Vega uses AI to detect HVAC equipment, trace ductwork from mechanical plans, and turn the reviewed PDF takeoff into an editable material and labor estimate.
From equipment counts and duct takeoffs to a priced HVAC estimate — all connected to the plan.
ROOM TAKEOFF
Upload the plans
Start with the plan set — a dedicated mechanical plan carries HVAC equipment and duct runs; the floor plans carry rooms and building context. No dedicated mechanical drawings? Vega can still build a budget-level starting estimate from the floor plans.
AI equipment detection
Vega analyzes the sheets with an AI vision reader and detects HVAC equipment — furnaces, condensers, heat pumps, air handlers, mini-splits, registers, grilles, dampers, thermostats, exhaust fans — placing typed markers on the takeoff canvas.
Trace duct runs
On mechanical plans, Vega traces duct runs shown on the drawing — supply trunks, supply branches, returns, refrigerant line sets, dryer vents, and exhaust — as editable polylines, measuring each run by the foot.
Review on the plan
Detected equipment and traced duct runs sit over the plan so you can see the takeoff. Add, move, delete, or retype any equipment. Draw or edit ductwork. Change duct system, shape, or dimensions before pricing.
Price materials & labor
Reviewed quantities feed Vega’s HVAC estimator — equipment, duct, registers, fittings, thermostats, labor — priced from a 93-line HVAC item master with editable material and labor pricing.
Build the estimate
Carry the priced HVAC estimate into a proposal alongside the other trades — one project, one proposal — and export to PDF, Excel, or Word.
AI detects equipment and traces ducts on the mechanical plan. Without dedicated mechanical drawings, Vega builds a budget-level estimate from the floor plans. Every quantity is reviewable on the plan and editable.
Upload the plan set. Vega analyzes the mechanical sheets and detects HVAC equipment directly from the drawing — furnaces, condensers, heat pumps, air handlers, registers, grilles, dampers, thermostats, and more. Detected equipment appears as typed markers on the takeoff canvas, organized by type — so the counts are ready to review and price.
Representative examples from 40 HVAC equipment types. Detected equipment becomes editable typed markers on the canvas — the estimate counts the markers you reviewed.
On mechanical plans, Vega traces duct runs shown on the drawing — capturing run geometry, calculating linear footage, identifying the duct kind, reading dimensions when printed, and calculating duct surface area for applicable estimating quantities.
Rigid supply trunk from the furnace or air handler — traced and measured by the foot.
Flex branch from a trunk to each supply register — traced and measured by the foot.
Return duct from a grille back to the unit — traced and measured by the foot.
Refrigerant line set from the outdoor unit to the indoor coil or mini-split head.
Dryer exhaust to its wall or roof cap — traced and measured by the foot.
Bath-fan or range-hood duct to its cap — traced and measured by the foot.
Vega traces duct runs where they are drawn on the mechanical plan. It does not measure vertical risers, trace shafts, perform duct sizing, or detect every individual fitting.
The takeoff goes beyond linear feet. Measured duct runs and detected equipment turn into material quantities for estimating — with measured quantities distinguished from derived and allowance quantities.
Vega derives selected fitting and accessory allowances from the duct layout. It does not individually detect every elbow, tee, transition, boot, or fitting.
Detected equipment and traced duct runs are placed over the plan so estimators can visually review the AI-generated takeoff. Review and edit AI-detected HVAC takeoffs directly on the plan — add equipment the AI missed, remove false positives, move markers to their correct positions, change equipment types, and draw or edit ductwork before pricing.
See the takeoff on the plan
Detected equipment and traced duct runs are placed over the plan image at their detected positions, so you can visually review the AI-generated takeoff instead of trusting a black-box number.
Add, move, delete, retype equipment
Every equipment marker is editable. Add a unit the AI missed, move one that landed wrong, delete a false positive, or retype a symbol the reader misclassified — the counts update immediately.
Draw or edit duct runs
Trace duct runs shown on the mechanical plan, edit their vertices, change the kind, set the dimensions, or convert AI-suggested runs into editable ductwork you can adjust before pricing.
Duct kind, shape & dimensions
Each duct run carries its kind (supply trunk, branch, return, line set, dryer vent, exhaust), shape (rectangular, round, flex), and dimensions — all reviewable and editable on the canvas before pricing.
Edit any price or quantity
Equipment counts, duct lengths, installed prices, labor multipliers, and allowances are all editable. Changes cascade through every total; clearing overrides restores the defaults.
Include, exclude, or add lines
Remove a line you do not want to bid, add a custom item for a specialty fitting or accessory, and adjust the final estimate — the AI starts the takeoff, you stay in control.
Equipment
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Counted by type
Duct runs
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Traced by the foot
Registers
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From markers
Illustrative breakdown \u2014 quantities and prices shown as placeholders, not actual Vega output.
Most residential plan sets do not include dedicated mechanical drawings. When they are unavailable, Vega can use the architectural floor plans to identify conditioned rooms and floor area, and build rule-of-thumb allowances for HVAC systems, equipment capacity, registers, and ductwork. The two routes are not the same precision — and the estimate says so on every line.
WITH DEDICATED MECHANICAL DRAWINGS
Measured takeoff
FLOOR PLANS ONLY
Budget-level estimate
Build a budget-level HVAC estimate from architectural floor plans when dedicated mechanical drawings are not available. Vega can create rule-of-thumb equipment capacity allowances from conditioned floor area for budget estimating. This is not an engineering calculation, not Manual J, and not a measured duct takeoff — every line on the floor-plan route is labeled as an allowance.
Mechanical plans carry keyed notes, legends, and equipment schedules in their text layer. Vega reads that text from the PDF and uses it to help interpret equipment tags, capacities, and other drawing information — so a bare tag on the plan is read in the context of the notes that define it.
Keyed notes & legends
Mechanical notes and legends read from the PDF text layer are used to help interpret equipment tags and duct systems on the sheet.
Equipment tag context
A bare equipment tag is read alongside the notes block that defines it, so a symbol the reader sees is understood in context.
Capacity information
Printed capacity information — tons, BTU / MBH, CFM — is read from plan text and labels where available, helping the estimate select the right equipment.
Vega reads notes, legends, and equipment schedule information from the PDF text layer to help interpret the takeoff. It does not extract structured schedule tables or specification books.
Room-aware HVAC estimating uses the building layout to support takeoff and budget assumptions. Vega can identify conditioned rooms, room types, room areas, floors and levels, and mechanical rooms — and that information helps establish conditioned area, register allowances, budget equipment assumptions, and duct allowances.
Conditioned rooms & area
Conditioned rooms are identified from the floor plans, and their area drives equipment and register allowances on the budget route.
Room types & levels
Room use types — bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, mechanical rooms — and floor levels help establish register counts and equipment placement.
Registers & duct allowances
Room information helps establish register allowances and duct allowances on the floor-plan-only route — labeled as budget-level.
Room-aware HVAC estimating uses the building layout to support takeoff and budget assumptions. Vega does not perform room-by-room load calculations, heat-loss calculations, cooling-load calculations, or air-balancing calculations.
Reviewed quantities feed Vega\u2019s HVAC estimator. Build priced estimates using Vega\u2019s HVAC Item Master — a priced catalog covering heating and cooling equipment, ductwork, registers, fittings, controls, exhaust, and labor — with editable material and labor pricing.
Furnaces by BTU band, boilers, circulators, radiant tubing — counted by type and capacity from reviewed markers
AC condensers by ton band, heat pumps, mini-splits, evaporator coils — counted by type and capacity
Air handlers, packaged units, RTUs, chillers, VAV, ERV/HRV — counted from markers where drawn
Trunk, branch, and return duct by LF — sheet metal, flex, duct board — measured from traced runs
Supply registers and return grilles — counted from markers or estimated per room
Take-offs, boots, balancing dampers, turning vanes — derived as allowances from the duct layout
Thermostats, zone panels, bath fans, range hoods, condensate pumps — counted from markers
Crew labor from trade-scoped rates with editable multipliers — or labor from installed pricing
Organization-level overhead and profit, editable per estimate
HVAC Item Master covering heating and cooling equipment, air handling, ductwork, registers, fittings, controls, exhaust, and labor. Material and labor pricing is editable per estimate. Some categories are detected from the drawing; others are derived or allowance quantities.
HVAC estimates include material and labor in the same workflow. Pricing is editable. Labor is editable. Custom estimate lines can be added, lines can be included or excluded, and markup and overhead are applied — so the final number is yours.
Editable material pricing
Override any equipment, duct, register, fitting, or accessory price — the material total and line provenance follow.
Editable labor
Adjust crew labor rates, labor multipliers, or the labor share — the labor total recomputes with every change.
Custom estimate lines
Add a custom item for a specialty fitting or accessory that is not in the catalog, and price it yourself.
Include / exclude scope
Remove a line you do not want to bid, or keep a line you are still deciding on — the estimate follows your scope.
Markup & overhead
Organization-level overhead and profit are applied and editable per estimate, so the final price reflects your numbers.
Priced, not just counted
The takeoff becomes a priced estimate — material + labor + markup — ready to carry into a proposal.
Build priced HVAC estimates with editable material, equipment, and labor costs. Pricing is editable to match your actuals.
AI output is reviewable. Vega assists the estimator — it does not replace professional judgment. Every quantity, price, and line is editable, and the final estimate is yours.
Review detected equipment
See every equipment marker on the plan, check its type, and correct anything the AI got wrong before pricing.
Move, add, or delete equipment
Add a unit the AI missed, remove a false positive, or move a marker to its real position on the plan.
Redraw ductwork
Draw or edit duct runs, adjust vertices, and trace runs the reader missed or got wrong.
Change duct kind & dimensions
Reassign a run to the right kind, set its shape, and correct its dimensions before pricing.
Edit quantities & pricing
Override any equipment count, duct length, or price — the estimate recomputes with every change.
Add custom lines & control scope
Add a custom item, include or exclude a line, and adjust the final estimate to match your bid.
HVAC SUBCONTRACTORS & MECHANICAL CONTRACTORS
Focus on the equipment count, the duct runs, and the register scope — and carry it into a trade-specific bid without rebuilding the takeoff from scratch.
GENERAL CONTRACTORS & ESTIMATORS
Estimate HVAC alongside framing, drywall, electrical, and plumbing — one project, one proposal — instead of rebuilding each scope in a separate tool.
Built for residential HVAC estimating and adaptable to many multifamily and commercial takeoff workflows. Vega does not perform HVAC engineering, load calculations, duct sizing, or code compliance.
HVAC estimating software helps contractors turn construction plans into HVAC quantities — equipment counts by type, duct lengths by kind, register and grille counts — and then into material and labor pricing and a reviewable estimate. Vega is built around that workflow for HVAC contractors, mechanical contractors, and estimators.
Yes. Upload a PDF plan set and Vega analyzes the mechanical sheets with an AI vision reader, detecting equipment and tracing duct runs. The floor plans provide rooms and building context. You review the takeoff directly on the plan and carry the reviewed quantities into a priced estimate.
Yes. Vega’s AI vision reader detects and counts HVAC equipment by type — furnaces, condensers, heat pumps, air handlers, mini-splits, boilers, RTUs, supply registers, return grilles, thermostats, exhaust fans, and more. Each detected unit becomes an editable typed marker on the canvas, and the estimate counts the final markers you reviewed rather than the raw AI output.
Yes — on mechanical plans. Vega traces duct runs shown on the drawing for supply trunks, supply branches, returns, refrigerant line sets, dryer vents, and exhaust. Each run is measured by the foot and carries its kind, shape, and dimensions where printed. Vega does not trace vertical risers, shafts, or outside-air ducts, and it does not perform duct sizing.
Yes. Vega measures duct linear footage from traced runs, identifies duct kind and shape, reads printed dimensions where shown, and calculates duct surface area for applicable estimating quantities. Selected fittings and accessories — take-offs, boots, balancing dampers, turning vanes — are derived as allowances from the duct layout. Vega does not individually detect every elbow, tee, transition, or fitting.
Yes, but at a budget level. When dedicated mechanical drawings are unavailable, Vega can use the architectural floor plans to identify conditioned rooms and floor area. From that information it creates rule-of-thumb allowances for HVAC systems, equipment capacity ranges, register quantities, and ductwork. Every line on this route is labeled as a budget-level allowance, not a measured takeoff. This is not an engineering calculation and not a substitute for a mechanical plan.
Yes. Every detected equipment marker and traced duct run is placed over the plan and is fully editable — add, move, delete, or retype any equipment. You can draw or edit duct runs, change the kind, set the dimensions, override lengths, edit quantities and pricing, include or exclude estimate lines, and add custom items. The AI starts the takeoff; you stay in control of the final numbers.
No. Vega is HVAC estimating and takeoff software. It does not perform Manual J, Manual S, Manual D, heating or cooling load calculations, equipment sizing calculations, duct sizing, static pressure calculations, or HVAC engineering. When a schedule does not state a capacity, Vega can create a rule-of-thumb equipment capacity allowance from conditioned floor area for budget estimating — but that is not an engineering calculation. A licensed mechanical engineer or designer must perform load calculations and system design.
Yes. Reviewed quantities feed Vega’s HVAC estimator, which prices equipment, duct, registers, fittings, thermostats, exhaust, and labor from a 93-line HVAC item master. Material and labor pricing is editable, and the estimate carries editable labor multipliers. The result is a priced HVAC estimate you can edit and carry into a proposal.
See how Vega turns a mechanical plan into detected equipment, traced duct runs, and a reviewable HVAC estimate you can edit and send.