I know. I know. I normally write about the sexy side of architecture and landscape architecture. But today I learned a lot in the last 9 hours from a kind intelligent soul named Rick Langedyk of the Construction Estimating Institute.
Bless Rick’s heart. He was trying to help a mass communications major with limited blueprint reading skills keep up with 4 general contractors who were just brushing up on their estimating skills and who have the luxury of reading blueprints uninterrupted.
But here is the big key takeaway from the 9 hours there is a publication called called the 2012-2013 Construction Cost Guide that provides general contractors with both mean cost estimates for any material used in commercial construction and for the labor associated with installing it and the number of hours it should take to complete that specialty.
Sweets publishes a version. But the version I was utilizing was derived from RS Means. It cost $177.95.
To obtain your own copy click on rsmeans.com
Nothing takes the place of picking up the phone and getting true cost estimates especially in a price sensitive market like Miami but this guide helps most contractors put together rough budget allowances.
lcrsperspectives 