Abstract: The invention provides systems and methods which assist a contractor in producing a competitive bid proposal. In one exemplary embodiment, a method is provided for producing a bid from at least one drawing including various items to be included in the bid. To produce the bid, the method relies upon a computer having a display screen, an entry device and a processor coupled to the display screen and the entry device. According to the method, at least one characteristic of a first and a second item on the drawing are entered into the processor. The processor then selects a fitting which connects the first and the second items based on the entered characteristics. A bid amount is then produced based at least in part on the cost of the first item, the second item and the fitting.