Your personal bid assistant for public work

Big contractors have staff. Now you have Scout.

Large contractors can afford estimators, administrators, and office staff to search for public work, read bid packages, track requirements, and make sure the right opportunities don’t slip through the cracks.

Small contractors have to do all of that themselves — on top of spending all day doing the work and running the business.

C12 Scout gives you your own personal AI bid assistant.

Scout watches for public-work opportunities that fit your company based on the parameters you set, reads the bid documents, cuts through the red tape, and generates a clear report on each promising project.

No long-term contract. Cancel anytime.
Scout activity

What Scout is doing for you

A quick look at the work happening behind the scenes
Opportunities checked47
Matched your parameters6
Strong matches2
Mandatory job walks flagged1
  • 2 strong matches surfaced for review
  • 1 mandatory job walk flagged before the deadline
  • 3 bids flagged for potential subcontracting or qualification issues
  • Full Scout Reports generated for promising projects
See the full Scout Report below ↓
Less searching. Better decisions.

Stop hunting. Start reviewing.

You shouldn’t have to spend your evenings searching scattered government websites, opening long bid packages, and figuring out whether a project is even worth considering.

01

You set the parameters

Work types, service area, project size, bonding limits, scheduling preferences, and other deal-breakers.

02

Scout watches

Scout continuously checks the public-work sources we cover for opportunities that fit those parameters.

03

Scout reads

Promising bids are reviewed for scope, eligibility, money, risk, deadlines, and operational headaches.

04

You decide

Get the important details first, then decide whether the official bid package deserves your estimating time.

The details that make or break a bid

What C12 Scout checks for you

Scout pulls together the facts, catches, and potential headaches before you spend hours digging through the bid package yourself.

Basic opportunity informationProject, agency, location, distance, scope, estimated value, deadlines, expected start, and duration.
EligibilityRequired license, C-12 qualification, DIR registration, prequalification, certifications, and experience requirements.
Money & riskBid, payment and performance bonds, insurance, prevailing wage, liquidated damages, payment terms, and contract structure.
Operational headachesJob walks, night/weekend work, traffic control, environmental requirements, Buy America, certified payroll, PLAs, and tight schedules.
This is where Scout earns its keep

See what Scout catches before you waste hours estimating.

The report below is an illustrative Scout Report based on common California public-work requirements. It is designed to show the kind of catches, qualifications, risks, deadlines, and subcontracting issues Scout can surface before you commit time to a bid.

ILLUSTRATIVE SCOUT REPORT

Municipal Roadway Rehabilitation — Phase II

Example California public-works project · Composite demonstration
Scout matchStrong — with catches
Estimated value$1.8M
Distance42 miles
Bid dueOct. 18
Mandatory walkOct. 3

Why Scout matched it to you

  • Inside your selected 75-mile service radius
  • $1.8M falls inside your selected $250K–$2M range
  • Excavation, grading, milling, and paving match your selected work
  • Your stated bonding capacity covers the project
  • C-12 qualifies for the primary earthwork/paving scope
  • No set-aside appears to exclude you
Scout found these before you started estimating

Mandatory job walk

Attendance required: Oct. 3.
Missing it makes you ineligible to bid.

Additional licensed trades may be needed

C-8 Concrete: ADA curb-ramp work appears in the scope.

C-10 Electrical: Traffic-loop work appears in the scope.

C-32 Parking & Highway Improvement: Striping/signage scope should be verified.

Bonding

Bid security: 10%
Performance bond: 100%
Payment bond: 100%

Liquidated damages

$2,000 per day for late completion.

Working restrictions

Night work required on portions of the project. Lane closures are limited to specific hours. Weekend work may be required.

More requirements Scout surfaced

Prevailing wage: Applies

Certified payroll: Required

Experience requirement: Three comparable public-road projects completed within the last five years

Project labor agreement: Applies

Environmental: Stormwater compliance and project-specific documentation required

The job

Roadway rehabilitation including excavation, grading, milling, asphalt paving, ADA curb-ramp reconstruction, traffic-loop work, striping/signage, drainage adjustments, and traffic-control operations.

The core paving work is a strong fit, but the mixed scope introduces multiple subcontracting and compliance questions that should be resolved before estimating.

Pros

  • Strong match to your normal paving/earthwork scope
  • Within your selected territory
  • Within your preferred job size
  • Bonding appears within your stated capacity
  • No special set-aside appears to exclude you

Potential deal-breakers

  • Mandatory job walk — miss it and you cannot bid
  • C-12 alone may not cover every project scope
  • $2,000/day liquidated damages
  • Night work and restricted lane-closure hours
  • PLA and three-project experience requirements

Operational headaches

Mandatory site walk: Yes — attendance required

Night work: Required on portions

Weekend work: May be required

Traffic control: Contractor responsibility

Certified payroll: Required

Project labor agreement: Applies

Environmental paperwork: Required

Lane closures: Limited to specified windows

Important dates

Mandatory job walk: Oct. 3

Questions due: Oct. 8

Bid due: Oct. 18

Expected start: November

Other trades / licenses involved

C-8 Concrete: ADA curb-ramp scope

C-10 Electrical: Traffic-loop work

C-32 Parking & Highway Improvement: Striping/signage scope

Action: Verify what you can self-perform and what must be subcontracted.

Scout’s take

Worth reviewing — but this is not a simple paving job.

The core scope fits your parameters well. Before committing estimating time, verify your experience qualification and confirm subcontracting coverage for the concrete, electrical, and striping portions. The mandatory job walk is the immediate priority. The $2,000/day liquidated damages, night-work restrictions, PLA requirements, and lane-closure windows deserve close review before you decide to pursue.

What Scout recommends you verify next

  1. Confirm attendance at the mandatory job walk.
  2. Check whether your three recent projects satisfy the experience requirement.
  3. Confirm bonding availability for the full contract value.
  4. Line up subcontractor coverage for C-8, C-10, and C-32 scope if needed.
  5. Review the PLA, night-work, and lane-closure requirements with your crew.
  6. Open the latest addenda before final pricing.

Source documents Scout checked

Official solicitation
Plans
Specifications
Addendum 1
Addendum 2
Bidder Q&A

Illustrative sample based on common California public-work requirements. Scout helps you screen opportunities faster. Always review the official solicitation, plans, specifications, addenda, and agency requirements before submitting a bid.

Peace of mind

Make sure the right job doesn’t slip through the cracks.

Finding a great public project a day after the mandatory job walk doesn’t do you much good. Scout surfaces deadlines, meetings, site walks, and other requirements that can make you ineligible if you miss them.

Spend less time searching — without worrying that the perfect job is sitting somewhere you never thought to look.

Simple by design

How it works

1

Set your parameters

Choose the projects, locations, sizes, and requirements you want.

2

Scout watches

Scout checks the public-work sources we cover.

3

Scout reads

Promising opportunities are reviewed for the details that matter.

4

You get the report

See the pros, cons, risks, deadlines, requirements, and headaches.

5

You decide

Open the official bid and start your normal estimating process.

Built for the small contractor

The kind of bid support bigger contractors can afford — without the cost of full-time staff.

One straightforward plan. No artificial tiers. No long-term contract.

Everything included
$39.99 / month

Less than $10 a week.

14-day free trial Personalized bid matching Scout Reports on promising projects No long-term contract Cancel anytime
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