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Comparison of BSD CostLink®/AE and CostLink®/CM

This summary of the differences between CostLink/AE and CostLink/CM is provided for CostLink/CM users considering switching to CostLink/AE. CostLink/CM is no longer available from BSD.

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Target Market: CostLink/AE is designed for Architects, Engineers, and others who are doing budgets, cost plans, and design development estimates. Also subcontractors preparing proposals and quotes who want to be able to reference a significant library of R.S. Means data will want to use AE. CostLink/CM was designed for professional estimators, project managers, contractors and others who need to access, create, and edit all resources in a project, including the crews, labor, equipment, materials, vendors, and assemblies, or who need to maintain multiple work breakdown structures in the same cost estimate.
Basis of Payment: One low annual subscription fee covers software, cost data, and technical support. No longer available.
Cost Data: Bundled with 75 R.S. Means Commercial Cost Models, the R.S. Means Assemblies database (over 11,000 assemblies), as well as the R.S. Means Building Construction Cost Data database (over 20,000 line items), in single-unit-cost format. R.S. Means databases no longer available. Databases included editable crews, labor, and equipment resources.  Also create your own databases.
Cost Data Modification: Read-only access to Means cost data; full read-write to user added line items; can copy and modify Means data as user items. Full read-write access to all cost data, including crews, labor, equipment, materials, vendors, CSI tasks, and assemblies.
Ease of Use: Models provide immediate detailed cost estimates that can be modified.  Drag-and-drop assemblies and line items from cost book into project estimate. Tile project, assembly and line item windows side by side for easy insertion of project cost items. Drag-and-drop assemblies, task, labor, equipment, and crews from cost book into project estimate. Tile project and cost book side by side for easy insertion of project cost items.
Work Breakdown Structures (WBS): Templates included for Models, Uniformat II, MasterFormat™, and User-defined work breakdown structures. Multiple WBS can be maintained in the same project. Templates are included for Uniformat II, Masterformat, HTRW, and User-defined.
Linking to Spreadsheets: Dynamically link task and folder quantities to an Excel spreadsheet; quantities automatically updated. Dynamically link task and folder quantities to an Excel spreadsheet; quantities automatically updated.
Mark-Ups: Location adjustment factors for 700 U.S. and Canadian cities for R.S. Means data; 3 contractor markups; 3 user-defined markups (or 6 user-defined markups). Three cost groups: Adjustments and Taxes, Contractor markups, and Owner markups. Each group contains some pre-defined markups types and up to five user-defined markups, any of which may be used in a given estimate. Cost markups can be selectively applied to individual line items, the whole project, or anywhere in between. Markups can be defined to apply to one, some, or all cost types (labor, equipment, material, etc). Markups can be as simple as a single percentage markup for all estimate items, or a flat amount, or no markup at all. Prime contractor overhead can be estimated and distributed.
Reports: Simple, easy to read, built-in Summary and Detail reports. Crystal Report Writer can be used to modify and build new reports. More flexible, built-in reports.  Crystal Report Writer can be used to modify and build new reports.
Exporting: All reports can be exported to PDF, Word, Excel, or XML format. Most reports can be exported to PDF, Word, Excel, or XML format.
Scheduling Interface: No export to scheduling. Exports to Primavera P3® and Microsoft® Office Project.
Technical Support: Unlimited Technical Support, by phone, fax, and email. No longer supported by BSD.
Training: Documentation includes step-by-step tutorial. Further assistance needed is provided by technical support. Documentation includes step-by-step tutorial.