Square foot rate

[blythe59]

what is a fair SF rate for a commercial build out of 4000sf in Florida,
basic power outlets and fluorescent lights from a new panel, nothing fancy
for bugeting purposes

 

[bradleyelectric]

seriously? why not just price it? Do you know how? If not ask that question. Is it just a retail white box or is it a warehouse, dentist office.....?

 

[blythe59]

a fitness centre, the client has not made up there mind on exact quantities, but a SF rate should give them a budget cost to work with, when details are final, a price can be worked out.
In the UK we have a book called Spons which will give you a idea of of costs per SF of electrical, mechanical,buildings etc.
Is there one availiable in the US?

 

[480sparky]

Square foot pricing hardly makes the cut in the residential market. Absolutely no way is it going to make it in the commercial side of our trade.




Unless............

You start buying wire, boxes, breakers, devices, etc. by the square foot.

 

[Buck Parrish]

a fitness centre, the client has not made up there mind on exact quantities, but a SF rate should give them a budget cost to work with, when details are final, a price can be worked out.
In the UK we have a book called Spons which will give you a idea of of costs per SF of electrical, mechanical,buildings etc.
Is there one availiable in the US?

Thier are books in the US that might help. I have found them way off base in the pass esspecially if the book is designed for General Contractors. What ever info that gives, you might want to double it.

But other then that as Sparky suggested. You would really need to do some figuring. Even to get close to a good number.

 

[480sparky]

a fitness centre, the client has not made up there mind on exact quantities, ..........

OK, let's say the space is 4,000 ft?, and you price it out at $4.00 per. Your bid is now $16,000.

But, since you say the 'client hasn't decided on exact quantities', he now thinks he can have whatever he wants for $16,000. So instead of basing what he wants on a budget, he believes you will do whatever he needs and wants for the same price.

If he was originally planning on 8 treadmills, oh, well, the price of wiring 12 will be the same! Why? Because he hasn't increased the square foot size of the center, so the price is still $16,000.

Instead of 60 troffers in a drop ceiling, he wants LED track lighting suspended from the structural lid. It all can be done for the same price of $16,000!

Oh, and he wants the whole lighting package controlled by a DALI system. Now, you'd better put one in because the size of the center is still 4,000 ft? and your price is still $4 per...........



This is just like saying cars cost $5,000 per wheel. So a car, any car, no matter how fancy or plain it is, should cost $20,000. If that's the case, I'm heading down to the Ferrari dealer this afternoon.

 

[cowboyjwc]

My thought always was, if you don't know what you want, how am I supposed to know what you want? And I can't give you a price on what we don't know.

Plans, plans, plans. Make that final approved plans.

 

[Ohmy]

You should charge $3.75 a square foot.

 

[bradleyelectric]

Just make a rough lighting plan and add in some general use outlets and ask them if they have a general layout of equipment. Size service accordingly. How are the TV outlets going to work?

Give them a general budget based on that scope, include the scope and do your regular proposal with the wording "We are proud to submit our budget number for the proposed scope of work" Then list the proposed scope and your budget #.

Do you have access to any lighting design software? If not you need to either draw the dimensions of the space on a sheet of paper and fill in the lighting design or talk to your outside sales rep and see if he can do it on his software for you.

 

[Fulthrotl]

My thought always was, if you don't know what you want, how am I supposed to know what you want? And I can't give you a price on what we don't know.

Plans, plans, plans. Make that final approved plans.

i've got a couple of those........ how much is that doggy in the window?
people.

they have no concept that you should do work in a manner that efficiently
utilizes the labor spent. or that you should think before dropping the checkbook.
if they want ten lights in an area, and you give them a price
for ten of them, then they think one light should be 10% of that price.

work for them, i do based on half day labor increments, with 50% added for
markup on material.

minimum.

most people are like that anymore. everything is a retail purchase to
them, they are constitutionally incapable of planning, and if they aren't
happy, due to their own shortsightedness, they want to return it and
get their money back.

a price for a 4,000 square foot t bar ceiling area?

$48,709.

put that in your budget, and when you get drawings, i'll be happy go give
you a bid on those drawings.

 

[CopperTone]

Can everyone please stop trying to price a job by the square foot?

the only way to come up with a sq ft price is to price the job out in full and then divide by the sqare footage of the space.

You need to do a take off to get an accurate price (one light in the middle of the room - or 10 recessed lights in the same room - same sq footage - much different price)

its like asking - hey how much does a house cost? - you know - in general - for budget pruposes. it doesn't work

General contractors use phrases like "Square footage costs" but those numbers are based on past projects (they take the total cost and divide it by the square footage - They will be the first to tell you it all depends on the material you put into the house.

 

[LarryFine]

if they want ten lights in an area, and you give them a price for ten of them, then they think one light should be 10% of that price.

I love that logic, too.

"How much to install six receptacles in my garage?"

"Our price for that is $420, including materials."

"Okay, just install one. That will be $70, right?" :roll:

 

[cdslotz]

I did an upscale fitness center last year. It was a retrofit of an exisiting building with parking garage. It ran around $14/ft for the shell/site ltg/parking ltg.
The finish out ran around $28/ft.

You need to avoid square footing anything. At least come up with budgets and allowances for each segment of work.

Lighting = X
Distribution = X
Controls = X
Fire Alarm = X
etc
That way if the owner wants to get fancy and the lighting goes up 200% he will see where he blew the budget.

 

[DAWGS]

The book you are looking for is RSMeans electrical cost data. As others said square footing a price is a bad idea, but if you are just budgeting numbers to get ballpark cost of project you go on historical data.

By the way 2009 RSMeans shows square foot cost for electrical for clubs, Y.M.C.A (closest to your project type i could find)

1/4 $8.80
1/2 $11.00
3/4 $15.15

I would go 3/4 for the budget.

 

[blythe59]

square foot

square foot

a SF price is to give the client a idea on budget to what it will cost,which includes a panel and breakers, power outlets with white plastic plates for the area, lighting points to light the area wired into pendand basic lamp holders, in this case a couple of switches to bring on the lights, some emergency lights for the area. and thats all. quantity to meet present day code.

anything else would be extra and would be said in the covering letter.
types of light fixtures chosen by the client, high end finish recepticle plates if required, dimmers, AV systems etc etc.

as you may as gathered I am not from the US , I am from London England.

in the UK a SF price is used for a shell and core fit out while waiting for a full design specification to be issued, and is a very commom practice in the UK.

thanks guys for your input, appreciate it.

regards

Mick

 

[480sparky]

............quantity to meet present day code.
............

If that's all I priced, it would be durn cheap. All I need to meet the 'vanilla shell' building code is one light, an exit light over each door, and one circuit. Not receps. No switches.

 

[blythe59]

SF

SF

thanks Dawgs, checking it out now

 

[Article 90.1]

a SF price is to give the client a idea on budget to what it will cost,which includes a panel and breakers, power outlets with white plastic plates for the area, lighting points to light the area wired into pendand basic lamp holders, in this case a couple of switches to bring on the lights, some emergency lights for the area. and thats all. quantity to meet present day code.

anything else would be extra and would be said in the covering letter.
types of light fixtures chosen by the client, high end finish recepticle plates if required, dimmers, AV systems etc etc.

as you may as gathered I am not from the US , I am from London England.

in the UK a SF price is used for a shell and core fit out while waiting for a full design specification to be issued, and is a very commom practice in the UK.

thanks guys for your input, appreciate it.

regards

Mick

Than don''t call it a square foot price, call it what you are calling it, "Code Minimum." The devil is in the details and language is everything. What are you giving the customer if you do the work, x receptacles per square foot? No! You are giving them a Code Minimum installation, so why not be honest and call it that.

I'm sick of this square foot crap!!! Can you tell?