How Do Construction Estimators Calculate Material Costs Effectively? • 333+ Inspiring Lifestyle Ideas

A construction estimator’s effectiveness in planning is best demonstrated through their actions and calculation methods. Only perfect project planning ensures accuracy in the material costs preventing waste and overestimations. Over and underestimating is like an advantage in disguise that can either cut your profits or lose several bids.

However, to avoid this, construction companies invest in professional estimating services from competent companies like SMA Estimating LLC to refine the construction cost evaluation process. But, the main thing is which methods and strategies are implemented by cost estimators to produce perfect results. If you want to know how these cost experts can help you complete projects successfully with accurate calculations, keep reading our article to get insights!

How Construction Estimators Provide Accurate Material Costs?

Decide which materials are needed!

Before jumping on the construction takeoff process, experts deeply analyze to decide which precise construction materials are required. The construction estimators dig deep into the project scope to detect any potential issue or the requirement of any extra material.

The selection of materials also depends on the client’s budget and their desires or maybe some regulations apply to that certain site area.

Material Quantification

After having an eagle eye from all possible angles, the construction cost experts count the construction material including masonry, concrete, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, drywall, and more!

Moreover, skilled and reliable estimators use advanced estimating software such as Beam, Quest Estimating, On Screen Takeoff, Stack, and Plan Swift to extract correct construction estimates.

Let’s break down the materials based on their measurements.

1. Unit Count

Materials and items that are counted individually or in packaged quantities.

Air conditioners
Ovens
Windows
Doors
Light switches
Sinks
Electrical outlets
Lightbulbs (usually sold by box or pack)
Hinges (often sold by box)
Nails (usually sold by box)
Bricks (often sold in batches or pallets)

2. Measurement by Length

Materials that are measured based on their length, typically for linear applications are:

Lumber (measured in linear feet/meters)
Pipes (PVC, copper, or steel piping)
Electrical cables (wire or conduit)
Rebar (reinforcement bars for concrete)
Baseboards (trim or molding)
Rods (steel or wooden rods)
Metal beams

3. Area Measurement

Materials that cover surfaces and are measured by area (length x width):

Carpet
Paint (coverage in square feet or meters)
Tiles (ceramic, porcelain, etc.)
Wallpaper
Roof shingles
Plywood sheets (used for flooring or walls)
Vinyl flooring
Glass panes (for windows)

4. Volume Measurement

Materials that are measured by the space they fill, typically in cubic dimensions.

Concrete
Landfill soil
Gravel
Sand
Asphalt
Cement
Mortar
Water (for large-scale irrigation or construction needs)

How to Calculate Material Cost Precisely?

Let’s take examples of the following materials and understand how construction estimators precisely evaluate the cost:

1. Lumber

To calculate hardwood or random-sized lumber, estimators use this formula:

Thickness (in) x Width (in) x Length (ft) / 12 = Board feet

For example, for a 3” x 12” x 10’ piece:

3 x 12 x 10 = 360

360 / 12 = 30 board feet

After that, they multiply this by the price per board foot to estimate the cost.

2. Concrete

Construction cost estimators evaluate the concrete in cubic yards by the following formula:

Length x Width x Thickness / 27 = Cubic yards

Let’s assume = 20’ x 10’ x 8” concrete pad

20’ x 10’ x .67’ = 133.4 cubic feet

133.4 / 27 = 4.94 cubic yards

After the calculations, estimators add a 10% extra cost for covering the material waste:

4.94 x 1.10 = 5.43 cubic yards

3. Roofing

They divide the total roof sq. footage by 100 to get the total squares like this:

For example:

For a roof of 1,800 sq. ft.:

1,800 / 100 = 18 squares

But for the shingled roofs, the requirement is 3 bundles of shingles per square and 1 roll of tar paper for every 4 squares:

18 x 3 = 54 bundles of shingles

18 / 4 = 4.5 rolls of tar paper

After getting the number of rolls of tar paper, they measure eaves and rakes for drip edge and multiply the quantities by the price per product.

4. Flooring

For flooring material, construction estimators first make sure to know the

Total square footage of the floor area.

It goes by dividing the total square footage by the coverage of a single box of material.

For example, if a box of tiles covers 20 sq. ft. and the total area is 1,200 sq. ft.:

1,200 / 20 = 60 boxes

Also, they add an extra 10% for waste and cuts

60 x 1.10 = 66 boxes

At the end, the total number of boxes is multiplied by the price per box to estimate the final cost.

In the same way all the construction materials are estimated according to their respective measurements by professional estimators.

Conclusion

In short, construction estimators use strategic and efficient techniques to evaluate the construction material cost. But it is not something that everybody can handle! You have to be very precise with measurements and formulas to generate accurate calculations. For this reason, we highly recommend SMA Estimating LLC’s skilled estimators as they have deep industry knowledge and they adjust construction estimates according to the project requirements. Remember, never leave your projects on incompetent cost estimators, and invest time and effort to find the best evaluators!