I have an oppertunity to get a stainless stair rail job in a new hotel. It will involve both sides of stair well, up four flights of stairs. There are two stairwells to complete. Not sure the best way to bid this so any help would be greatly appreciated. The hotel is a Holiday Inn.
Thanks.
I'll add that if you aren't used to doing a lot of Stainless steel work take the number and add ~25% as it takes longer to fabricate and will eat up more consumables like drill bits and saw blades. IF you do a lot of stainless work you probably have a good idea on time and consumables.
Ba darn sure YOU understand what THEY want it to look like before You bid. Finishing costs are high in stainless, particularly if using ground & polished material and they want the whole thing to "look like it grew that way" Brush finish isn't as bad, but it is still a lot of grief to get it all blended.
dfwpipeliner, Last S.S. rail job I did was at Pitt. Inter. Airport went for $180.00/ ft. made our" projected profit" but not a dime more. A few things to review ahead of time before giving a price on S.S. Rail. #1- pipe size and if it has to be domestic( doubles pipe cost for domestic) #2- Grade (use 304 if possible 316L doubles cost) #3 Finish / #4 Brush Satin is easiest to obtain ( if you have to do #6 or #8 which is mirror finish cost will be triple of #4 ) #5- Use seamless pipe in what ever grade you use ( getting weld seam on welded pipe WILLNOT polish/ blend and your customer will notice!!!!! ) Also after you get job, make a small mock up piece showing ALL CONDITIONS ( Pickets , Brackets , Bends , And FINISH ) make sure you have owner rep./ inspector accept or reject with problems to be addressed on mockup before you start fabing. ( had issues with finish one time glad it was addressed on mock up, or job would have been a cluster @#ck) BIGGEST labor expense is FINISHING . Best people to get finishing tips from and what each grade of finishing should look like( which I found you can also reason with customers with) is R.B. Wagner in Millwakee WI. Also a Co. on the internet sales a tool for polishing called a B.O.A. uses a polishing belt to finish pipe, cost $1200.00 will buy for next big job!!! If you have any questions, ask, hopefully can save you some expense!!!!!!!! GO PENS!!!!!!
This is how I bid handrail or stair rail jobs:
By the foot, price per foot goes up based on height and amount of detail included. I.E. is it 36" tall with 1/2" square pickets on 4" centers along a flat plane, or is it 72" with scrolls or other decorations going uphill. These are two extreme examples, but I think you'll get my point. My minimum per foot is $40.00 with a 5' minimum. That gets a basic handrail or fence up to 40" tall.
Plus materials and 12.5% markup. The markup covers my time and labor to get the materials ordered, delivered to me and unloaded (I have to unload it myself). If the customer pays for and has material delivered, then I won't charge the markup. If this is the case, I may charge $5-10 to unload it, depending on how much there is. Occasionally I just unload it and don't even bother charging. Most of the contractors around this area take a 14-15% markup on construction materials whether they purchase and handle it or not.
Plus powder coating, painting, etc. No charge if you are going to have it finished yourself. As part of my process, I smooth welds, clean spatter and wipe down with solvent to clean material after it is built and before it leaves my shop.
Plus delivery. Whatever you need to cover ALL of your expenses for delivering product. Fuel, time, wear and tear, etc. This also includes taking to powder coater/painter and going back to pick it up and deliver it.
Plus installation. I get $2.00 per foot to install which includes drilling holes for anchor bolts in concrete, brick or whatever masonary is there. Or $3.00 per foot to dig holes in the ground and pour concrete. Remember, anchor bolts, concrete, etc gets charged with the rest of the materials.
This is just for steel ornamental iron or OSHA/ADA type rails and the same applies for ornamental fence and gates. This formula works for me. Hope this helps.
Chris
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