Estimating & Bidding Procedures Index
Purpose: Bid process, estimating standards, and proposal management
Audience: Estimators, Project Managers, Executives
Documents in This Section
| Document | Description | Priority |
|---|
01-bid-pursuit-process.md | Go/no-go decision making | High |
02-estimating-standards.md | Quantity takeoff and pricing | Critical |
03-bid-submission.md | Proposal preparation and submission | Critical |
07-value-engineering.md | Cost-saving alternatives | Medium |
Bid/No-Bid Decision Factors
Pursue When:
- ✅ Within our expertise
- ✅ Adequate time to estimate
- ✅ Resources available
- ✅ Profitable potential
- ✅ Good client relationship
- ✅ Reasonable risk
Decline When:
- ❌ Outside expertise
- ❌ Insufficient time
- ❌ Resources stretched
- ❌ Known problem client
- ❌ Unreasonable risk
- ❌ Unrealistic budget
Estimating Timeline
| Phase | Timing | Activities |
|---|
| Plan Review | Day 1-3 | Scope review, questions |
| Quantity Takeoff | Day 3-10 | Detailed quantities |
| Pricing | Day 7-12 | Material, labor, equipment |
| Sub Quotes | Day 7-14 | Collect and evaluate |
| Assembly | Day 12-14 | Compile estimate |
| Review | Day 14-15 | Management review |
| Submit | Bid Day | Final pricing, submit |
Cost Categories
| Category | Description | Typical % |
|---|
| Labor | Self-performed work | 25-40% |
| Materials | Purchased materials | 20-35% |
| Subcontractors | Sub contracts | 30-50% |
| Equipment | Owned/rented equipment | 5-10% |
| General Conditions | Site overhead | 5-10% |
| Overhead | Company overhead | 5-10% |
| Profit | Margin | 3-10% |
| Contingency | Risk reserve | 2-5% |
Markup Guidelines
| Project Type | OH% | Profit% | Total |
|---|
| Negotiated | 10% | 10% | 20% |
| Competitive | 8% | 5% | 13% |
| Hard Bid | 6% | 4% | 10% |
| Public | 5% | 3% | 8% |
Adjust based on risk, competition, and relationship
Sub Quote Evaluation
Checklist for Each Quote
Bid Leveling
Compare quotes apples-to-apples:
- Same scope coverage
- Same alternates included
- Same qualifications
- Identify buy-out opportunities
Post-Bid Analysis
If We Win
- Budget vs. actual tracking
- Identify estimating variances
- Document lessons learned
If We Lose
- Request debrief (if possible)
- Compare our bid to winning bid
- Analyze where we were high/low
- Adjust future estimates
- CRM / Bid Tracking - CRM.Construction, HubSpot, Salesforce
- Estimating - Bluebeam, PlanSwift, Sage Estimating
- Historical Cost Data - BLDR Pro, Procore, or your PM platform