Scale in ZeroCount
A drawing's scale is the ratio between a distance on the sheet and the distance it represents on site. On a 1:100 plan, 10 mm on paper is 1 m in the building. ZeroCount uses that ratio, together with the sheet's real paper size, to convert every Linear measurement into metres or feet and every Area measurement into square metres or square feet.
If the scale is wrong, every length and area on the drawing is wrong by the same proportion, and the error carries straight through to your Excel export. Setting the scale is the first thing to do on any drawing you intend to measure, and it takes a few seconds.
The three header controls
The scale controls sit in the header of the takeoff workspace, to the left of the Actions button:
| Control | Looks like | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Paper size pill | A1 L | Shows the sheet size and orientation detected when the PDF was uploaded. Hover it for the exact dimensions. |
| Scale system | Metric | Metric, Architectural or Both. Decides which presets you can pick and whether measurements read in metres or feet and inches. |
| Scale | 1 : 100 | The drawing's default scale. Pick a preset, choose None, or choose Custom to type a ratio or calibrate against a known distance. |
All three apply to the drawing you have open. Each drawing in a project keeps its own scale system, scale and calibration.
Where measurements appear
Once the scale is set, the same figures show in five places:
- On the drawing — a small dark badge at the top-right of every Linear and Area marker (for example
12.00 mor12' 4"). - In the sidebar — a total on each Linear and Area group row, and a value on each marker beneath it.
- In the Live Legend — the annotation that lists every group with its count, length or area.
- In the split readout — the live figures shown while you split a pipe run in mask view.
- In the Excel export — one row per group and per marker, with the scale recorded alongside.
Counts never need a scale
Detection groups and Count groups are tallies, not measurements. A symbol counted 48 times is 48 whether the drawing is at 1:50 or 1:200, so you can count symbols on a drawing before its scale is set. The scale only matters once you draw a line or an area.
Next steps
Read The Scale System to choose between Metric, Architectural and Both, then Setting the Drawing Scale to pick a preset or type a ratio. If the drawing has no stated scale, or its measurements look slightly off, Calibrating a Drawing fixes it from a scale bar or a dimension. When you are ready to measure, move on to Drawing Linear Measurements.