Estimating for General Engineering Contractors

From the bottom of the trench to the top of the pavement.

Takeoffs, cost estimates, and complete bid packages for underground utilities, earthwork, roadway, and concrete. Fifteen years of California heavy civil experience, available bid by bid.

CIVIL P2P
What I estimate

The full civil sitework package

Every takeoff is tied back to the plan sheets, so you can check any quantity against the drawings.

Underground

Water, sewer, and storm mains, dry utilities, structures, manholes, and inlets.

Earthwork

Mass grading, trench excavation, import and export, with a cut & fill sheet on every earthwork takeoff.

Roadway

HMA paving, aggregate base, grind and overlay, striping, signage, and traffic control.

Concrete

Curb and gutter, sidewalk, ADA ramps, flatwork, pads, and structures.

Services & rates

Pick the level of help you need

Flat fee per job, quoted after a quick plan review. No retainer needed to get started.

1

Takeoff Only

Quantities for pipe and structures, earthwork with a cut & fill sheet, paving, and concrete.

$200 – $600per job
2

Cost Estimate

Takeoff plus crew, equipment, material, and subcontractor pricing, built into a unit-price or lump-sum estimate.

$600 – $2,500per job
3

Full Bid Package MOST COMPLETE

Cost estimate plus bid schedule, proposal letter, sub and supplier outreach, and bid-day support through submission.

$2,500 – $4,000per job
4

PM & Software Support

Job setup, buyout, purchase orders and subcontracts, change orders, RFIs, submittals, and cost tracking.

$95 – $125/hror monthly retainer
5

Custom Programs

Ready-to-use tools built for your company. See the programs below.

$250 – $1,000per program · + $50/mo support
Rush (24–48 hr)+25–50%
Volume15% off at 5+ bids per month
Addenda & revisionsBilled hourly
RetainerSet number of bids per month, quoted per client

Flat fees depend on plan set size, scope, and turnaround.

Custom programs

Software built by an estimator

Simple tools set up around how your crews and office already work. Click any screen to see it full size.

Bid Estimator

Bid items priced from your own labor, equipment, material, and sub rates, with overhead, profit, and rounding built into every unit price.

Project Manager

Every active job with percent complete, cost against budget, and daily reports waiting for approval.

Fleet Manager

Every unit with status, meter reading, maintenance due, open problems, and 12-month cost.

Safety Tracker

Crew tailgate meetings tracked against the Cal/OSHA 10-working-day rule, plus training, incidents, and inspections.

Screens show sample data. Each program is set up with your own jobs, crews, equipment, and rates.

$250 – $1,000per program, one-time setup+ $50/month support
About

Experience on both sides of the job

I've spent 15 years in California heavy civil infrastructure on both sides of the job. On the public agency side, I reviewed plans, inspected capital projects to Caltrans and federal funding standards, and verified installed quantities for progress payments. On the contractor side, I've prepared bids, built complete estimates, and run jobs on roadway, underground utility, and land development work.

That background means I read a plan set the way the owner's engineer will check it, and price it the way a contractor has to build it. I evaluate historical cost data to set unit rates and man-hours, review specs and drawings to pin down scope, and gather vendor and sub quotes so your number is complete on bid day.

I also handle the work after the award: job setup, subcontracts and purchase orders, buyout schedules, change orders, RFIs, and submittals. My fleet and IT background is where the custom programs come from.

15years of California heavy civil experience
2sides of the job: public agency and contractor
Certifications
  • Qualified SWPPP Practitioner (QSP)
  • Certified Erosion, Sediment & Stormwater Inspector
  • OSHA 30
Project experience

From a single service tap to a $10M canal

The projects below show the high end of what I've estimated and managed. Most bids aren't that big, and the smaller ones get the same plan review, quantity checks, and pricing.

Paulsell Lateral Expansion, Phase I

$10M

A 6-mile irrigation water conveyance improvement: canal restructuring, grading, excavation, and six automated concrete check structures, built under a tight winter shutdown.

6 miles90,000+ SF concrete/shotcrete lining6 check structures

Roundabout at State Route 108

$5M+

Cost estimates, traffic control plans, and scheduling for a 50-ft radius roundabout with roadway excavation, hot mix asphalt, drainage, and utility casings.

2,300 CY roadway excavationHMADrainage

Battery Energy Storage Site

$1.8M

A 25,000 SF site development in dense volcanic rock with mass earthwork balancing, an engineered precast wall, conduit trenching, and structural pads.

2,000 CY rock excavation3,000 LF conduit trench500 CY structural concrete

Lift Station Bypass

$1.4M

Gravity sewer main installation with manhole reconfigurations and decommissioning of the existing lift station.

2,100 LF 8" gravity sewerManhole reconfigurations
Smaller jobs, same detail

No bid too small to price right

Small contractors and tight scopes need accurate numbers just as much as a multi-million dollar bid. A takeoff starts at $200, so it makes sense even on a quick job, public or private.

UndergroundWater and sewer service taps, short storm drain runs, single manholes and inlets, conduit trenching
EarthworkBuilding pads, small lot grading, detention basins, trench and backfill for a single utility run
RoadwayTrench patch paving, parking lot repair and overlay, driveway approaches, striping
ConcreteADA ramp retrofits, curb and gutter replacement, sidewalk repair, equipment pads
Under $50K$50K – $250K$250K – $1M$1M – $10M+
Public worksCities, counties, water and utility districts, and Caltrans-funded work. Bid schedules, prevailing wage, bonds, and agency specs.
Private workDevelopers, subdivisions, commercial and industrial sites, energy projects, and other contractors who need a sub price.
Get a quote

Send me your plans

Email the plan set and bid date, or call to talk through the scope. Serving contractors throughout California from the Central Valley.

PHONE
(559) 906-7059
EMAIL
SERVICE AREA
All of California
Based in the Central Valley
1Send the plansPlan set, specs, bid date, and the scope you want covered.
2Get a flat quoteI review the set and send a fixed price and turnaround.
3Bid with confidenceQuantities and pricing delivered ahead of your bid date.