SCAFFOLDING - THE HANDBOOK FOR ESTIMATING and PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE

Michael "Terry" Marks

• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781683483595
• Topic: Arquitectura
• Subtopic: Arquitectura general

Scaffolding is used in many industries every day, all over the world, in the construction industry; for commercial and industrial maintenance; the staging and entertainment markets; the shipbuilding industry; mining; industrial plants, including power plants; hydro and nuclear power facilities; pulp and paper plants; petrochemical plants; oil refineries; and offshore drilling rigs. This book serves as a guide to any person involved with scaffolding in any way so that they will have a training and reference book that they can refer to for both scaffolding product knowledge and for estimating. The first ten chapters of this book include historical data and background information including product knowledge on all types of built-up scaffolding, suspended cradles, and swingstages. The eleventh chapter of this book is dedicated to the procedures that are used for estimating; preparing proposals, bids, and contracts, including systematic instructions on how to calculate the formulas that are most commonly used for estimating materials and labour outputs for scaffolding. Additionally, there are several sections of this book dedicated to temporary enclosures, built-up shoring and falsework, as well as manual and motorized suspended swingstages and cradles. There are very few books available on these topics. To my knowledge there are none dedicated to product knowledge and the estimating of built-up scaffolding systems. No book can be all-inclusive, and this handbook does not claim to be. Much time and research has been put into this book to ensure that as many of the proven estimating methods and design concepts for all types of built-up and suspended scaffolding have been covered. Since one of our greatest assets in any business are our employees, the proper training of all craft and support staff within an industry is of primary importance. Additionally, the continuity in the training given to staff should always be kept up to a measurable standard and continually maintained to an acceptable level.

11

Estimating, Proposals, and Contracts

This entire chapter of the book concentrates on estimating, which includes preparing bids, proposals and working with contracts. Detailed instructions are included on estimating formulas that are used for the labour output for all types of built-up scaffolding, shoring, temporary enclosures, suspended cradles and swingstage scaffolding. The objective of this chapter is to provide a step-by-step guide on analyzing a customer’s scope of work in order to prepare and submit meaningful estimates, quotations and proposals that match the customer contract.

During my many years in the scaffolding industry, I have had the opportunity to hold many training sessions providing input on just about every subject in this book. Inevitably, I am always asked for copies of estimating formulas that are used to prepare the estimates with, which I have always willingly provided, but only under the condition that the person attends a short class on the subjects first. The reason for this is to promote, accuracy, consistency and continuity in the estimating procedures used from one place to another. This is a very important issue just as it is to the scaffolding industry in general. It is very important to pass down any acquired skills correctly, from one person to the next person, in a manner that preserves the industry standard and at the same time takes into consideration any new proven ideas and methods learned along the way. The formulas and the methods of estimating that are covered here are a combination of acquired information and hands on knowledge that has been passed down through the trade during the past one hundred years of metal scaffolding. This information includes input from estimators and field operatives in the scaffolding industry all around the world, as well as extensive personal studies on output productivity that I have learned and compiled on all the various segments of the industry since 1967.

Of course it would be quite easy to just hand over the formulas, or simply provide you with a computer program that you can do all of your estimates with. I strongly believe that it can prove a very costly mistake to just hand over estimating formulas to inexperienced persons to work with, especially without any fo...