By the foot

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I have herd of estimators in fab shops doing estimates by cost of materials and linear foot pricing .I have a small shop and I don't want to sell my self short on pricing the way I figured it was for MIG 1/4" bead any positionon 6061 alloy 27.00 per linear foot  or am I out of line .Great lakes areaHit it like you live
Reply:We figure by the hour for labor and then figure material by the pound.  The hourly rate covers welding supplies, payroll, insurance, and other overhead costs.If its BLUE you're throughIf its GREY you stay
Reply:smithy,It's $50 to walk into a shop here in So Cal.
Reply:when i was young, i was being "groomed" for a ship superintendent position in a shipyard.. here was some of the bid techniques they tried to teach us:by the ft~ best time for an avg man is 7 ft per hr, one pass/opt cond.[NO! i dont want to hear about your 30' mig-marathon weld! because your buddie did the overhead were nobody cleaned as well and didnt get NEAR as good a figure! couple that with setup and the 7'per hr rule becomes a semi-realistic figure that can be worked with!]by the pound~doubled a 40'w x 33't bulkhead w/ 1/2" plate @ .38 per lb, worked out to be in the $12,000 range [when adding in the 40' x 3'w deck insert to cover the hole we cut to lower pl into the hold] IMO they lost their a$$ on that bid...$27.00 per ft in a fab shop? not bad money, unless that 1' is underneath and inside a big,greasy pc of eqiupment.....i follow the ole cajuns rule of bidding: figure your avge cost[time&material} and then DOUBLE it! if things go right, you make good money/if things go wrong, theres money there to cover the extra time/materials!then theres the ole standby~ T&M [time & material] had to do this job that way:http://community.webshots.com/script...umID=102953159too many variables, like having to use yard personell [deadwood ALL!] inconsistant crane service etc.etcnow i know that in a fab shop you have LOTS better controll over the job, but it can still bite you by setting a linear ft price precedent. happen`d at our shop like this, partner did a loader bucket reskin while qouting a price per ft, as ther was quite a few ft of welding he did OK~the customer tells his buddie the price per ft and this guy brings us plans for 30 "cell phone tower anttenea brackets" that were quite complicated but only rang up about 8' of total weld lenth [and you had to turn them 4 times to weld that!] i intercepted the call and told the customer that in NO way did we price everything by the ft, but that i would be HAPPY to bid the job.....cost+materialsX2[i didnt tell him that]. turns out that i was under on the handling aspect some and the final cost per pc was about 75% of what i bid! also found out later that another [larger] fab shop in the area had bid them @ 30% more than we had and that was a ROCK bottom price![course THAY have good lookin sexataries and nice offices and their owners dont have to "sully" their hands with anything so MUNDANE as actually workin these projects!]just my .02~~~~it never hurts to look,unless they`r WELDING!
Reply:Our shop is $45 per hour per guy and $.65 per pound of A-36 steel.  Price goes up for T-1, GR-50, Stainless, and Aluminum.  Portable rate is $100 per hour for 2 guys and the truck.If its BLUE you're throughIf its GREY you stay
Reply:Here's a microsoft access file: http://www.brainfarth.com/Welder2.zip and excel: http://www.brainfarth.com/Weld%20Costexcel.zip that might help out with calculating welding costs.Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.
Reply:Thanks a lot guys your insight and experience are appreciatedHit it like you live
Reply:Any more on this fellas?
Reply:The work I get lately has been multiple pieces.  One customer brings one over so I can set a piece price.  I figure my shop rate $60.00.  If there are 20 pieces, you can bet I'll kick that first part time wise in the azz.  The last big job I did (for me) I came up with a price, then hired my 16 year old son for a day to do the grinding.  In one day we did double what I could do alone. Never did the by the foot thing because I do a lot of repair welding and its just by the hour.  I own a truck/auto repair shop.  Those parts I can mark up 50% easily.  Steel, I just go for 10-25 %  I always find a way to leave me some headroom.    Sometimes its just a bunch of steel left over from the job.I am slowly closing up the mechanic business and going more for welding.  40 mechanic /60 welding now, 3 years ago it was 90% mechanic 10% welding.  Its a bumpy road, but I am having fun.DavidLast edited by David R; 01-30-2008 at 12:56 PM.Real world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.