• Use of BBX's Online Plan Room
• With Online Plan Room Users can View, Download, and Print plans, specifications, addenda & plan holders lists from your computer
• Bid results, advance notices & a printable version of the current paper bulletin at your finger tips
• Order plans online to be picked up at your convenience at the BBX office or shipped VIA UPS.
• E-mail Updates on new projects and Filtered Keyword Searches.
• Track Projects to get addenda or other time sensitive information pertaining to the bidding projects VIA E-mail
• Use of physical facilities with 10 individual workstations, Wifi and other Amenities
• Video Tutorial's for Tips and Tricks that walk you through all the features and tools Builder's Exchange has to offer
• Develop relationships with other members of the Construction community through Builder's Exchange. More Relationships = More Opportunities
• *Advertising seen by over 700 members in our bulletin newsletter and on our website. (Advertising is available for an additional fee)

To ensure an efficient operation in the interest of all members:

1. THE BUILDERS EXCHANGE MEMBERSHIP IS RESTRICTED TO A SINGLE BUSINESS AND THEIR EMPLOYEES ONLY. NOT SUPPLIERS OR SUBCONTRACTORS DOING BUSINESS WITH A MEMBER. ANY VIOLATIONS OF THIS RULE WILL RESULT IN MEMBERSHIP TERMINATION.

2. Plans may be checked out overnight by members from 4:30 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. the next week-day morning; or from 4:30 p.m. on Friday to 8:00 a.m. the following Monday morning. It is very important that you return your plan ON TIME.

3. Members may only check out a set of plans ONE time and No More than 3 Plans per member per evening. This enables everyone to get a chance to check out and use popular plans.

4. Please return all materials to the bins around 4:30 to accommodate night reservations.

5. Once you have checked out a plan and brought it back at 8:00 a .m., you may not sit down and use that particular plan.

6. If you are using a plan here at the Exchange and you decide to go to lunch, you surrender that plan for someone else's use.

7. PLEASE DON'T WRITE OR COLOR ON PLANS!!! If you need to markaplan you will need to make a copy of that plan for your use. If you accidentally damage a plan sheet or spec page, REPAIR IT!! These are NOT our plans. They are on loan to us from the Architects and Engineers.

8. All memberships are presumed to be renewed each year. In the event you wish to cancel you are responsible for dues until the date of the notification. Non cancellation in no way voids your obligation to pay for months you enjoyed membership privileges.

Scholarship Information

To apply for the BBX Scholarship, please complete the following:

1. Read over the BBX Scholarship Guidelines below.
2. Visit The Montana Community Foundation website: www.mtcf.org
3. Complete the Application Form online
4. Submit the form along with your essay online at www.mtcf.org

BBX Scholarship Guidelines

1. BBX Scholarships are open only to Montana residents, who are at least Sophmore status and enrolled as a full-time student (12 semester credits).

2. The applicant must be a member of the Builders Exchange of Billings, or an employee of a member, or their immediate family of dependents.

3. The applicant will submit an essay for each of the a following: a. Personal Background b. Why the scholarship is needed c. How the scholarship will be used to accomplish the applicant's goal. Each of the above statement will not exceed 100 words in length and will have no reference as to the identity of the applicant.

4. A number will be assigned to the essays upon receipt of the application form to assure blind selection by the Scholarship Committee.

5. The school selected must be a regionally/nationally accredited public or private Montana College, University, or College of Technology.

6. The scholarship award shall be paid directly to the school selected by the scholarship recipient. It will be applied first to tuition and fees, books and supplies. Any excess remaining after such application may be applied to room and board on or off campus.

7. A scholarship award(s) in the amount upto $3,000 each for a full school year (fall and spring semesters) or $1,000 for a semester will be awarded each year. The number of scholarships will be dependent on the annual amount of money generated by the fund.

8. Application for a renewal scholarship will be considered, but must be accompanied with a copy of the college transcript showing a GPA of at least 2.0. A 100 word essay is also required as to why the scholarship renewal is needed.

9. Application must be received by March 15th of each year. Scholarship winners will be notified by the end of May.

10. Fill out completed application along with your essay online at www.mtcf.org and submit electronically to the Montana Community Foundation.

Private Projects

For Some Projects you need to control the access to the documents. These projects with limited distribution are defined as Private Projects. They are not advertised on any Builders Exchange bidding reports.

The Exchange will provide you with a Private Project code. You then will provide this code to anyone you wish to access your project. Only those with this Private Project Code will be able to access your project. Builder's Exchange does not give out the PrivateProject Code to anyone other than the Project Contact.

Stay Connected

With Activity Logs and E-mail Notifications it is easy to see who has viewed your projects and notify them of Changes to the Project. Anyone you invite to private projects only needs 2 pieces of information: an E-mail address and the Private Project Code.

Q: What does it cost to join The Exchange as a member?

A: Membership in the Exchange is $325 per year. For more information about membership Please see our Membership Info Page.

Q: Can I access the Plans and Specifications for a project online?

A: Yes, We Post Bidding documents for the Projects we advetise on our website. These documents are available for viewing, downloading and printing by our members behind a password protected website.We call this website the Online Planroom.

Q: Can I perform take-offs on your website?

A: Yes, Our Online Planroom is compatible with Several of the leading Take-off Tools on the market. We have integrated the use of the following viewers into our website: On-Screen Takeoff, Planswift and QuickEye

Q: How much does it cost to Post a Project?

A: FREE, There is no cost to post a project on billingsplanroom.com.By posting with us we are advertising your Project to over 700 members in Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakota.

Q: What happens when I Post a Project to billingsplanroom.com?

A: Your documents are processed by Exchange staff to make them compatible with our tools for viewing and estimating on our website. Our websites have viewers that allow our members to view, print, download and even perform Take-off's directly on the computer. In order for these tools to work we must prepare the documents before they are posted. The documents then are accessible by our members behind a password protected website. We call this website the Online Planroom.

Q: What Format should I send the documents to you in?

billingsplanroom.com requests documents in one of the following document formats:
(PDF,DWF or TIFF)

Best Practices include:
Unlocked PDF files with One (1) PDF file for Drawings and One (1) PDF file for Specifications.
(Please zip all files locally on your hard drive before upload).

Q: How do I post changes to my Projects? (Addenda, Memo, Etc.)

You can send changes via E-mail to: bbx@billingsplanroom.com
Or
You can use the File Upload tool just like when you Post a Project. We will then add the changes to the project online. We will send out a notice to bidders via e-mail to notify them of the changes to the project.

Q: Why does billingsplanroom.com request unlocked PDF Files?

A: Bidders can view documents and use integrated viewers from: On-Screen Takeoff,Planswift and QuickEye. These viewers on our websitework best with the .tif files. .tif files are image files, The PDF format has become very complicated and can contain layers and fonts and other variables that Builders Exchange cannot control. Builder's Exchangewill take the PDF files sent to us and convert them into .tif files for viewing by our members in a consistent format that allows our members to use our integrated Take-off tools.

Q: Who can access documents I post to billingsplanroom.com?

A: Your documents that are uploaded to billingsplanroom.com will be advertised to our memberson a secure password protected members only website. This website allows members of billingsplanroom.com to access your projects to help facilitate the bidding process.