Scopa output format
NBS (CAWS) Schedule of Works, Written From Your Drawings
Upload a PDF drawing set and choose the NBS (CAWS) format. About 8 minutes later you get the schedule arranged by CAWS section, every item referenced, with the PC sum and price columns left empty for whoever is pricing it.
The format is chosen per run and remembered. It does not change the price.
In short
Scopa is construction software that converts a PDF drawing set into a first-draft schedule of works, and can write it in the Common Arrangement of Work Sections (CAWS) — the arrangement NBS specifications follow. The output has four columns (Item, Description, PC Sums £, Price £), work grouped into standard CAWS sections in published order, consecutive item references, and a labelled total row closing each section. It is used by quantity surveyors, practices and contractors who issue or receive documents in that arrangement. It costs £49 a run, and the money columns arrive empty because Scopa does not price work.
Can software generate a schedule of works in CAWS format?
Yes. Scopa reads the drawing set, works out what the job involves, and writes it into CAWS sections with a reference against every item. What you receive is a priceable document in the arrangement a quantity surveyor expects, rather than prose someone then has to restructure.
It is a first draft. The classification, the sequence and the descriptions are done; the checking is still yours, and so is every figure — Scopa never prices the work.
The output
Four columns and four kinds of row
Anyone searching for this knows the arrangement, so here is exactly what comes out rather than a description of it.
Item,Description,PC Sums £,Price £
C20 DEMOLITION / ALTERATIONS,,,
,GENERAL EXTERNAL,,
C20.01,"Remove all existing guttering, downpipes and brackets complete...",,
,C20 TOTAL,,The spreadsheet carries the same four columns, with the header row frozen and the widths set to fit one A4 page across.
- Section header
- The CAWS code and the section name in capitals, in the Item column, everything else blank.
- Sub-heading
- A grouping inside a section — in capitals, in the Description column, with no item reference. Used where a section covers work in distinct places or stages, exactly as a bill would.
- Work item
- Reference in the Item column, description in the Description column.
- Section total
- The last row of every section. A label only, never a figure.
Classification
Published codes, in published order, and numbering that does not skip
Standard codes only
Scopa works from a table of 56 CAWS codes across 20 letter groups, from A Preliminaries through to W50 Fire detection and alarm. It does not invent codes, and it does not use a variation particular to one office — these documents go to people who expect the published arrangement.
Sections in CAWS order
Sections appear in the published order, and only where the drawings actually contain work for them. An empty section is omitted rather than carried through as a heading with nothing under it.
Consecutive references
SECTION.NN, two digits, starting at .01 in each section. The sequence runs through the whole section and is not reset by a sub-heading, so an item after C20.12 is C20.13 even under a new grouping. No gaps.
The money columns arrive empty, and that is the point
PC Sums £ and Price £ are on every row and filled in on none of them. They exist for the person pricing the job, and what a job costs is a commercial judgement rather than something a drawing can state.
That holds even where the drawings name a provisional amount. Rather than dropping the figure into a priced column where it would look settled, it is recorded in the confirmations list — so it reaches you as a decision to make, with the drawing reference attached.
Anything the set marks TBC is carried as provisional in the same way. It never becomes firm scope you would be pricing by mistake.
Choosing a format
The standard schedule, or the CAWS arrangement
Same run, same price, same drawings — two ways of laying out the result. You choose per run and the choice is remembered.
| Standard schedule | NBS (CAWS) | |
|---|---|---|
| Arrangement | Standard section order, unused sections omitted | CAWS sections, in the published order |
| Item reference | Numbered within the schedule | SECTION.NN — C20.01, C20.02, and so on |
| Columns | Item and description | Item, Description, PC Sums £, Price £ |
| Sub-headings | Not used | Where a section covers distinct places or stages |
| Section totals | Not used | A labelled total row closing every section |
| Best for | Reading, checking and pricing in-house | Issuing to a quantity surveyor, or to a contractor pricing into a bill |
Evidence
A published run, on a set nobody tidied up first
A domestic extension and remodel, with the architect's and the structural engineer's drawings exactly as issued.
- 17
- drawings in
- 29 MB
- uploaded whole
- 105
- line items to price
- 27
- confirmations raised
- 8 min
- £49 a run
The published example is the standard format
Worth saying plainly rather than letting you download it and find out. The worked example is the standard section order — 105 items across 16 sections — so it shows the quality of the descriptions and the 27 confirmations, but not the CAWS layout. The CAWS arrangement is the same schedule and the same items, classified and referenced as set out above.
Who this format is for
- Quantity surveyors who expect work arranged and referenced the published way
- Practices issuing tender documentation to a QS or a cost consultant
- Contractors pricing into a bill rather than off a descriptive schedule
- Anyone who would otherwise reclassify a schedule into CAWS by hand
What it is not
- Not a bill of quantities — there are no quantities, rates or totals, and measurement stays a separate exercise
- Not an NBS product and not endorsed by NBS. CAWS is the published arrangement; Scopa writes to it
- Not a finished document. It is a first draft to check against your own set before it is issued or priced
- Not a different price. The format is a choice, not a tier
Not sure which of the two your project needs? The guide onschedule of works vs bill of quantities sets out the difference, and who carries the risk under each.
Questions about the CAWS output
- Can Scopa produce a schedule of works in CAWS format?
- Yes. Choosing the NBS (CAWS) option writes the same schedule in the Common Arrangement of Work Sections: work grouped into CAWS sections in the published order, every item carrying a section reference, and empty columns for the person pricing the job. You choose the format per run and the choice is remembered.
- What columns does the CAWS output have?
- Four: Item, Description, PC Sums £ and Price £. The two money columns arrive empty on every row, because pricing the job is not something a drawing can tell you.
- Are the PC sum columns ever filled in?
- No — not even where the drawings name a provisional amount. That is recorded in the confirmations list instead, so the figure reaches you as something to decide on rather than as a number already sitting in a priced column.
- How are items numbered?
- SECTION.NN, two digits, starting at .01 in each section. Numbering runs consecutively through the whole section and is not reset by a sub-heading — an item following C20.12 continues at C20.13 even under a new sub-heading. There are no gaps in the sequence.
- Which CAWS section codes does it use?
- Standard published codes only. Scopa works from a table of 56 codes spanning 20 letter groups, from A Preliminaries through the C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V and W groups. It does not invent codes and does not use variations particular to one office. Sections appear in CAWS order and only where the drawings actually contain work for them. Where work belongs to a section outside that table, the correct published code is used rather than forcing it into an approximate one.
- Is the worked example in CAWS format?
- No — the published example is the standard section order, so the CAWS layout is described on this page rather than downloadable. It is the same schedule and the same items in the other arrangement. If you want to see the CAWS output on your own set before committing, get in touch and ask.
- Is this an NBS product, or endorsed by NBS?
- No. Scopa is a db26 product. CAWS is the Common Arrangement of Work Sections, the published classification that NBS specifications follow, and Scopa writes to that arrangement so the document lands in a form a quantity surveyor expects. There is no affiliation with NBS.
- Will it produce a full bill of quantities?
- No. It produces a priceable schedule of works arranged by CAWS section — what the work is, where it is and how it is described. There are no quantities, no rates and no totals. Measurement remains a separate exercise. The guide "schedule of works vs bill of quantities" sets out the difference and who carries the risk under each.
- What do I need to upload?
- As much of the set as you have: existing and proposed drawings, the demolition plan, the structural engineer's drawings and schedules, and the written specification. PDFs only, up to 40 documents in a run.
- What does it cost?
- £49 a run, with no subscription. Packs bring that down to £39.80 a schedule for 5 runs and £34.90 for 10. Runs do not expire, and the format you choose does not change the price.
Run a set and choose the CAWS format
£49 a run, about 8 minutes, and the drawings deleted as soon as the schedule is sent.
An architect? There is a page written for practices. Weighing it against a general AI assistant? That comparison is here.