Estimating tips: Mastering the puzzle

As you complete puzzles, you build puzzle-building habits. The same could be said for creating construction cost estimates — the more you frequently you do them, the more efficient you’ll become. Below are tips and tricks estimators and contractors can use to optimize the estimating process to become more efficient, minimize rework and produce accurate cost estimates. Here are tips and tricks for three common methods of estimating.

Tips and Tricks for Manual Estimates

Estimating by hand is, to put it charitably, not ideal.  Handwriting may be illegible. If work is interrupted, finding your place later may waste precious time. Errors of omission may be more common. Estimating by hand should be a bygone practice, but if you must estimate by hand, here are some ways to do it more effectively:

— Write on only one side of a page.

— Keep each type of document (quantities, materials, equipment, etc.) separate and filed in order by division number.

— Keep the entire estimate in one or more compartmented folders.

Tips and Tricks for Estimating on Electronic Spreadsheets

Estimating in Excel or electronic spreadsheets makes construction estimating easier, though this method has its flaws. Versioning can get cumbersome. Formatting can devour your time. One formula mistake can tank the whole estimate. Here are some tips for optimizing your process:

— Save commonly used templates in their own folder.

— Spot-check important formula results with manual calculations.

— Save your work frequently.

— Combine related spreadsheets into workbooks.

— Using a naming convention that indicates whether a spreadsheet is in progress or complete.

— When entering quantities into a cell, include useful numerical information. For example, if 10% is added to a quantity of 300, enter =300*1.1 instead of 330 to keep track of the addition.

Tips and Tricks for Estimating With RSMeans Data Online

It is an industry best practice to use a construction estimating software. RSMeans Data Online offers the ability to create and manage estimates in an on online platform backed by North America’s leading construction cost database. Here are some tips for using RSMeans Data Online successfully:

— Mark commonly-used assembly and unit items as “favorites” to save them for quick access.

— Follow price trends and set alerts to be notified when costs change. You can choose to receive notifications for local costs and/or costs for particular materials and equipment.

— Check the reference section for the City Cost Index, common construction abbreviations, crew explanations, video tutorials and even more tips for success.

— Customize assemblies and units to meet your estimating needs. Add, swap and remove assembly components to meet project requirements or to value engineer.

— Print, email or export estimates to Excel for easy sharing with other project stakeholders.

— Use predictive costs to create accurate conceptual estimates up to three years in the future.

Like piecing together puzzles, when it comes to construction estimating, the more good habits you practice, the better you’ll ultimately become. The habits I’ve described will help you deliver complete, accurate estimates every time.