Installation Cost Estimate

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charlie b

charlie b

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Semi-Retired Electrical Engineer
I was just asked a question related to installation costs. It's not something I often get asked. But then I discovered that we do not have a copy of the electrical version of Means (or any other similar document) in this office. So while I undertake to get a copy, please let me pass on the question to you.

I need an approximate range of installation costs for the following project. It is in the early design stage, so a quick ?guestimate? is all I need for now.
  • Install ten large fans in the ceiling of a warehouse building.
  • The ceiling is about 28 feet high.
  • Each fan will have an individual, 208 volt, 15 amp, three phase branch circuit.
  • Average horizontal distance from the panel to the fan will be about 100 feet.
  • Include the cost of the circuit breakers, the conduit (3/4 inch EMT), the wires (4 #14 AWG), the box, installation labor to run the circuits and mount the fans, and rental of the scissors lift.
  • Do not include the cost of the fans.

Many thanks in advance.
 
Look for the NECA Manaual of Labor Units

Look for the NECA Manaual of Labor Units

This book will help you out in finding the labor HR.

What type of Estimating Software do you use. Those figures should be incorporated in it all ready. Unless you are working off of paper?

Give me a ring
 
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rgiraldo said:
What type of Estimating Software do you use.
Click to expand...
I don't. That's my problem. We have others within the company who do formal cost estimates at various stages of the design. I generally don't get involved in the cost estimating process. But this was a quick question from a colleague who is doing the mechanical design, and is contemplating including large fans in the overall HVAC design.
 
136 Hours for the whole job.

Material $2200.00

Rental Not included.

Now these hours above are for easy install.

Labor 1 HR 288 Avg

Labor 2 Hr 347 Mod

Labor 3 HR 462 Diff

Hope it helped out
 
Hr- hours

Labor units are not static. Let's say that it takes X amount of hours to run a hundred ft of emt on an existing trapeze. Let's say it 10' in installation height with clear floors.

Let's say X equals 7 hours.

Ok second location is office with drop ceiling and furniture. Everything else is the same.

Third location is hard ceiling, everything else the same.

Now do you think that if you ran that hundred ft in scenario 2 and 3 that you would still be within the 7 hour? Don't think so.

You would need to adjust to the difficulty of the task.
 
Installation Cost Estimate

charlie b said:
[FONT=
I need an approximate range of installation costs for the following project. It is in the early design stage, so a quick ?guestimate? is all I need for now. [/FONT]
  • Install ten large fans in the ceiling of a warehouse building.
  • The ceiling is about 28 feet high.
  • Each fan will have an individual, 208 volt, 15 amp, three phase branch circuit.
  • Average horizontal distance from the panel to the fan will be about 100 feet.
  • Include the cost of the circuit breakers, the conduit (3/4 inch EMT), the wires (4 #14 AWG), the box, installation labor to run the circuits and mount the fans, and rental of the scissors lift.
  • Do not include the cost of the fans.

Many thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Charlie B I have lots of respect for you since I have seen your responces in detail to many questions arised here. therefore I am sending you a spread sheet showing how I arrived at $ 27,433.00 or $2,743.00 per fan. Plus you can change any input or add as you wish.
I did not undrestand the line in your post that I highlighted in red.
Do you mean each fan is approx 100 ft from panel, so 100 ft X 10 fans= 1000 ft of 3/4" EMT conduit.
In this case we don't have to wory about conduit fill derating and voltage drop.
But if you meant 100 ft distance from panel to first fan, then each fan 100 ft apart, then last fan will be 1000 ft away from panel and with one 3/4" home run you will have 30 conductors in the begining of run, so derating and voltage drop plays a big deal.
In the speadsheet I did not figure for fan instalation labor, add as you wish. I would figure about 2 to 3 hrs. per fan.
Big foot fan list 1 HP, 3ph motor for up to 12 ft blades, and 1 1/2 HP, 3ph for 14 ft blades and up.
1 1/2 HP matches well with info in your post.
You mentioned not to include the cost of Fan, but how about motor starter which is required for single phasing protection. 99% sure fan MTG. will not provide that. I have it in the speadsheet.

I also included disconnect sw at the motor.
Assuming Motor starter will be next to motor I have included wall or column mtd. sw. with-in 50 ft
of motor to turn on/off the fan.
Hopefully this do for you and again thank you for detailed responces you make in this forum.
P.S. I couldn't upload the spread sheet, I will try again or will E-mail it. Thanks.
 
Many thanks for the responses. The fans being considered are 24 feet wide, with 2 HP motors. The horizontal distance of 100' was intended to give a basis for estimating wiring costs. From the panel, you go up about 20 feet to the ceiling level, and then horizontally to the fan a distance of 50 to 150 feet. My intent would be to put two fans (7 amp draw) on a 20 amp circuit, to save some of the costs.
 
Rental 1200
Assuming there's room in the panel for 10 more 3pole breakers and assuming plug in breakers : breakers 600, labor 100= 700
If not, a new panel? 150A sub? 1600 material, 300 labor = 1900
Bolt on breakers with a new panel? 2200 material, 400 labor = 2600.
Branch 700' conduit with 5 #14?? 800 material, 2200 labor(I'm assuming 700' considering I should be able to share some of the conduit)= 3000
Fan boxes and support (considering a 3 phase fan) 400 material, 800 labor = 1200
Install fans (again considering the size) 2400
Miscellaneous 1000
Permits, inspections, etc: 600
Total 12-13K?
This is without any controllers neither provided, nor installed. I'm assuming they'll just turn the breakers on in the morning:)


charlie b said:
I was just asked a question related to installation costs. It's not something I often get asked. But then I discovered that we do not have a copy of the electrical version of Means (or any other similar document) in this office. So while I undertake to get a copy, please let me pass on the question to you.

I need an approximate range of installation costs for the following project. It is in the early design stage, so a quick ?guestimate? is all I need for now.
  • Install ten large fans in the ceiling of a warehouse building.
  • The ceiling is about 28 feet high.
  • Each fan will have an individual, 208 volt, 15 amp, three phase branch circuit.
  • Average horizontal distance from the panel to the fan will be about 100 feet.
  • Include the cost of the circuit breakers, the conduit (3/4 inch EMT), the wires (4 #14 AWG), the box, installation labor to run the circuits and mount the fans, and rental of the scissors lift.
  • Do not include the cost of the fans.

Many thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
 
charlie b said:
I was just asked a question related to installation costs. It's not something I often get asked. But then I discovered that we do not have a copy of the electrical version of Means (or any other similar document) in this office. So while I undertake to get a copy, please let me pass on the question to you.

I need an approximate range of installation costs for the following project. It is in the early design stage, so a quick ?guestimate? is all I need for now.
  • Install ten large fans in the ceiling of a warehouse building.
  • The ceiling is about 28 feet high.
  • Each fan will have an individual, 208 volt, 15 amp, three phase branch circuit.
  • Average horizontal distance from the panel to the fan will be about 100 feet.
  • Include the cost of the circuit breakers, the conduit (3/4 inch EMT), the wires (4 #14 AWG), the box, installation labor to run the circuits and mount the fans, and rental of the scissors lift.
  • Do not include the cost of the fans.

Many thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

first thought is, can you pull #12, derate it, and pull more than one fan in a 1" feed?

i'm assuming it's bigazz fans... the motor controllers will all be grouped near the panel,
and you'll head off across the building with a rack of pipes... across the line starting,
without VFD's? no harmonics? you'd be able to LOTO on those controllers, yes?

for a motor disconnect near the fan itself, outside the blade area, you could put a motor
rated switch off the T, and then pipe into the motor with 1/2" from there.

but 19 #12 xhhw-2's is 39.8%. minus the ground, that is six motors in a pipe.
using T's, so you don't have to support boxes, you could attach a 14 guage steel plate
the size of the disconnect to something structural, and attach the motor rated switch
to that....

so, you'd have two 1" conduits doing the whole building. instead of 10 3/4" conduits.

as i run something like that, i've got a spool of mule tape, and am putting in a mule tape
unbroken, the entire length of the run... then i tie on the first set of leads, pull them with
the ground all the way to the end of the run, then move back up to the next box, pull the
muletape tail out, and tie on the next set, and work my way back to the closest box. it goes
fast.

have one guy pipe it complete, then a second guy help him to help set the fan motors,
mount blades, and pull wire.

call it 90 hours labor total.

i'm not gonna take off the material cost and such... just offering some thoughts about
the actual install..... and that 90 hours is based on an empty building, where you can move
around pretty easily.
 
Fulthrotl said:
first thought is, can you pull #12, derate it, and pull more than one fan in a 1" feed?
Click to expand...

looking at things.... if you pulled #14, you'd be good to go, based on fla of 7.

you can pull 15 #14 xhhw-2 in a 3/4" emt, but you need 16, and that full a pipe
that long a distance won't work for pulling, anyway, so you are still at two 1" conduits.

but the wire's cheaper.... :)
 
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