measurements.

1. Open Detail library. Add example details to practise, or create your own.
2. Select a detail. Enter its reference in the detail card and edit material rules directly in the table. Each rule has an article, unit, basis, consumption factor and labour standard.
3. Select a wall or the whole project on the left. Under Assignments, select a detail and choose Apply to locations. Opening details apply to openings in that selection. Connection details apply to top, bottom and shared wall connections.
4. Open More settings below each assignment to check it. Remove unwanted assignments or mark them Not applicable and explain why in the detail note.
5. Choose Detail checked. Changes to a wall, opening, rule or linked measurement require another check.
6. Set supplier prices under Materials or Price agreements, including CSV import. Costs feed into wall, phase and project totals.

How the rules work

• Gross/net area: wall or opening area. Net wall area subtracts openings. Returns extend both sides of each dimension. Strip width and overlap add membrane at the seams.
• Selected edges: left, right, top and/or bottom. Extra length is added to each selected edge. Copy a detail when, for example, a door needs a different bottom connection.
• Connection length: wall length at the top/bottom, or common contact height between walls.
• Manual quantity: an entered value or linked 2D measurement. Use the appropriate consumption factor, such as 0.2 m² EPDM per measured metre.
• Detail waste: additional material for this detail. Supplier waste and order increments are then applied to combined article consumption. Do not allow for the same waste twice.
• Labour: net material quantity × minutes per unit × crew size. Waste does not automatically add labour. Rates come from the wall profile unless the detail specifies its own rate. Choose Workshop or Site.

Under Check for missing details, enable the categories required for this project. Missing, changed or duplicate details keep the quotation incomplete. Download Detail breakdown CSV for formulas and references. Library downloads contain calculation rules; price lists are managed separately.

Measure quantities on a 2D detail

1. Open 2D measurement sheets. For a PDF, enter the page number before choosing Add PDF / image. PNG, JPG and WebP are also supported.
2. Choose Calibrate scale. Enter a known distance in millimetres, click both ends of that dimension and confirm with Enter or the confirmation button.
3. Choose Measure length, Measure area or Count points. Name the measurement, click the points and confirm. Area measurements close from the final point to the first.
4. Backspace removes the last point; Escape cancels the draft. Middle-drag pans; the wheel zooms to the cursor.
5. Under Assignments, open More settings below the assignment and choose the sheet and measurement. Its value feeds rules using Manual quantity. Multiply this base by the required consumption.
6. Check the result. Recalibrating updates linked quantities. Removing a linked measurement flags a missing source.

A project supports 6 sheets and 100 measurements per sheet. Input files may be up to 10 MB. Only the selected page is retained as a reduced image, with 1 MB allowed for all images combined. Keep the original PDF as your source. Download the project to retain sheets and measurements.

Actual costs: compare budget and actuals

1. Complete the estimate and freeze a quotation under Quotation & export.
2. Open Actual costs and choose that quotation as the fixed baseline.
3. Select a wall on the left or a phase at the top, then select a material or labour row.
4. Enter actual consumption, person-hours, rates and notes directly in the table. Blank means unknown; 0 means none was used.
5. Enter a different actual rate only when needed. A blank price uses the effective budget rate, including allocated procurement waste.
6. Explain variances in a note. Use Add unbudgeted costs for unforeseen material or labour. Set wall, execution stage, unit and actual price.
7. Download Actual costs CSV for the comparison and notes.

The baseline stays unchanged when you later edit the design or prices. The headline variance compares completed entries against their own budgets; the screen also counts blank entries. Comparison covers direct costs, excluding VAT, sales markup and overhead.

Saving and exchanging files

Local browser storage is not a shared cloud folder. Download a project file to keep your own copy or change devices.

Working with Masonry

Use To Masonry to transfer the building envelope, or export it and import the file. You can also receive an envelope from Masonry. Imported source walls are locked references; edit each product's own material in its configurator. Timber does not count the reference as its own timber in the estimate.

Troubleshooting

The opening does not fit.

Check its width, height and position. Leave room for studs between openings and at wall ends. Move the preview or make the opening smaller.

I cannot see my wall.

Check whether you hid or isolated a wall or phase. Choose Show all or Show all phases, then fit the model again.

A price is missing.

Select the material row and check the supplier, pricing unit and purchase price. Also enter time standards and the labour rate for active work. A blank is unknown; zero is an intentional value.

The order quantity does not change when I select a wall.

Ordering is calculated jointly per article. Selecting a wall shows net consumption; find its allocated price in Overview.

My quotation does not change after a price edit.

You are probably viewing a frozen version. Choose Current estimate for the new calculation. The old version is retained.

Save does not work.

Use Download to keep a project file. Then check your browser's storage settings.

Glossary

Main grid

The major axes used to set out the building.

Snap grid

The increment used to place drawing points accurately on the grid.

Net quantity

The material actually present in the model.

Order quantity

Net quantity plus the specified waste, rounded to the chosen order increment.

Time standard

The number of elapsed minutes an operation takes per unit.

Man-hour

The work of one person for one hour.

Cost price

Materials, labour, additional costs and overhead combined.

Sales price

The amount calculated for the customer, before VAT unless stated otherwise.

Quotation version

A fixed copy of the estimate at a particular point in time.

Import facades from a PDF

Choose PDF in the model or Project actions → Building from PDF. The local drawing reader needs to run on this computer with a vision model. The drawing stays local. Choose Connect drawing reader once and leave the local connection window open.

1. Choose a PDF. Clear grid letters and level labels can produce facade regions.
2. Select a region. The reader proposes its windows, doors and detail references. Check the source image.
3. Enter missing dimensions or select existing frame brands. Yellow values are image estimates. New brands can follow a project template and connection details.
4. Confirm the review, choose the start point in the model and select Place. The entire facade is one undo step.

Detail crops can be found directly from PDF references and whitespace, without waiting for AI. Earlier AI results are reused temporarily. Check the crop and add it to the existing library; materials, prices and time rates are completed there.

Automatic alignment and full dwelling reconstruction are not available yet. Source pages and checked import dimensions remain attached to the placed walls and openings.