Customers / Wastewater & Lift Stations
GM&I ServicesHow GM&I Plans to Double Its Bids With One Estimator
GM&I Services installs, repairs and maintains lift stations, the pump stations that move wastewater to the sewer line, across Texas, and its CEO is also its only estimator. A takeoff that used to take him three to four days now comes back from The Takeoff AI in about two hours, with labor hours and a 3D model attached.
- Customer
- GM&I Services LLC
- Sectors
- Wastewater & Lift Stations
- Disciplines
- Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Structural
- Interviewee
- Joseph Gentry, Chief Executive Officer
- Takeoff on a 26 page set, down from 3 to 4 days by hand
- ~2 Hrs
- The most one missed item can cost GM&I on a single bid
- $200K
- The bids Joseph expects to take on each year, up from about 50 today
- 2x
- Estimator at GM&I, who is also the CEO and the only salesperson
- 1
GM&I ServicesThe Takeoff AI didn't miss anything, even the small things I'd miss when I get called out to the field. I do 50 projects a year now, and with this platform I could double or triple that.
Joseph Gentry
Chief Executive Officer, GM&I Services
A 24/7 Wastewater Team Built in Two Years
GM&I Services is based in Alvin, Texas, and handles lift station inspections, new installs, repairs and maintenance agreements for general contractors, property management companies, homeowners associations, subdivisions and restaurant owners.
Joseph started the company in September 2024 and has grown it from 2 people to 11, with crews traveling to jobs from Brownsville to San Antonio and Austin. A sewer station that goes down can't wait, so the team is on call every day of the week, and response time is what clients pick them for.
Every Takeoff Came Out of the CEO's Day
Joseph bids 60 to 80 jobs a year across public and private work, and every public bid meant days of scaling drawings by hand between field calls.
- 01
Three to Four Days Per Takeoff
A 20 to 30 page public bid took Joseph three to four days of mechanical, electrical, plumbing and structural takeoffs, done between quoting, site visits and phone calls.
- 02
Six Figures Riding on One Miss
On a wastewater treatment plant job, missing one item or a few small ones could cost GM&I anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000.
- 03
Half the Day Spent Estimating
Of a 10 hour workday, about half went to quoting and estimating, which kept the CEO behind a desk instead of in the field.
- 04
Missed Items From Interruptions
Small items slipped through when Joseph got called out to the field mid takeoff and lost his place in the set, even though he had read every sheet.
“I'm the only estimator here and the only salesperson here, so if I can keep the guys busy and my time isn't spent behind a computer, the growth potential is phenomenal.”
Why GM&I Trusted AI With a Public Bid
Joseph was skeptical at first, because small contractors get pitched by plenty of vendors who never deliver. GM&I worked with The Takeoff AI team for about a year, with weekly conversations about the platform, before putting a real bid through it.
The test was a wastewater treatment plant replacement where the existing plant had to stay running while the new one was built, so the underground piping, blowers and outfall all had to be accounted for. Joseph ran his own takeoff alongside the one from The Takeoff AI and compared them line by line.
We were a little skeptical when we first met them, because there are people out there that try to scam you. Isha and her team have been great, and we've had almost weekly conversations about the platform.
Joseph Gentry
Chief Executive Officer, GM&I Services
One Upload Returns the Takeoff, Labor Hours and a 3D Model
Joseph uploads the bid set, gets the quantities and labor hours back, and spends his own time on the numbers.
Priced Bill of Materials
Pipe, fittings, valves, concrete and electrical counted across every discipline on the set, priced close to Joseph’s own numbers on the same job.
Labor Hours
Man hours come back with the takeoff, so Joseph adjusts them against his own rates instead of working them out from scratch.
2D to 3D Models
The bid set becomes a 3D model Joseph can strip back, rebuild and hand to the client as a download.
Nothing Missed
The small items that slip through when you get called out to the field are counted on every sheet.
Check Against Subs and Vendors
A full takeoff to compare against what electrical subs and material vendors send back, so gaps are caught before the bid goes out.
“The 3D model is what impressed me most. I could take away what I didn't want to see, put back what I did, and give the client a download of what their plant is going to look like.”
What Changed for GM&I
| Measure | Before | With The Takeoff AI |
|---|---|---|
| Takeoff on a 20 to 30 page set | 3 to 4 days | About 2 hours |
| Putting the final numbers together | About 2.5 days | About an hour and a half |
| Labor hours | Worked out by hand | Supplied with the takeoff, then adjusted |
| Missed items | Risk of $100K to $200K on one bid | Nothing missed on the plant takeoff |
| Client view of the project | 2D drawings | 3D model the client can download |
Twice the Bids From the Same Estimator
With takeoffs running while he is in the field, Joseph’s time goes back to quoting fast, and on general contractor awarded work the first quote in is usually the one that wins.
Public bids a year
2x to 3x
What Joseph expects, up from about 50 today
Takeoff, down from 3 to 4 days
~2 Hrs
On a 26 page bid set
“The first quote is almost always the one that gets picked, and if I can get a quote out quicker than anybody else, you get it 95% of the time, no matter your number.”
See It on One of Your Own Packages.
If your estimator is also running the field, the phones and the sales, send us a package and see the takeoff, labor hours and 3D model come back in hours.