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Unit Accumulation allows you to combine Order Quantities of different Bid Items when those Bid Items' Cost Columns are assigned to the same accumulator (Cost Type, Budget, Crew, Cost Table or Vendor) and have the same Order Unit (such as "Hours", "Days", "MBF"). Unit Accumulators provide an easy way to get a total of labor hours (for instance, for all carpentry or plumbing, or all the hours one subcontractor is needed for).
For example, the Crew Table accumulates the Total (Order) Quantity (usually hours, man-hours, or days) that each Crew will be needed in the current Bid, as well as the Total Cost for the Crew. In order for this to work, each Item which uses the Crew must have the appropriate Crew Code entered in the Item, and have its Order Unit the same as the Crew's Order Unit. If the Order Units were different, it would be like adding apples and oranges. Note that the Item's Bid Units can be different than the Crew Unit. Because the Crew always provides the Labor Raw Cost, It is only the Labor Order Unit which must match the Crew's Unit. The Crew Table provides accumulates the Total Quantity accumulation, even if you do not have the Unit Accumulation option. If you do have the Unit Accumulation option, though, you will also get a Unit Cost and Unit Price computed, which are the Crew Total Cost divided by the Crew Total Quantity, and Crew Total Price divided by the Crew Total Quantity, respectively.
Budgets also have Unit Accumulators, but Budgets can be assigned to any of the five Cost Columns (Material, Labor, Equipment, Subcontractor, or Other). The Budget List will display the (accumulated) Total Quantity, Unit, Unit Cost and Unit Price if either the Unit Accumulation or the Scheduling option is enabled. Why would you want to total a Budget's Order Quantities? Lots of reasons: Suppose you wanted to get the total cubic yards of all types of concrete you use for a job? If you assign all the concrete materials to one Budget, and order all concrete in cubic yards ("CY", "Cu.Yd.", etc.), the Budget will accumulate the total cubic yards of concrete for the Bid (provided that you make the Budget's Unit cubic yards!). But be sure you do not assign any non-concrete costs to that Budget, or they will be added into the Total Cost and Price. Also, be sure to spell the unit the same way in each Item; EasyEst Estimating does not know that "Cu.Yd." means the same thing as "CY"! Budget Unit Accumulation can also be used to total hours of labor or equipment use, dollars for permits and fees, board feet (or thousand board feet) of lumber, etc.
The Cost Type List has two Order Units, which are separately accumulated. They are generally used to total hours of labor, equipment use, or subcontractor work. You may not need both Unit Accumulators, but they are there just in case. Each Unit (labeled "Unit 1" and "Unit 2") have an associated Total Quantity ("Order Qty 1" and "Order Qty 2"), and a Unit Cost and Unit Price based on the Total Cost or Total Price of the Cost Type divided by the appropriate Order Qty. The Cost Type List only displays Unit Accumulators if the Unit Accumulator option is turned on.
One of the most useful places where you can apply Unit Accumulators is the Cost Table. The Total Order Quantity for each Cost Table Entry provides a convenient list of all uses of each kind of material, labor trade, or kind of equipment. For instance, a 2x4 can be used in many different ways: as stud, a plate, a deck railing, etc. You may have different Items for each of these uses because they each have different labor hours and conversion factors associated with them. However, it would be nice to get a total of all the 2x4x8s needed for the job (and a separate total of 2x4x10s, etc.). If you use the Cost Table to provide the Raw Costs for each of these Item's Materials, not only do you have a faster way of entering new prices from the lumber yard, but you also can get a quick total of all the material you will need for the current Bid. Similarly, a plumber can be used to install a sink, a tub, a toilet, etc., but you want to know how many hours total you will need from your plumbing sub. Again, by putting each type of laborer in the Cost Table, you can get a convenient combined total across different Items. (There are also Reports in Level 4 which allow you to get combined total of all uses of a given Item.)
Finally, the Vendor List will also total Order Quantities for all Item Cost Columns provided by a given Vendor. If the Vendor is a subcontractor, you could total the hours or days he/she will be needed. If the Vendor is a lumber yard, you could total the board feet of lumber (if all of your lumber is ordered by the board foot). Note that, as with all Unit Accumulators, the Total Cost and Total Price include all Bid Item Cost Columns assigned to that Vendor, whereas the Total Quantity only applies to those with matching Order Units (assigned to that Vendor, of course).
The optional Bid Information Form has something like a Unit Accumulator, but it is not an accumulator: you can enter the total Area for the Bid, and the form displays the Bid Cost and Price per Square Foot.
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