gundogpa Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'm an estimator for a steel company. This is how it works. I buy a set of drawings of a building.The architect has only done half of the work and a quarter of the dimensioning. I have a day to look over the drawings, do the takeoff, send out for material pricing. I wrap it all up into a nice package and send it off as a competitive bid. The vendors that I buy material from hold their prices for 10 days, I have to hold my number for 90 days and if I am awarded the job I have to hold pricing for the entire job, maybe a year or more. I do a very extensive scope of work, everything that I am including is listed. The GC then adds anything he can at no extra money to it if he can.......when I point out that I have listed exactly what was included he claims I have bought the entire job.....even the things not on the drawings yet. Of course when an item is not needed I am to provide a credit for that......that is the only instance when I have not "bought the job". Once I have bought all the material my vendors expect payment, of course even though I have installed the material on the jobsite the GC will hold payment as long as possible and 5-10% retainage until the job is finished even though my part is usually in the beginning. We have to turn the crappy, half drawn architectural drawings into exact shop drawings. Nothing fits, the floors are the wrong heights, the stair have headroom issues because the concrete guy didn't build to print but we have. The anchor bolts are incorrect when we get there to install the steel because the concrete guy can't measure. We sometimes make parts wrong, and them make them wrong again in the shop. We then have to work overtime which is not in the bid to catch up. We paint stairs with the wrong paint or we install the left beam on the right. The architect/engineer designed the stairs but then requires a stamp from a different engineer because they don't want to be responsible for the ENGINEERING......you would think that would be the one thing they could do. There is another 500 to 2000 dollars on the job. When it's all over and our vendors want money, the GC's won't pay what they owe us, our mess-ups cost us money and the drawings were crap........it all goes on a spread sheet so we can see how I have done. If we have lost money I should have quoted it differently. Link to post Share on other sites
Brad Eden Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I babysit adults and do some graphic design, illustration, art direction, sporting art and outdoor writing on the side. Or whatever it takes to minimize time spent inside four walls or to have a boss ever again. I'm not getting rich doin it but it's better than digging post holes, I suppose. Wait, I do that too. Link to post Share on other sites
LostintheUplands Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Following the seasons Upland hunting and Flyfishing, living on my trust fund.... Oh wait, that's my reoccurrent daydream during my hellish commute to my real job as a licensed land surveyor in our Nation's Capitol. Link to post Share on other sites
welshie_man Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'm a rocket scientist... All right. That's a stretch. I am a design engineer specializing in the design of spacecraft propulsion systems. Link to post Share on other sites
BlueMtn Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'm retired to a life of genteel poverty. Link to post Share on other sites
Hunshatt Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'm an estimator for a steel company. This is how it works. I buy a set of drawings of a building.The architect has only done half of the work and a quarter of the dimensioning. I have a day to look over the drawings, do the takeoff, send out for material pricing. I wrap it all up into a nice package and send it off as a competitive bid. The vendors that I buy material from hold their prices for 10 days, I have to hold my number for 90 days and if I am awarded the job I have to hold pricing for the entire job, maybe a year or more. I do a very extensive scope of work, everything that I am including is listed. The GC then adds anything he can at no extra money to it if he can.......when I point out that I have listed exactly what was included he claims I have bought the entire job.....even the things not on the drawings yet. Of course when an item is not needed I am to provide a credit for that......that is the only instance when I have not "bought the job". Once I have bought all the material my vendors expect payment, of course even though I have installed the material on the jobsite the GC will hold payment as long as possible and 5-10% retainage until the job is finished even though my part is usually in the beginning. We have to turn the crappy, half drawn architectural drawings into exact shop drawings. Nothing fits, the floors are the wrong heights, the stair have headroom issues because the concrete guy didn't build to print but we have. The anchor bolts are incorrect when we get there to install the steel because the concrete guy can't measure. We sometimes make parts wrong, and them make them wrong again in the shop. We then have to work overtime which is not in the bid to catch up. We paint stairs with the wrong paint or we install the left beam on the right. The architect/engineer designed the stairs but then requires a stamp from a different engineer because they don't want to be responsible for the ENGINEERING......you would think that would be the one thing they could do. There is another 500 to 2000 dollars on the job. When it's all over and our vendors want money, the GC's won't pay what they owe us, our mess-ups cost us money and the drawings were crap........it all goes on a spread sheet so we can see how I have done. If we have lost money I should have quoted it differently. that reads eerily familiar but I have a lot of baby sitting as well Link to post Share on other sites
rudyc Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Residential real estate appraiser. I get to tell folks looking to refi their home that their house is worth about 20-25% less than it was 4 years ago. Hey dude / don't kill the messenger!! Link to post Share on other sites
Crayborn Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Sales rep for an environmental testing lab. We analyze water, soil, solid materials for the nasty stuff: heavy metals, herbicides, pesticides, pcbs, radiologicals, etc. Most of what we do is for somebody's regulatory compliance situation. It's been fun, but looking forward to retirement in a few years. Please not let it be STL, or what ever it is now. I'm an Environmental Scientist with the local county government. Spending most of my time now doing habitat restorations. Currently have 600 acres of Longleaf Pine being planted now. Also in charge of all wetland mitigation projects, NPDES permitting, 3 Landfills, 2 Waste water plants, one process water plant and 10,000 acres of land. Also and a Wildland firefighter and Certified prescribed burn manager. Link to post Share on other sites
PWZ Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Mechanical Designer. Link to post Share on other sites
Tan-&-Black Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I stare at a word processor until my eyes bleed. Link to post Share on other sites
fisherman4 Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 g.c.super. I sign all the slips fof the extras the estimaters for subcontractors leave out. like you wanted screws with that drywall? wasnt, on the plans or in the specs. Link to post Share on other sites
Briarscratch Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I babysit adults and do some graphic design, illustration, art direction, sporting art and outdoor writing on the side. Or whatever it takes to minimize time spent inside four walls or to have a boss ever again. I'm not getting rich doin it but it's better than digging post holes, I suppose. Wait, I do that too. I'd say you're due for an increase. Journeyman post hole diggers are hard to come by. Link to post Share on other sites
trust me Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I babysit adults... You're being cranky again. But we tolerate it because your wife is hot. Link to post Share on other sites
16GaGunDog Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'm a slave to The Machine... Man was not designed to sit at a desk. Link to post Share on other sites
Bonasa Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 window washer and pretend dog trialer/pro staffer. I've been doing the upland thing for about a day and a half, but I pay anybody who can stand my obnoxious, abrasive, manically insecure personality to ride in my B.A.T. and hurl insults at everybody who knows more than I do, in a lame attempt to prove I have a clue. "Pleased to meet you, hope you guessed my name..." Link to post Share on other sites
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