James,
you are exactly right. I don't exclude anything any more. I add things now like power, water everything that pertains to the demo scope I cover it.

Just remember these guys are playing the cash flow games, they just need any money to get threw.......be patient......nature will do its course.....

There is a company here in Michigan that went out and cut everybody's throat for a long time trying to make a name for themselves. For a while they had ALL the work as far as strip outs go. Long story short they are now on the way out of the biz! Just another fly by night so called wrecking outfit. We are now getting those customers back and still telling them that we think our price is fair. If you can hang in there, these fly byes ALWAYS fly bye. The guy that was running the demo operations for that outfit was ripping them of on the scrap real bad too so, that did not help either. In past experience I can always find a "shyster" behind these low ballers.

NukeWorker;10870 said:
My buddy works for a big nationwide GC. He told me it's corporate policy to cut a sub's bid by 15-20% when they put their bid together because they know they can beat the sub over the head and they will cut their price by that much just to get the job.

I am pretty sure I've worked for that GC. I can be pretty stubborn when it comes to my numbers. I have had more than a few "discussions" about numbers with GC's.

Bid results for a public job in pitman new jersey: 3. Hargrove demo. $32k, 2. Franchi Wrecking $28k, 1. Niri contracting $18k. I believe it was for a single building. Low bidder left $10k on the table, what a fool.

I don't know if they illegal labor. but it looks they start around 7am as I went by the job and they were still around 9.30pm as I was in the city for a meeting late last night. So I know they were not paying overtime and I have no idea where the debris when as there was no bin or truck to take the debris away.. I know that times are tough we are a small startup company and I know we have been cheap on a couple of job but there was still enough money in the job to make a small profit. The only people how are benefiting are the building owners because when and if we come out of the big slump they will still want all jobs done for nothing.

Wolf;10817 said:
How could they bid it so low?

because they are not bankrupt yet... but now they are 4000$ closer to quit bidding:rolleyes:

I calculated a really big asbestos abadetement work, it contained hundres of tons of Asbestos waste and a half year work for about 6 people.
The project was (in short) to remove 2700m2 of asbestos containing paint of the 7 story building facade, and to remove the 3-6cm thick plaster after that. on the roof there was almost 1000m2 of double layer water insulation bitumen that also contains asbestos, to make things worse the bitumen layers had concrete on top, between and under.
The concrete under the asbestos was a cavity design (?) it had to be opened and the old "insulation" had to be removed and all the wood removed.
so there was need for a wacum truck for at least 2-3 months, thats BIG $$$

the job was a innercity project so spacing for cranes and stuff was problematic.
i put a bid that i thought should be ok, the price was at 289000

I just bid a job in downtown San Francisco yesterday . a small TI job we were very tight at $5300 this job had a bunch of tile walls and 200ft of 13 feet high sheetrock walls I thought it was one bin and then the rest was labor. some two truck tommy give them a bid of $1750. I just don't know how to make money at that price.

I second your post nuke.. :yesway: on projects i've worked on, if there was a large amount of scrap steel/metal the sale of it was refunded to the client or part of the price. as far as the other material it was the contractors to contend with. there can be good returns in salavage but you've got to be set up for it. seen many good things trashed in order to remove them promptly.as it cost a good deal to save stuff IMHO.