Fire takeoff software. Sprinkler heads, pipe, and risers, counted off the plans.
Fire takeoff software reads your fire protection plans, head schedule, and riser details and turns them into a sprinkler takeoff where every head and every foot of pipe is tied to the sheet it came from. Below, watch it count a sprinkler plan, see the checks that catch a missed head, and get a free takeoff on your own set.
Then price it: construction estimating softwareClients include
Construction companies working with Ruh
Can fire sprinkler estimating software do the takeoff too?
Yes, for wet sprinkler systems. Ruh counts heads by type and measures pipe by size off the fire protection plans, prices them through 13 starting fire sprinkler recipes you can edit, and holds any area left to delegated design instead of filling it from coverage rules such as the 225 SF per head NFPA 13 allows in light hazard.
- fire sprinkler recipes to start from, yours to edit
- 13
- per standard head in light hazard, NFPA 13 maximum
- 225 SF
- on every head, the second one blind
- 2 counts
What happens when Ruh reads a fire protection set?
Ruh reads the sprinkler plan against the head schedule, counts each head by type, measures branch lines and mains by size and system, and counts the riser, the fire department connection, and the inspector's test connection. Each quantity stays on the sheet where it sits, so the takeoff can be checked head by head.
- 1
Each head is counted by type from the head schedule as the scan passes, marked where it sits on the plan.
- 2
Branch lines, feed mains, and cross mains are measured by size, and the hangers and couplings come with each foot of pipe at NFPA 13 spacing.
- 3
Where the plan shows no layout, such as a tenant area by delegated design, the line waits for one instead of being invented from coverage notes.
Where fire sprinkler bids lose margin
Sprinkler bids are lost in the counts and the pipe, not the square footage: a head type miscounted, a main measured at the wrong size, and an area with no layout priced as if it had one.
The pipe hides the margin
Head counts are visible. The money is in the pipe by size, the fittings and hangers that come with it, and the riser trim, which are easy to shortcut on a fast manual takeoff.
Coverage decides the year
Fire protection contractors are invited to more bids than a small estimating room can count by hand. A sprinkler set nobody prices by bid day goes to the contractor who did.
Delegated design leaves gaps
Many sets show heads in some areas and only coverage notes in others. Pricing an area nobody has laid out from a typical head density is a guess carried into a lump sum.
Our view: A sprinkler takeoff should count what the plans show and say plainly what they do not. An area with no layout is a scope question to settle before bid day, not a number to fill in from a rule of thumb.
What gets measured on a fire protection set
A sprinkler takeoff, Division 21 of the spec, splits into heads, pipe, and riser equipment, and each is measured differently. Each sprinkler item below is matched to the sheet it appears on, how it is counted or measured, and what it adds to the price.
| Item | Where it is on the set | How it is taken off | What it drives in the price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pendent, upright, and sidewall heads | Sprinkler plans and head schedule | Counted by type | Heads, drops or arm-overs, fitter labor |
| Flexible drops | Sprinkler plans and details | Counted by type | Hose kits, brackets, labor |
| Branch lines | Sprinkler plans and general notes | Measured by size and system | Pipe, hangers, couplings, fittings |
| Cross mains and feed mains | Sprinkler plans and general notes | Measured by size and system | Grooved pipe, hangers, mechanical tees |
| Riser | Riser detail | Counted per riser | Control valve, check, flow switch, drain, trim |
| Backflow and fire department connection | Site plan and riser details | Counted by the each | Backflow assembly, FDC, check, labor |
| Inspector's test connection | Sprinkler plans and details | Counted by the each | Test and drain valve, pipe, labor |
| Areas by delegated design | Coverage notes | Held until a layout exists | Design, hydraulic calculations, stamped drawings |
Typical practice, not a standard. Head types, pipe sizes, and systems come from your plans, schedules, and notes; where the set shows no layout, the line waits for your estimator rather than taking a typical head density.
How do you know the head count is right?
No head is priced until the sprinkler plan has been counted twice, the second time blind. Pipe lengths wait on a confirmed scale, and every line links to its sheet, so a disagreement becomes an issue to settle rather than a number to trust.
- ✓
A blind second count
Every head is counted again by type without seeing the first pass. When two counts of a head type disagree, both figures stay on screen until someone settles it from the plan.
- ✓
No scale, no quantity
Branch line and main footage stays blank on any sheet whose scale has not been proven against a printed dimension.
- ✓
No layout, no invented heads
Where a plan shows coverage notes instead of heads, the line waits for a layout rather than being filled in from an assumed spacing.
- ✓
Your estimator prices the system
Head, pipe, and riser lines carry their price source, and the proposal waits until your estimator approves the budget.
From bid invite to a priced sprinkler takeoff in three steps
- 1
Send the set
Sprinkler plans, the head schedule, riser and FDC details, coverage notes, and the Division 21 spec, as PDF or CAD, straight from the bid invite.
- 2
Ruh measures and checks
Heads are counted by type, branch lines and mains measured by size and system, and the riser, backflow, FDC, and test connection counted. A blind recount of the heads runs before anything is priced.
- 3
Your estimator signs it
Settle any flagged head or run, price on your own price files and rates, and export. Quantities download sheet by sheet as a CSV for Excel, and the marked sprinkler plan downloads as a PDF colored by condition.
Your first sprinkler takeoff is free.
We take off your sprinkler plans at no charge. A set you have already bid makes the count easy to judge. Counting by hand first? The sprinkler takeoff worksheet is a free CSV with the items, sizes, units, and columns for your own labor units.
In a customer's own words
“Our estimators spent more time retyping quantities than thinking about scope. Ruh reads our drawings like a senior estimator and hands back a priced estimate we want to review, not rebuild.”
Director of PreconstructionADF Group- faster bid turnaround
- ~50%
- ADF Group, structural steel
- on every takeoff, the second one blind
- 2 counts
- Checks tab, before anything is priced
- tied to the sheet it came from
- Every line
- Takeoff and price sheet
Questions fire protection estimators ask
What fire protection contractors ask before trusting an AI takeoff on a real bid.
What is fire sprinkler estimating software?
Fire sprinkler estimating software turns fire protection plans into a priced sprinkler bid: heads by type, pipe by size and system, and riser equipment by the each, then the labor, material, design, and permit lines around them. Ruh does the takeoff for fire protection contractors and subcontractors, ties each quantity to its sheet, and prices on your own rates in a budget your estimator edits and approves.
How do fire sprinkler estimating programs price a bid?
Can it read fire protection plans and riser details?
What happens to areas with no sprinkler layout?
Does it cover fire suppression systems beyond wet sprinklers?
How accurate is the fire protection takeoff?
Does it take off fire alarm, fireproofing, or firestop?
Is there free fire sprinkler estimating software?
Send a set. Judge the takeoff yourself.
One fire protection set, a free takeoff, and a 30-minute walkthrough of the heads, the pipe by size, and the riser equipment. If the head count does not match yours, it cost you nothing.