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DR. P. Proteus

DR. P. Proteus

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Dec 2, 2013
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So when you look at a job how do you come up with your numbers? You just put a price on a tree or what? I brake it down into time. Don't get me wrong I will often scribble a price down on my bid sheet for what I think the tree would cost, but next to it I put down how many hours it will take with x amount of guys. Sometimes my price for the tree is a little higher than my time estimate, and I will then adjust accordingly. I will admit I need to up the $ on bucket work. Yesterday we removed a large Birch that I would put $850 on, my estimator put $650 on it. It took under 3 hours with 3 guys but still. So I do see both sides of it. I lean towards the man hour method because I find it more constant, and it's very hard to lose money that way if you know your crew well.

I've been only narrow it down to days and you are talking hours?
 
DR. P. Proteus

DR. P. Proteus

Addicted to ArboristSite
Joined
Dec 2, 2013
Messages
2,358
A friend invited me over for 420 last evening, its been awhile, I was up all night obsessing about dumpsters. Trying to find the right company to do a monthly thing that can get over the 10 ton bridge. I called a few companies, the one that services our house is so big I could never get to talk to anybody, a smaller company hung up when I said " construction debris", another can get over the bridge for the right price but won't let me keep the can.
 
rtsims

rtsims

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Joined
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Location
Oregon
You lean toward the man hour method because you are far from having my ability to set in a price on the fly based on what you think the job is really worth regardless of hours and are afraid of losing money. It took me years to develop a gut for what I believed we could really get for any particular job. Plus, if you are savvy, you know you can bury competition financially if they are stuck with the hourly rate deal. I looked at a job that will essentially take only five hours to do this past Saturday. But, it's a difficult job with very little access and I figured a way to rig it that I believe my "competition" wouldn't pick up on. I bid it $3,500....so that's what...$700 an hour for four guys. The caretaker of the property sent me an email this morning with a signed contract and said set it up and get it done.


To each there own bud, I'm glad your out there killin it. Truly I am. I enjoy people succeeding.
 
jefflovstrom

jefflovstrom

It was a beautiful day!
. AS Supporting Member.
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Messages
9,909
Location
san diego, calif.
So when you look at a job how do you come up with your numbers? You just put a price on a tree or what? I brake it down into time. Don't get me wrong I will often scribble a price down on my bid sheet for what I think the tree would cost, but next to it I put down how many hours it will take with x amount of guys. Sometimes my price for the tree is a little higher than my time estimate, and I will then adjust accordingly. I will admit I need to up the $ on bucket work. Yesterday we removed a large Birch that I would put $850 on, my estimator put $650 on it. It took under 3 hours with 3 guys but still. So I do see both sides of it. I lean towards the man hour method because I find it more constant, and it's very hard to lose money that way if you know your crew well.

You lean toward the man hour method because you are far from having my ability to set in a price on the fly based on what you think the job is really worth regardless of hours and are afraid of losing money. It took me years to develop a gut for what I believed we could really get for any particular job. Plus, if you are savvy, you know you can bury competition financially if they are stuck with the hourly rate deal. I looked at a job that will essentially take only five hours to do this past Saturday. But, it's a difficult job with very little access and I figured a way to rig it that I believe my "competition" wouldn't pick up on. I bid it $3,500....so that's what...$700 an hour for four guys. The caretaker of the property sent me an email this morning with a signed contract and said set it up and get it done.

This is why I am glad that we do not do residential,
It is easy to use a gut feeling when bidding that way, I know, that is how the smaller company's do it here.
But, your gut is gonna have a hard time coming up with a good number that generates profit's if you use that gut feeling to bid on 141 pines to remove in a large HOA and they are spread out in a city that requires permits for each location.
The crew gets paid by the hour, those hours are a criteria in my bid.
So, I would use my gut on a small job, but do my homework on a large job.
ps,,we actually bid on those 141 pines last week,, we will see.
Jeff
 

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