Back in 2019, I was in a sales role at GPB, bidding roofs and pole barns, when I caught a glimpse of technology SmartBuild had that could automate roof takeoffs. I was excited then. I'm even more excited now.
That technology has seen hundreds of improvements and code changes since that day — it's far more powerful now, and it's going through a bit of a facelift as we speak. And I get to be part of that next chapter — being Director of Sales and Marketing to help launch this product. Feeling blessed to bring something like this to guys who are exactly where I used to be.
Why does that matter to me so much? Because even though I don't need it for my day-to-day job anymore, I know exactly how much it would've helped me — and guys just like me.
Back then, I was pulling roof geometry from different providers, or manually tracing it out in SketchUp. If you've used SketchUp for this, you know the drill — the tape measure tool, clicking ridge to eave to valley, trying to get close enough to hand a customer a number. And that was before we even sold the job. If it turned into a sale, we'd still go measure it in person to confirm.
We'd get a 3D model one way or another, then spend real time measuring every ridge, eave, hip, and valley by hand just to get in the ballpark.
That's exactly what Surface Bid does now — except it's automatic.
So what makes it different from the other apps or the $7 measurement reports out there?
It does the hard part — everything after you get the measurements. Surface Bid breaks the roof down using your company's actual materials: metal panels, trim, colors, fasteners, closures — every part on the list, not just a square footage guess.
And it's built for anyone. If your panel and supplier setup is already in SmartBuild, the work's done — just create an account and bid your first job. If it's not set up yet, we'll get you configured for a fee.
We're already integrated with several measurement providers to make sure you've got solid coverage, and if your provider isn't one of them, you can upload your own XML file — as long as it's coming from a legitimate source, we can work with that too.
Here's why that matters:
From the moment you get a call on a re-roof, to the time it takes to enter the address, to the couple hours it takes to process — you can have a full parts-list bid ready for your customer that same afternoon.
And it's not just a square-foot number, the kind an asphalt contractor might work off of. It's the whole list — panel layout drawings included, ready to be field-verified before you ever cut a part.
Stop driving out just to measure roofs. Stop putting extra miles on your trucks. Stop making customers wait weeks for a bid. Stop guessing your waste factor on a cut-up roof.
Bid by the exact part. Your exact parts.
Sign up for Surface Bid today.
- Royden
