Cost per Foot
“How much per foot should I charge for a job? I have a restaurant that wants me to coat 20’ of pipe and then coat a grease trap. I’m just not sure what to add for the grease trap. Should I just add it to the footage price?”
While we’ve used per foot pricing as a rule of thumb for many jobs, I’ve always been a believer in determining costs to arrive at a price for a job. Builders for years used a per square foot price for building a house when the furnishings and trims were all pretty much the same. As the trim options started to come into play, the per square foot price didn’t work so well anymore.
It’s the same with lining and coating jobs. We’re seeing more diverse applications and elements of risk and access. With these factors the per foot pricing doesn’t fit anymore.
Let’s price the job this way.
- Estimate the amount of time you will need to travel to the job and back.
- How many people you will need for the job?
- How long will the actual work take?
- Will you need specialized equipment to execute the work – and the cost of it – if any?
- Figure the cost of consumable materials including cleaning equipment, liner, resin, and any other items you may use for this job and not reuse for other work.
- Add in overhead costs like insurance, office expenses, managers costs, etc. that are part of the cost of doing business.
- Finally, what amount do you need for profit from the job?
The first few times this exercise will be cumbersome to you but if you go through it, you will find it lets you sleep at night knowing you have covered all of your costs. It will also help you by setting a budget for a job and give you a guideline to follow to stay on time and control of your costs.
For more information contact us at Pipe Lining Supply 888-354-6464. You can also email us at info@pipeliningsupply.com.
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