How would you bid this job?

[SeanMurphy265]

I've already submitted a bid for this job, but I would be curious to see how much everyone else would bid.

The only thing that I will provide is welder, gasoline, and welding rods. The only thing that I am doing is welding.

This is a building that is having some roof work/repair. The roofing company is going to remove the tin, and replace the wood (there is wood on top of the perlings or c channel) with 2" square tube 14 gauge.

They will remove the tin one section at a time, remove the wood, and replace the wood with square tube.
The company will furnish me with a lift, and then I will weld an 1" bead every foot or two (not sure yet).

After I finish welding the section they will put the tin back on, and then remove the next section. Their are 4 sections roughly 25 foot each. Their are a total of 16 runs for the perlings; so their will be 16 rows of tubing about a 100' long.

All the welding is flat no overhead beads at all.

There is a small section where the wood has been replaced.


Here is how the tin is fastened to the building.


The lumber company will remove all the wood inside the building.


I will tell my bid after everyone else has given their input on how they would bid the job. I think it could be a good learning experience (myself included). I've gotten better at bidding jobs, but I still mess up sometimes.

[fdcmiami]

is that one inch of weld on one side of the tube or on both sides. i am assuming you are coming up from the floor and you will be between the purlins. who is going to be moving the material on the floor around so that you can position the lift where you need it? . are they going to use the old roof system and provide new? either way are you going to weld your section and then wait on them while they install the the panels where you have welded or will there be a second crew dismantling? is there going to be 220 in the lift. if there is you can hook up your stick welder and not have to worry about running cables from your field unit, makes it a lot easier. just a thought. i'd say go in high but it doesn't look like there is enough money in it.

ideally, the whole roof would be removed, barring that possibility, clear one half of the roof, put all the crap on the floor beneath the still covered side; you come in and do your work and go home. they come in and do their work and go home; they remove the other half, then you come back finish the other half and go home; wait for your check.

is that two inch square tubing going to be painted?

throw in a number to replace that deformed column while you're there.

i'm off base on that lift. i just finished working on a JLG85 it had a 30 amp 220 plug on it but it is also diesel powered. you will probably be getting an eletric/battery powered lift.

[Rambozo]

It sounds like you might be spending a lot of time waiting around on others. You need to be on the clock for that, too. I agree that the process as described sounds like great for the roofers, but bad for you. I think fdcmiami has a much better plan doing half and half. BTW you could also put in a bid to heat straighten that column, instead. I used to work with a guy that did a ton of that work. I was always amazed at how he could get things straight with just a torch.

[Trip59]

$2400-$2800 depending on how many days they take to pull and replace (I'd want $100 for each trip out)

[everlastsupport]

All good info here.

Best info I see. 1/2 and 1/2. Go high they will waste your time. I like the price per trip too, so they do not yank you around.

You said and think this is gold to you with "All I have to do is weld".. It can/will bite you when you start out. It never ends up that way with I just weld.

[Trip59]

All good info here.

Best info I see. 1/2 and 1/2. Go high they will waste your time. I like the price per trip too, so they do not yank you around.

You said and think this is gold to you with "All I have to do is weld".. It can/will bite you when you start out. It never ends up that way with I just weld.

After the last few I did, the thread I started here, and a 'multiple beer' conversation I had with a professional estimator (different industry) I've come up with what makes me happy price-wise. Set it high enough that it's worth your time to do, and high enough that you know they're serious. Too low and you'll regret it, and if they call your price too high, move on, figuring they saved you tons of advil for headaches they would have caused.

[everlastsupport]

Sean has been running for a bit. Getting into a different type jobs now it looks like. FDC is on the road all day. Ram seems to work local. You have done a few jobs and getting rolling.

I think all the info here is street smarts and what he is after. I bet Sean will take it either way and get roughed up a little. And learn.

But the idea, ask and figure it out. He did that.

[SeanMurphy265]

The lumber yard is 2 miles from my home. The roofing company is providing everything. They will have to paint the tubing. They are suppose to put the tubing on top of the channels.

The welding will me staggered from one side of the tube then 1 or 2 feet and then weld the other side.

This company is bidding on the repair, and it sounds like they just need a welder. I imagine it will take about two days, maybe quicker depending on people and lifts.

This job should be I do my part go home.

The point of this thread is for everyone to give their input of how and what they would charge to do this job. It's a simple job, but there is a lot of welding. Also you have to take into consideration your local market, and I think it would be helpful to see how people from different areas price this job.

When I submit my written bid; it will be only for the welding, and any other work will be subject to charges.

I also realize that I cannot charge as much as people living in Orlando and Miami. The cost of living here is not the same. A $45.00 shop hour here in my town would probably $65.00 - $90.00 in a major metropolitan area.

[fdcmiami]

sean, kind of casual about that 1 or 2 feet since if i am reading this right i means the difference between 800 and 1600 welds. i'm skeptical about the 2 in tubing up on the purlins, some are so bent that at first i thought they were wood. you have a 25 foot span between i's, your tube is probably 24 so you will have to cut and fit the last piece.

This job should be I do my part go home.

of course, they all should be like that but rarely are. i would want to know going in just how they are going to handle the install. actually you are pivotal here and can probably influence the decision of the roofing contractor. if it were me i would suggest to them that they do it like i said (i know, listen to me) but the fact is that the contractor might welcome that info.

it would be the most cost effective way, he could have a crew free for a couple of days during the week or he would have a place to put a couple of laborers to prep for the next phase of the install.

be careful.

i would ask about that lift also, makes sure it will provide sufficient height. knowing the way some of these roofers work they'll have you on a pallet on the blades of a lull/telehandler with some pot smoker at the wheel. lol

[DaveO]

some are so bent that at first i thought they were wood. you have a 25 foot span between i's, your tube is probably 24 so you will have to cut and fit the last piece.

I thought the purlins were wood too. It sounds like Sean has covered himself for the 25 foot span / 24 foot tube with this entry in his bid:

When I submit my written bid; it will be only for the welding, and any other work will be subject to charges.

Would it be worthwhile to write an assumption into the bid, to the effect of "This bid assumes the existing steel structure can be welded with common 6011 electrodes (or whatever electrode Sean had planned to use for rust and paint tolerance)." That way you don't get stuck providing specialty electrodes to weld through rust, and the "other work will be subject to charges" language covers paint or rust removal if it is required.

actually you are pivotal here and can probably influence the decision of the roofing contractor.

I bet this will become a true statement, especially regarding repairs. That snarl of tensioning rods in photo 3, upper left, can't be ignored. Does the first photo show a broken weld meant to hold a tensioner in place?

I'll second the "be careful". I've seen that "guy doing overhead work on a pallet on top of a fully extended fork lift" trick. And who knows what is living under all that lumber, about to be disturbed.

[agent4573]

1800-2000 depending on how many days they're expecting it to take. If you do it every foot it'll be 1600 welds, charge em a dollar a weld plus 100 for each day you have to go out and sit around.

[SeanMurphy265]

If you look at some of the pictures that is wood on top of the perling. They are replacing the wood with tubing. There is one section that has already been replaced. If I had to guess when the tornadoes came through in 2011 it messed up the roof.

The tubing is 14 gauge so it's not heavy stuff all 3/32 rods, but if I can get my mig on the lift I may go that route. Your looking at 1" welds.