Contractors look for labor saving devices while estimating
David Gordon
Posted On March 24, 2010
2
0 While interviewing electrical contractors and distributors for our 2010 Contractor Insight Research Report (just released), we came across a few changes in attitude that might be of interest to manufacturers and distributors.
Generally speaking most contractors a few years ago would have taken the attitude of beating the price down on mainline products after the project has been awarded. Most distributors have felt this type of pressure for many years and it has help contribute to the greater use of special nets and SPA’s.
But change may be in the air for some contractors.
Some contractors expressed that, while estimating a job, they have changed from the basic “lowest price product” to trying to understand how they can actually save money on the job site by using labor saving products. Many also expressed a change in the way they are putting their bids together.
While they still estimate using NECA labor rates and times, some are taking a serious look at labor saving products as a way of being able to use less labor to accomplish the same task.
On the surface this may not seem like a big change in attitude. But it is!
The frustration that some contractors expressed is being able to find the product in their estimating databases or companion price books such as TRA-SER. It is not that the product is not in the databases or in TRA-SER, it is that they say they want some type of symbol or flag for the product and labor units that they can identify and use as they build their estimate.
The frustration that some contractors expressed is being able to find the product in their estimating databases or companion price books such as TRA-SER. It is not that the product is not in the databases or in TRA-SER, it is that they say they want some type of symbol or flag for the product and labor units that they can identify and use as they build their estimate.
So if you are a manufacturer, how would you want you product identified as a labor saving product?
2 Comments
March 26, 2010 at 2:34 pm
Great idea to develop product usage. I wonder how receptive Trade Would be to adding another col.? G
Manufacturer sales rep
April 15, 2010 at 5:18 pm
Has anyone seen e-Cost’s “Electrical Unit & Assembly Cost Data 2010” book? It has much more realistic man-hours than NECA because the labor is tied to the latest electrical material items.
I bought mine at http://www.e-CostEstimating.com
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