Pipe & Excavation Contracting Revised Book - 2011 Edition

Pipe & Excavation Contracting
by Dave Roberts, revised by Dan Atcheson

Contents

1 ESTIMATING, BIDDING, BONDING, 5

Starting at the Beginning, 5

Nature of the Business, 8

The Design Engineer, 9

Knowing Your Costs, 13

Watching Your Profit, 27

The Estimate, 30

Preparing & Submitting Your Bid, 36

Controlling Costs, 42

Getting Bonds, 44

Contract Pitfalls to Avoid, 47

Prequalifying for Bonds, 52

2 CREW & EQUIPMENT PRODUCTIVITY, 59

Trench Excavation Quantities (Volume), 60

Equipment Performance, 64

An In-Depth Review, 69

Comparing Crew and Equipment Costs, 95

3 READING PLANS & SURVEYING, 105

Reading Plans, 106

Surveying, 110

Lasers, 121

4 SITE PREPARATION, 129

Clearing Grass and Brush, 129

Clearing Trees, 130

Site Preparation and Material Layout, 137

5 OPERATING A BACKHOE, 141

How Wheeled Backhoes and Trackhoes (Excavators) Work, 142

Calculating Backhoe Production Rates, 146

The Wheeled Backhoe, 149

Working Around Crosslines, 151

Hard Digging, 154

Sewer System Work, 155

Water System Work, 156

Using the Front Bucket, 160

The Track Excavator, 163

Trenchless Construction, 176

6 SOIL COMPACTION, 181

Soil Structure, 182

Determining Soil Density, 182

Compaction Methods, 186

7 INSTALLING WATER SYSTEMS, 195

Water Pressure and Thrust, 196

Pipe Materials, 198

Selecting Equipment, 198

Forming a Crew, 200

Installing Service Lines, 203

Joining New and Existing Service Lines, 206

8 INSTALLING SEWER & STORMWATER SYSTEMS, 211

Septic Tank Systems and Drainfields, 211

Municipal Sewer Systems, 218

Backfill, Compaction and Surface Restoration, 251

9 ESTIMATING SURFACE EXCAVATION, 253

Calculating Area, 254

Calculating Volumes of Solids, 255

Reading Contour Lines, 257

Estimating Cut and Fill Quantities with the Cross Section Method, 259

The Average End Area Method, 262

The Zero (Daylight) Line, 264

Topsoil, 266

Cut and Fill Volumes Under Slabs and Paving, 269

Earthwork Estimating Accuracy, 270

Minimize the Risks, 271

10 DEALING WITH ROCK & GROUNDWATER, 275

Rock, 275

Ripping and Rock Work, 279

Working in Groundwater, 290

11 PIPE MATERIALS, 297

DWV and Pressure Pipe, 297

Size or Material Change and Directional Fittings, 308

Gaskets, 311

Water Control Fittings, 313

Joints, 314

Repair Clamps, 318

INDEX 321

Pipeline contracting can be a very rewarding business – if you know what you're doing and do it right. It's less plagued by the economic cycle that pushes many excavation and construction contractors to the brink of bankruptcy when the market for residential and commercial building dries up. And the profit margins are usually better because it's harder to get started in this business. You need money, manpower, skill and knowledge to get into sewer, water and drainage line contracting. That limits your competition and can fatten your margins.

Just owning a backhoe doesn't make you a pipeline contractor. There's far more to it than simply digging a hole and filling it up. If you've considered pipeline work but have never done any, keep reading. This book is for you. If you've bid some pipeline work but aren't satisfied with the results, the tips and suggestions in this manual may be just what you need to succeed where others are striking out.

True, every pipeline contractor (or utility contractor, as we're sometimes called) needs special skills, know-how and expensive equipment. But if you can estimate accurately, pay close attention to your costs, keep your overhead low, do nothing but quality work and eliminate wasted time and materials, you've got a good chance of making it in this demanding business.

Understand from the beginning that Rome wasn't built in a day. No one jumps into this field and makes big money handling multi-million-dollar jobs right from the start. You're going to have to crawl before you walk and walk before you run. But if you've got the determination to work hard, and if you’re willing to take the time to study and understand what I've written here, you're well on your way to a good professional career.

Nearly all utility line work is awarded by competitive bid. If your bid is too high, you won't get the job. If your bid is too low, you'll get the job but lose your shirt. A few jobs like that and your company will go belly up.

Every year, hundreds of men and women set out to become underground utility line contractors. Many were making good wages as tradesmen, equipment operators or supervisors in the business, and decided to try their hand at bidding and contracting for the work they did formerly as wage earners. Unfortunately, most don’t survive more than a few years in the business.

But don't let the failure of others discourage you. The fact that you're reading this book shows that you plan on going into the business as an informed entrepreneur. And if you're already in the business, it shows you plan on finding out what to avoid by studying my mistakes instead of making your own. Work with care, both at your estimating table, and on the jobsite. With the information in this book, and, I can't deny, with a little bit of luck, you can have a successful and profitable underground utility contracting business.

There's plenty of work available if you're willing to move, be flexible, work long hours and accept challenges. The private developers of residential and commercial projects need utility contractors. Governing bodies – the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Soil Conservation Service, military bases – all are regular customers. And many government contracts require that a percentage of the contract be let to small businesses or minority-owned businesses.

While this book is primarily aimed at the underground utility contractor, be aware that you can get a wider scope of work if you're willing to compile bids and manage contracts that contain other kinds of work, such as mechanical, electrical, and building work. As a small contractor, you'll get a lot more business if you're willing to take on contracts that are more complex than a simple pipe job. Move into unfamiliar areas very cautiously, however. Use reliable subcontractors and beware of getting into fields that are too far beyond your experience and knowledge.

In this book, I'll describe all the common pitfalls and how to avoid them. We'll take a detailed look at the practical know-how you'll use on the job every day – estimating and bidding, equipment and crew performance, practical work methods and techniques, equipment operation, surveying, site clearance, compaction, water systems, and sewer systems. In short, I'll cover everything a utility line contractor needs to know to thrive in this business.

You'll need a working knowledge of the skills of the four important professionals on every utility line team: the pipe layer, the equipment operator, the foreman and the contractor. The success of your company depends on how well each of these four works together toward a common goal.

As an underground utility contractor, most work will come from either private developers or publicly-funded municipal projects.

Land developers usually let subcontracts for street construction and utility installation. Some branch of city government will require that your work meet their standards. They'll inspect what you've done. That makes sense because, when you're finished, the city will accept responsibility for maintaining what you installed.

Public projects include work like installing new utilities and replacing old utilities in existing cities or developments. This type of work is funded by selling bonds to the public, or by federal loans and grants. A small city, for example, may borrow federal money to pay for a replacement water or sewer system. This money will be repaid by water users over a period of years.

It's in the owner's best interest to get bids from several contractors. And on publicly-funded jobs, no qualified contractor can be excluded. You'll see upcoming projects advertised in newspapers, on the Internet, and listed in local and regional bid call magazines. Some magazines, websites and newsletters list projects being put out for bid and report the prices submitted by successful bidders.

Some large projects are divided into several small projects because smaller jobs attract more bidders. Most contractors can't handle a $10 million project. So don't be surprised to see a job that large divided into several smaller contracts. The more bidders there are, the stiffer your competition will be.