Commercial Concrete Estimator
Job Description
Commercial Concrete Estimator
Company: DFW Concrete Pros
Position: Commercial Concrete Estimator
Employment Type: Full-Time
Compensation: $90,000–$110,000 per year + performance bonus, depending on experience
About the Position
DFW Concrete Pros is looking for an experienced Commercial Concrete Estimator to join our growing team.
This position is specifically focused on estimating concrete work. We are looking for someone with hands-on estimating experience who understands commercial concrete construction, concrete demolition and replacement, concrete cutting, street and pavement replacement, and large commercial and retail concrete scopes.
Our projects range from individual concrete repairs and replacement projects to substantial concrete packages covering entire retail and commercial centers.
This is not an entry-level position and is not a general construction estimating position. We need someone who understands concrete and can independently review plans, perform takeoffs, calculate quantities, build labor and material pricing, understand production rates, identify risks, and prepare complete proposals.
The right person understands that our goal is not simply to win bids. Our goal is to win profitable concrete work with accurate quantities, proper production assumptions, and clearly defined scopes.
Primary Responsibilities
- Review construction plans, specifications, bid documents, addenda, and customer scope requirements
- Perform detailed concrete quantity takeoffs
- Prepare complete estimates for labor, concrete, reinforcing steel, materials, equipment, trucking, disposal, subcontractors, and other project costs
- Estimate both new concrete construction and removal/replacement work
- Estimate concrete cutting, saw cutting, demolition, removal, haul-off, and replacement
- Calculate concrete quantities, reinforcing requirements, forming, excavation associated with concrete work, base preparation, dowels, joints, curing, and related items
- Develop accurate labor and equipment production rates
- Account for project phasing, mobilizations, traffic control, access, working hours, sequencing, and other conditions that affect concrete production
- Obtain and evaluate supplier and subcontractor pricing
- Prepare detailed bid summaries and proposals
- Identify exclusions, clarifications, qualifications, and potential scope gaps
- Review bid packages for potential risks before submission
- Submit bids to general contractors, property owners, property managers, developers, municipalities, and other customers
- Respond to bid clarifications and scope questions
- Attend pre-bid meetings and site walks when necessary
- Track outstanding bids and follow up with customers
- Assist with value engineering and alternate pricing
- Participate in project turnover meetings after award
- Compare estimated production and costs against actual project results to improve future estimating accuracy
Types of Work You Will Be Estimating
The estimator should be comfortable bidding concrete scopes including:
- Concrete paving
- Street and roadway concrete replacement
- Parking lot concrete
- Full commercial and retail center concrete replacement
- Concrete demolition and replacement
- Concrete saw cutting and concrete cutting
- Sidewalks and pedestrian paving
- Curb and gutter
- Drive approaches
- Dumpster pads
- Loading areas and loading docks
- ADA ramps and accessible routes
- Concrete islands and site features
- Slabs-on-grade
- Foundations and footings when included in the concrete package
- Concrete repairs and replacement
- Reinforcing steel, dowels, and embeds associated with concrete work
- Subgrade/base preparation directly associated with our concrete scope
This position is focused on the concrete scope of work. We are not looking for a general civil estimator responsible for underground utilities, mass grading, or unrelated civil scopes.
Required Experience
- Commercial concrete estimating experience required
- Strong knowledge of concrete paving, removal and replacement, and commercial concrete construction
- Experience estimating concrete cutting and demolition
- Experience bidding commercial projects from plans and specifications
- Ability to perform accurate concrete quantity takeoffs
- Ability to read and understand civil, structural, architectural, and concrete plans as they relate to our scope
- Strong understanding of concrete labor and equipment production rates
- Understanding of forming, reinforcing steel, dowels, joints, base preparation, concrete placement, finishing, curing, and saw cutting
- Ability to accurately estimate demolition, trucking, haul-off, disposal, and replacement operations
- Ability to understand project phasing and how it impacts labor and production
- Experience obtaining and evaluating ready-mix, reinforcing steel, material, equipment, and subcontractor pricing
- Experience preparing professional proposals and clearly defining inclusions, exclusions, and qualifications
- Strong mathematical and analytical skills
- Strong computer and estimating/takeoff software skills
- Ability to manage multiple bids and deadlines simultaneously
Preferred Qualifications
- 5+ years of commercial concrete construction experience
- 3+ years of direct concrete estimating experience
- Previous experience working for a commercial concrete contractor
- Experience estimating concrete paving and removal/replacement projects
- Experience estimating large retail centers, shopping centers, commercial properties, streets, parking lots, and similar projects
- Experience with concrete saw cutting and demolition scopes
- Strong knowledge of DFW-area concrete pricing, labor rates, suppliers, and market conditions
- Existing relationships with general contractors, property managers, developers, suppliers, and other commercial customers
- Strong understanding of job costing, production rates, and gross margin
What We're Looking For
We need more than someone who knows how to measure square footage on a set of plans.
We are looking for an estimator who understands how concrete work is actually performed in the field.
For example, when looking at a large retail center replacement project, the estimator should be thinking about:
- How the project needs to be phased
- Saw cutting and demolition
- Removal and haul-off
- Access for equipment and trucks
- Maintaining customer and tenant access
- Base and subgrade conditions
- Forming and reinforcing requirements
- Concrete placement and finishing
- Crew sizes and realistic daily production
- Mobilizations and remobilizations
- Traffic control and barricades
- Concrete truck access
- Pour sequencing
- Cleanup
- Schedule requirements
- Risks that could affect production or profitability
We want someone who can look at a project and understand what it will actually take to build it, not simply what the plans show.
Our Expectations
The estimator will be expected to take ownership of bids from start to finish.
That means producing accurate takeoffs, developing realistic pricing, identifying scope gaps, submitting professional proposals, following up on opportunities, and providing a clean turnover to the Project Manager and field team when a project is awarded.
We value accuracy and profitability over simply being the low bidder.
A successful estimator at DFW Concrete Pros will help us build a strong backlog of profitable commercial concrete work while protecting the company from scope gaps and estimating mistakes.
Compensation
Base Salary: $90,000–$110,000 per year, depending on experience
Plus performance-based bonus opportunity.
Compensation will depend on the candidate's experience with commercial concrete estimating, particularly concrete paving, demolition/replacement, concrete cutting, street replacement, and large commercial/retail concrete projects.
We are a full service concrete contractor. Our projects range from Data Centers, to airports, city streets, retail properties, commercial construction, tilt panel construction, substations, and much more! Our wide variety of services has allowed us to establish relationships with several large GCs who continue to choose to work with us. We do big projects, but our small team and work environment is far from the typical corporate style setting.
