When a ductwork run collides with a structural beam, the field crew stops, and every trade waiting behind sits idle while the GC, engineer, architect, and MEP consultant sort it out. A single undetected clash cascades into days of lost schedule and tens of thousands in delay costs that a model review would have eliminated.
Clash Detection Services That Eliminate On-Site Construction Conflicts
A clash in a BIM model costs almost nothing to fix. The same clash discovered during steel erection or MEP rough-in costs thousands in rework, schedule delay, and subcontractor friction. Our clash detection services identify every spatial conflict across your models before a single crew mobilizes on-site.
Why It Matters
Why Skipping Clash Detection is the Most Expensive Pre-Construction Decision
Our Deliverables
What's Included in Our Clash Detection Services
Built on Trusted Platforms
Tools We Use for Clash Detection
- Autodesk Navisworks Manage
- Autodesk Revit
- Autodesk BIM 360 / ACC
- Solibri Model Checker
- Tekla BIMsight
- Autodesk Civil 3D
- AutoCAD MEP
- Trimble Connect
- Procore BIM
- IFC OpenBIM Workflow
Across All Disciplines
Who We Serve
Undetected clashes don't stay hidden; they surface as change orders. We provide contractors, engineers, and owners with complete clash detection that identifies and resolves every spatial conflict before construction begins.
Learn More
Work Process
How Our Process Works
A systematic workflow moving from raw model files to a fully actionable conflict resolution plan
-
01
Submit Plans
Upload your drawings and project documents.
-
02
Review Scope
We analyze every detail of your project scope using industry-standard tools, ensuring nothing is missed
-
03
Cost Estimate
We build a precise, itemized estimate covering all materials, labor, and trade-specific costs.
-
04
Bid-Ready Delivery
Your completed estimate lands in your inbox.
What Our Customers Say
Patrick Sullivan
We utilized Federal Estimating's clash detection services for a hospital expansion project, and the results were exceptional. Their team identified multiple conflicts between HVAC, plumbing, and structural systems before construction began. Resolving these issues during preconstruction saved us significant rework costs and prevented schedule delays in the field. Their expertise and detailed reporting added tremendous value to the project.
Amanda Greene
Federal Estimating provided clash detection services for our mixed-use development, and their coordination process was extremely thorough. The clash reports were well organized, easy to understand, and helped our design and construction teams address potential issues early. Their proactive approach improved overall project coordination and minimized the risk of costly field conflicts.
Justin Marshall
Our company engaged Federal Estimating for BIM clash detection on a large warehouse construction project. Their team carefully reviewed all building systems and identified coordination issues that could have impacted both budget and schedule. The communication throughout the process was excellent, and they worked closely with our team to resolve clashes efficiently. We highly recommend their clash detection services for complex construction projects.
Customer's Help
Frequently Asked Questions
Clash detection in BIM is the process of identifying spatial conflicts between building elements across multiple discipline models, including architectural, structural, MEP, and civil, before construction begins. When models from different design teams are federated into a single coordinated environment, elements that physically intersect or violate required clearance zones are flagged as clashes. Resolving conflicts at the model stage eliminates the field rework, schedule disruption, and coordination disputes that occur when crews encounter the same problems on-site.
A hard clash is a direct physical intersection between two building elements, a pipe running through a structural beam, for example. A soft clash occurs when elements don't physically intersect but violate a required clearance zone, such as insufficient maintenance access around an air handling unit. A workflow clash involves construction sequencing, where one trade's work physically prevents another from completing their scope in the required order. Our analysis covers all three types because all three create real, costly field problems.
We accept all common BIM and CAD file formats, including RVT, NWC, NWD, IFC, DWG, DGN, and SKP. If your consultant team is working on a less common platform, contact us with the specific format, and we'll confirm compatibility before the project begins. We handle all model conversion and federation in-house. You send us the files your design team is producing, and we manage everything required to get them into a coordinated Navisworks environment ready for analysis.
A single-discipline pair review for a mid-sized commercial project is typically delivered within two to three business days. A full multi-disciplinary analysis across a large, complex project is generally completed within five to seven business days. For projects on tight coordination schedules or approaching key milestone dates, we can expedite analysis, share your coordination calendar upfront, and we'll structure our workflow around your milestone sequence rather than a standard delivery queue.
False positives, conflicts flagged by software that aren't genuine coordination issues, are one of the most common reasons clash reports go unused. Every clash our software flags is reviewed by a qualified BIM coordinator before it enters the report. We eliminate false positives caused by modeling tolerances, overlapping annotation, and intentional element intersections, so the report you receive contains only real, actionable conflicts requiring resolution, not a raw list your team has to sort through manually.