Concrete takeoff for ready-mix and rebar suppliers. Yards, pounds and accessories, from the plans.
Concrete takeoff for suppliers turns a contractor's foundation and slab plans into what a ready-mix or rebar supplier quotes: concrete by the cubic yard from measured areas and documented thickness, reinforcing by the pound, and the chairs, vapor retarder, tape, forms and curing compound around them. This page has the concrete recipes to try, a clip of a sample foundation plan being read, a table of a concrete order, and the recipes as a CSV.
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Can a ready-mix or rebar supplier get quantities from the plans?
Yes. Ruh measures slabs, footings and walls separately and computes concrete volume only from measured geometry and documented thickness, then turns each element into material: ready-mix by the cubic yard, reinforcing by the pound, chairs, tie wire, vapor retarder and curing compound, with waste added where each recipe sets it. You get 13 concrete recipes to start from and change, and we take off the first set at no cost.
- concrete recipes to start from, yours to edit
- 13
- material lines in the concrete recipes
- 78
- a full takeoff on a foundation set
- 1st takeoff free
How much concrete does a 4 inch slab take?
About 0.0123 cubic yards per square foot in the app's starting recipe, which is 4 inches divided by 324, plus 5 percent waste, with mesh, chairs, vapor retarder and curing on their own lines. Enter slab, footing or wall quantities to see the order, without prices.
1. Pick a starting recipe
Slab on grade 4" thick, 6x6 W1.4xW1.4 WWF, 15 mil vapor retarder, cured
Order list for 12,000 square feet of Slab on grade 4" thick, 6x6 W1.4xW1.4 WWF. A sample input: change it to the quantity on your set.
| Material | Per SF | Quantity | Waste | With waste |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ready-mix concrete, 4,000 psi, 3/4 in aggregateHow it is built4 in / 12 / 27 = 0.0123 CY per SF | 0.0123 CY | 147.6 CY | 5% | 154.98 CY, incl. 5% waste |
Welded wire reinforcement 6x6 W1.4xW1.4, 5x10 sheetsHow it is built50 SF sheet lapped 6 in each way covers 42.75 SF: 50 / 42.75 = 1.17 SF per SF. Lap is in the factor, so no waste | 1.17 SF | 14,040 SF | None | 14,040 SF |
Slab bolster / mesh chair, 2 inHow it is builtOne support per 4 SF (2 ft grid) | 0.25 EA, whole units | 3,000 EA | None | 3,000 EA |
Vapor retarder, 15 mil polyethylene, ASTM E1745 Class AHow it is built6 in laps on 14 ft rolls: about 10 % over the slab area | 1.1 SF | 13,200 SF | 5% | 13,860 SF, incl. 5% waste |
Vapor retarder seam tape, 4 inHow it is builtOne seam per 14 ft of roll width: 1 / 14 = 0.07 LF per SF | 0.07 LF | 840 LF | 5% | 882 LF, incl. 5% waste |
Curing compound, ASTM C309 Type 1How it is built300 SF per gallon: 1 / 300 = 0.0033 GAL per SF | 0.0033 GAL | 39.6 GAL | 5% | 41.58 GAL, incl. 5% waste |
Each line is the measured quantity times the recipe’s factor. Lines the recipe marks as whole units, such as sheets, boxes and hangers, are rounded up before waste, the way the app rounds them. Round the with-waste figure up to whole pieces when you build the order.
What this cannot tell you: depths the drawings do not give, or a pour schedule. Volume comes from measured area and documented thickness, so a thickened edge with no section waits for a person. The rebar here is the starting recipe's rate, while the product weighs bar from the bar schedule on the set, and trucks and pours are not scheduled.
What does Ruh see on a foundation plan?
Footings and piers are counted against the footing schedule, footing runs are traced and slab areas fill as the plan is read, each tied to its sheet. Those quantities are what the recipes above turn into yards and pounds.
What does a concrete order carry?
Volume, steel and accessories each come off a different part of the set. The rows show where, how each is taken off, and what it adds to the order.
| Part of the order | Where it is on the set | How it is taken off | What it becomes on the order |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slabs on grade | Foundation plan and slab sections | Square feet by thickness | Ready-mix by the yard, mesh or bar, chairs, vapor retarder, seam tape and curing compound |
| Footings | Foundation plan and the footing schedule | Linear feet or counts by size | Ready-mix, bar from the schedule, chairs, form lumber and stakes |
| Foundation walls | Foundation plan and wall sections | Square feet by thickness | Ready-mix, vertical and horizontal bar, form panels, ties and release agent |
| Columns and piers | The column or pier schedule | Counted by size | Ready-mix, vertical bar and ties, forms |
| Slab on deck | Structural plans and deck details | Square feet | Ready-mix over the deck profile, mesh |
| Sidewalks and curbs | Site plan and details | Square feet or linear feet | Ready-mix, aggregate base, mesh or bar, forms |
Typical practice, not a standard. Thickness, bar and mix come from each job's structural drawings.
What do suppliers get wrong about concrete quotes?
Our opinion: Ready-mix gets quoted from the slab area, and the rest of the order gets left for someone else. Every slab on grade in the app's starting recipes brings chairs, vapor retarder, seam tape and curing compound with it, and the bar in a reinforced slab comes off the bar schedule, not the slab area. A supplier who reads the sections can quote the concrete, the steel and the accessories in one list, and the contractor only has to send the set once.
What it does and does not do
What it does today
- ✓Measures slabs, footings and walls separately from drawing PDFs
- ✓Computes volume only from documented thickness, never assumed depths
- ✓Weighs reinforcing from the bar schedule on the set
- ✓Prices from your own price list first, with the source on every line
- ✓Exports as PDF, CSV or JSON
What it does not do
- Rebar detailing or placing drawings
- Pour or truck scheduling
- Purchase orders
- Reading a reply or a quote back into the list
- Links to your ERP or point-of-sale system
Your first concrete takeoff is free.
Send a foundation or slab set your team already has, and we take it off for free. The concrete recipes download as a CSV.
In a customer’s own words
“Ruh helped us win a job during the demo, so we saw value before we even became a client.”
Ben MorlinJ&S Excavation- takeoffs delivered to 29 contractors across 15 trades
- 45
- US, Canada and the UK, Jun to Oct 2026
- starting recipes in this supply line, yours to edit
- 13
- 78 material lines between them
- for every output, the material list included
- PDF, CSV
- and JSON for your own systems
Questions concrete and rebar suppliers ask
Answers on volume and rebar for concrete suppliers.
What is concrete takeoff for suppliers?
Concrete takeoff for suppliers is measuring the slabs, footings and walls on a set of plans so a ready-mix or rebar supplier can quote the volume, steel and accessories. Ruh measures, converts and prices from your file, and the final price is your call.
How is concrete volume figured?
How is rebar weight figured?
What foundation drawings should we send?
Send a set. Check the yards and pounds.
Send one foundation set and weigh the free yards, pounds and accessories against your numbers.
