Every job has its challenges and its own difficulty level even in the construction industry. The most difficult job in the construction industry is construction estimating. Every construction project needs construction estimating. As much as it is important, it’s difficult too. In this blog I’m going to mention some of the mistakes most estimators end up doing. Before we proceed here’s a fact about construction estimating.
According to researchers “1.2 million housing units are planned every year in U.S”
Back to our topic listed down are some of the common mistakes’ construction estimators end up doing.
- Not visiting Sites
- Labor charge
- Not Reviewing their estimates
- Inaccurate quantity of materials
- Making Guesses
Not visiting sites
One of the most common mistakes done by estimators is not visiting the sites or not knowing the total area of the current construction project. When the area is not defined correctly all of the materials and their quantities can be disturbed or miscounted which will eventually end up having wrong prices. To prevent these types of mistakes it is best to visit the site but if your business is online make sure to ask the client to tell the area as accurately as it can be.
Labor Charge
Another most common mistake is labor cost. Assigning cost to labor is the hardest job of an estimator. There are two types of labor costs in an estimate.
- Direct Labor Cost: For employees that produce product or services
- Indirect Labor Cost: For worker who ease the production equipment
How to prevent those mistakes from happening? An average labor cost is determined by 67% of an employee’s annual salary. You can multiply the total salary of the employee by .67 and there is your labor cost.
Not Reviewing their Estimates
Reviewing after completing a work is always a good thought because sometimes mistakes happen and you don’t even know. Sometimes after completing an estimate, estimators don’t review it which ends up having wrong pricing and sometimes material isn’t listed as it should. Estimating is the hardest part in the construction industry and is considered the base of a construction project.
Inaccurate Quantity and Materials
Inaccurate estimates or takeoffs can result in headache. For example: if someone wants to build a house, first they’ll need residential estimating services. If the quantity of the materials or materials themselves are not marked correct it can be a mess for you and client. So, make sure you mark the pricing, quantities and materials as accurate as it can be.
Making Guesses
In any business “If” statement means taking a risk. Same is in construction estimating, guess isn’t always a good choice. Most of the estimators guess the prices of the material and end up having the wrong pricing. How to prevent it from happening? Your whole project depends on estimating So, always try to take time and use technology for providing services like “estimating”.
ConclusionEstimating is the hardest job in the construction industry. It is important too. In every field, mistakes happen. If you are an estimator and provide electrical estimating services you should prevent above-mentioned mistakes from happening.
