Introduction

Introduction

The electrical construction industry has evolved from the rudimentary adage “black is the hot leg and white is the neutral.” Although this is still true and the theory is the same, much has been discovered and expanded on. When you visit or speak with an electrical contractor today about

estimating, bidding, buying, etc., it is nearly the same as it was 50 years ago. Yes, the estimating hardware, so to speak, has evolved from handheld counters and individual wheel map measures to electronic probes that count and measure and at the same time keep a running total. New devices have come into the market to make the estimating task faster and more accurate, which, in theory, reduces the cost to produce an estimate. This is all true, yet there is one factor that has survived all these years and will continue to survive—the hands-on ESTIMATOR.

The ESTIMATOR has the ability to transform a set of electrical construction plans and documents into a total cost of labor, materials, and job expenses. All of the new probes, markers, and gadgets cannot attend a prebid site investigative walk-through or actually interpret bidding documents. This always has been, is now, and will be performed by a human being an ESTIMATOR.

Estimators are constantly being sought out by electrical contractors and are in great demand. Many times a contractor will have an employee (an electrician or someone else) who shows responsibility, good work habits, dependability, and enjoys their work. The con- tractor might encourage that employee to begin to learn the estimating process; this was my personal experience with a contractor whom I worked for as an electrician and who led me to develop this knowledge. The following text has been developed after my many years of experience in the electrical construction industry.

The contents have been designed in such a way that electrical instructors, electricians, electrical engineers, architects, blueprint readers, etc. can draw some benefit from it, even if only for reference material. Those individuals who have some electrical experience and want to advance themselves into the electrical estimators’ circle should study the material contained herein. The entire format has been designed with the beginner as well as the seasoned estimator and others in mind.

Included are step-by-step instructions on how to interpret construction plans and specifications, what to look for, and why you should read all of the specifications, even those for the roofing, woodwork, wall construction materials, plumbing, etc. Many times there will be items in these categories of the specifications that impact an electrical contractor’s bidding price. Partial plans of a typical office building are included to show the utilities coming into the building, the site lighting, interior lighting, panels and power- distribution devices, safety and communication devices, mechanical equipment, and electrical services to properly depict the various electrical materials in place.

Rough takeoff sheets have been developed for all of the electrical materials shown on the partial plans and associated materials required for a complete installation. This book will show you how to transfer all of the materials shown on the rough takeoff sheets to estimating sheets for inserting prices and labor hours. The next step shown is to total all of the labor (material is not priced here due to each contractor’s specific pricing structure) and transfer the hours to a final recapitulation sheet.

This final recapitulation sheet will include all pricing, labor hours, nonproductive labor, job expenses, hourly labor rates, overhead, and profit. Following the job estimate, there is a section on actual labor rates for thousands of items of materials and installations.

These have been time-tested in the field and applied by many contractors whom I consulted for in the past (see “About the Author”). A complete sample estimate has been included here to show exactly how a professional estimate is formulated. Although the prices of the individual materials are not shown on the estimate pricing sheets, there have been allowances inserted on the final recapitulation sheet so that you can go through this sheet from beginning to final bidding price.

At the end of this book there is a miscellaneous section of formulas, charts, schematics, conversions, lighting levels for most common places, and blank estimating and related business forms. There are many aspects to the electrical construction industry and the feeling here is that estimating is the heart and soul of a successful company.