1.) There are 6 spread footings. Each footing is 10' x 10' x 6" deep. How much concrete do you need to order?
2.) There is one continuous footing for a single-family residence. There is a total of 150 lf. The footing is 18" wide and 12" deep. How much concrete do you need to order?
3.) Based on the below information, prepare an estimate of general requirements (page 69). Based on data that you know from your own experience, determine unit prices. If you would like to inquire about a unit price, you can issue me an RFI via the ask questions tab. I gave limited information on purpose. Do your best.
-5,000 sf Single family residence
-The schedule is 12 months
-The site is 300' x 150'
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As discussed in Chapter 2, the technical portion of the specifications is based on the 50 divisions of the CSI MasterFormat. The first division is appropriately named Division 1—General Requirements and is the only topic within the General Requirements subgroup. This division deals primarily with:
• Project Overhead Requirements • The basis for administering the project, as defined by the General
Conditions of the Contract for Construction • Administrative Requirements
While the General Conditions of the Contract and the General Requirements of Division 1 stand alone as two separate documents, they are related. The General Requirements are important to the estimating process because they provide the information needed to assign a monetary value to the project overhead items.
General Requirements include items such as:
• Temporary Facilities and Controls • Project Meetings • Reference Standards and Definitions • Submittals • Testing Requirements • Project Closeout • Project Record Documents • Quality Control • Commissioning • Project Phasing • Progress Schedule (Critical Path Method)
Division 1 also identifies the contractor’s special contractual obligations that have an associated cost and must be accounted for in the bidding process. This category includes development and provision of:
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• Unit Prices • Alternates • Allowances
While the General Requirements are the first division of the CSI MasterFormat, they are often the last to be estimated (priced). This is because most General Requirements items require a complete understanding of the entire project, which is not possible until after you have become familiar with the contract documents, performed the takeoff of each division, made a site visit (if applicable), and estimated the majority of the
project.
Most items in the General Requirements can be classified for estimating purposes into two main categories: fixed costs and variable costs.
Fixed Costs
Fixed costs are associated with one-time project requirements. Building permit fees are a good example; these may be calculated by a formula that is cost driven (e.g., $10 per $1,000 of building cost) or by some other fixed means, such as the square footage of the floor plan. Either way, you can determine a fixed cost for these fees to incorporate into the estimated price. Other examples of fixed costs include street opening or water tap permits, water and sewer betterment fees, trailer furnishings, prepaid insurance premiums, and project mobilization/demobilization costs. The essence of a fixed General Requirement cost is that it is paid once on the project, despite the project schedule, so it can be estimated as a fixed sum.
Variable, or Time-Sensitive, Costs
Variable costs are schedule driven and are determined based on the length of time the items or services are needed on the project. Examples of time-sensitive costs include trailer rental, telephone, and electrical power usage, supervision costs, and temporary toilets or facilities. Variable costs can also be thought of as more subjective in the sense that they are frequently defined based on experience and judgment. Variable, or time-sensitive, costs often require that a “means and method” technique be used to develop the estimate. For example:
If scaffolding is required along the exterior façade of a building, the estimator will need to develop a method for staging the structure to perform the work. The options may be numerous and vary greatly in cost. Staging could be included for only one portion of the building at a time and then dismantled, relocated, and reerected as many times as necessary to complete the work. Each move would have specific costs relative to how long the staging is required on-site. Another alternative might be to use a
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