Variation software for builders who don't have time for software

Where building jobs quietly leak money

On a reno or small build, the quoted contract sum is the starting point, not the ending one. The gap between the two is variations — and every builder knows the three moments where they go missing:

• The client changes the layout mid-job. "Actually, can the island go the other way, and we'll take that nib wall out." You agree on the spot because the frame stage won't wait. Nothing gets written until the invoice, when the client remembers it as "a small tweak".
• Demolition reveals what the quote couldn't see. Rotten bearers, termite damage, non-compliant wiring behind the sheet, a slab that isn't where the drawings say. It's legitimate extra work — but if it's only a photo on your phone and a verbal heads-up, it's a discount waiting to happen.
• PC and PS items get swapped. The client upgrades from the allowed tapware to the ones they saw online, or the excavation PS blows out on rock. The allowance difference is real money, and it evaporates if the adjustment isn't documented when it's decided.

Job-management suites have variation modules. The catch is when you fill them in: at night, at a desk, from memory. TradieCue is built for the other end of the problem — capturing the change in the thirty seconds after it's agreed.

Mid-demo discovery, written up before smoko

The draft lands on the Harrison Street job next to the original quote, in customer-ready English, with your number — $1,850 because you said $1,850. Prices come from the user and stay editable. Timmy structures the work and wording; it does not invent amounts. You can attach the photos of the rot to the note too, so the paper trail matches what the client was shown on site.

Getting the client's written yes before the new bearers go in is what separates a paid variation from an argument. What a compliant variation should contain — and how it interacts with your building contract — is covered in what to include in a building variation.

Quoting building work the same way

The same capture works at the front of the job. Walk the site with the owner, then talk the scope into your phone from the ute: demo, structural, rough-in allowances, PC sums for tapware and tiles, exclusions like rock excavation or asbestos removal. Timmy structures it into an editable quote draft — sections, line items, your prices, GST worked through. You review it on the preview screen, fix anything, and share it while the walk-through is still fresh in the owner's mind instead of three nights later. See voice-to-quote for how the drafting works.

What Timmy asks when your note has gaps

Builder notes are dense and half-finished by nature. When an important detail is missing (a price, a customer, a scope item), Timmy asks rather than making it up. In practice, on building work that looks like:

• You describe the PC item swap but not the allowance difference — the draft holds the scope and Timmy asks you for the amount, rather than inventing one.
• You mention "the Harrison job" but you've got two jobs for the same client — Timmy checks which job the variation belongs to instead of guessing and corrupting the wrong file.
• You say what's being demolished but not who's disposing of it, or whether the owner is supplying the upgraded fittings — ambiguous scope gets asked about, not papered over.

The result is a draft you can actually send, not a confident-looking document with made-up numbers buried in it.

Honest fit: who this is for

TradieCue is built for solo tradies and small owner-operated trade businesses (roughly 1–5 people) in australia — the builder who runs the job, swings a hammer and does the paperwork at night. It is not construction project-management software: no Gantt charts, no timesheets, no progress-claim schedules, no supplier ordering. If you're running multiple supervisors across commercial sites, you need that class of tool. If you're the one saying "yeah, we can do that" on site, you need the variation written down before you forget — that's this.

Your building licence, permits and compliance paperwork stay yours — TradieCue drafts quotes, variations and payment follow-ups, and the drafts aren't legal or contract advice. It's iPhone (iOS) today. Free to download and try. TradieCue Pro is a subscription through Apple: A$24.99/month or A$239.99/year with a 30-day free trial. Apple confirms before any charge.

Common questions