Automatic Area Takeoff
Automatic area takeoff creates an editable area measurement from a shaded region on a supported vector PDF. Click inside the region to select its boundary. You can adjust points and remove islands from the selected area with the same tools used for manual measurements.
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Select a region and check the boundary
Vector plan PDFs contain drawing paths, fills, and hatch patterns. CivilTakeoff uses that geometry to find the boundary around the region you select. This can reduce the number of points you need to place by hand on paving plans and other sheets with shaded areas.
After selecting a region, compare the outline with the plan and its hatch legend. Adjust the boundary around islands, text labels, adjoining sections, and gaps in the linework. The selected area remains editable: move its points, cut out exclusions, or assign it to another condition.
Confirm the detected scale or calibrate using a known dimension before selecting regions. When the drawing changes, update the measurements to match.
Example: separate pavement sections
A paving plan shows standard-duty asphalt, heavy-duty asphalt, and concrete pads. Select each region by section type. Keep the section types in separate conditions so their areas feed the appropriate pay items and depth conversions. Measure any areas that cannot be selected with the manual area tool.
Requirements and limits
Automatic area selection requires supported vector PDFs. A fully scanned sheet contains an image instead of the drawing geometry needed for this feature. Calibrate those sheets and measure them manually.