PCC jQuery plugin

What is PCC?

PCC, short for Project Cost Calculator, is a jQuery powered quotation and estimation system that runs on a website and helps businesses present interactive pricing forms to their customers. Instead of using a plain inquiry form and then manually explaining prices through messages, PCC lets the website itself collect project details, apply logic, and show a live estimated summary. It is built as a reusable plugin and demo system, so the same engine can be adapted for different industries without rewriting the entire experience every time.

There are several parts inside PCC. The main calculator plugin handles fields, pricing, validation, conditional sections, formulas, and summary output. On top of that, there is a scenario hub with multiple real-life quotation demos, a visual schema builder for designing new forms, quote save and load support, CSV/PDF/print export, and an admin area for stored quote records. Features include multi-step wizard mode, coupon support, tax and discount handling, repeatable sections, shareable quote state, local draft restore, and schema-driven rendering from JSON configuration.

• Schema driven form rendering with reusable JSON structure
• Validation, formulas, wizard flow, conditional logic, and pricing modifiers
• Save, load, share, export, and SQLite based quote persistence
• Visual builder and multiple real-life demo scenarios included
  
   

What was the need of PCC? How is it different from ordinary contact forms or static quotation pages?

1. Ordinary contact forms do not explain price in context. A user fills a form, waits for a reply, and still has no idea how the estimated amount was formed. PCC solves this by calculating totals live based on user choices, quantities, service levels, and additional options. It helps customers understand the structure of a quote instead of blindly waiting for an email.
2. Static pricing tables are too limited for real projects. Many services depend on area, number of pages, timeline, add-ons, or business-specific rules. PCC can combine formulas, conditional visibility, discounts, taxes, and repeatable groups so a single calculator can handle realistic project variations with far more flexibility than a fixed price card.
3. Different industries should not require a different software base each time. PCC is built as a reusable engine. The same plugin can power a web development quote, catering estimate, solar installation calculator, salon package estimator, or moving service form. The scenario demos and schema builder make this difference very clear.

Because it is self-hosted, the business controls the logic, the interface, and the quote records. Developers can integrate it directly into their own site stack and customize the workflow without depending on a third-party SaaS quotation platform.

 

How can it be useful? Any examples?

Let us suppose you are the admin of a PCC powered website.

Scene 1: You run a web development business and want clients to choose number of pages, integrations, support level, and delivery speed. PCC can turn those inputs into a clean step-by-step quotation flow and show an estimated total instantly.

Scene 2: You offer interior design services where cost depends on room count, floor area, complexity, and supervision extras. PCC can use formulas and conditional rules to show only relevant options and compute a better estimate than a static brochure page.

Scene 3: You manage a service business like catering, beauty packages, solar installation, or moving services. Each service has its own fields and pricing logic, but PCC can reuse the same core engine and present them as separate branded demo flows or production forms.

Scene 4: Your team wants to design a new calculator quickly without hand-coding every field. The visual builder can create steps, fields, labels, rules, and output structure, then preview the form and export the JSON or generated HTML for further use.

Scene 5: You want previous quote states to be saved, restored, shared, or reviewed later. PCC supports local draft restore, share links, export actions, and SQLite backed quote storage with an admin review page, so the estimator becomes part of an actual business workflow instead of just a demo screen.

 

What can developers do for PCC?

Developers can extend PCC in many practical ways depending on the business need.

• Create new scenario demos for more industries and niche use cases
• Design new themes, layouts, and branded calculator experiences
• Build advanced pricing rules, formulas, adapters, and workflow integrations
• Use schema mode and the public plugin API for custom applications
• Extend quote handling, reporting, exports, and backend storage features

As you can see, PCC is useful both as a ready-to-use quotation product and as a flexible development base for businesses that need interactive, self-hosted cost calculation workflows.