Heavy Civil & Utility Construction

Most public work is posted online. Key resources:

• UDOT: UP3 / Bonfire for state transportation work
• Federal: SAM.gov for government contracts
• Military: Working relationships with HAFB and other Utah bases
• Municipal: City/county websites, Demandstar, BidNet

Set up alerts and check regularly. Public work has defined timelines and clear bid requirements.

Most private work comes through relationships. Building a network takes time:

• GC relationships: General contractors who need utility subs
• Developer contacts: Residential and commercial developers
• Engineer connections: Civil engineers who specify our type of work
• Owner relationships: Direct relationships with municipalities, districts, private owners

Lunches, site visits, and staying in touch keep relationships warm. People work with people they trust.

An area we need to improve. Marketing efforts that help:

• Social media: Project photos, company updates, hiring posts
• Website: Portfolio of completed work, capabilities
• Industry presence: AGC, trade associations, networking events
• Reputation: Completing quality work on time — best marketing there is

Word of mouth and reputation drive most of our leads. But intentional marketing would help expand reach.

Keeping track of what's in the pipeline:

• Bid calendar: Track due dates, pre-bid meetings, site visits
• Lead tracking: Who called, what they need, when to follow up
• Win/loss tracking: What we won, what we lost, and why

Organized tracking prevents missed opportunities and helps improve hit rate over time.

Before committing to a bid, we evaluate the opportunity and our capacity to execute. Key questions:

• Do we have the backlog capacity to take on this work?
• Do we have the right skillsets and manpower?
• Is the project funded? Where is the funding coming from?
• What's our relationship with this client?
• Does the timeline fit with current commitments?

Relationships and trust factor heavily into bid/no-bid decisions. Funding verification is critical — it's one of the first red flags we look for. We try to bid strategically so projects don't have massive overlaps where resources compete.

Strong subcontractor relationships are essential. Building and maintaining those relationships (even simple gestures like holiday cards) matters for when we need to grow capacity.

Before diving into detailed takeoffs, we gather the information that will affect everything downstream:

• Site conditions: Geotechnical data on big jobs, site visits and exploratory pits on smaller ones
• Plan review: Initial review to identify scope, complexity, and potential issues
• RFIs: Submit clarification requests early to clear up ambiguity before it becomes a problem
• Subcontractor outreach: Reach out to subs early so quotes come back in time

Understanding what you're digging into matters — soil conditions, rock, water table, and access issues all affect production rates, equipment selection, and risk pricing. Getting this information upfront prevents rework later.

This is where the detailed measurement work happens. With site conditions understood and clarifications in hand, takeoffs are more accurate:

• Linear feet of pipe by size and depth
• Structure counts and types
• Surface areas for asphalt, concrete, restoration
• Excavation volumes accounting for actual soil conditions

Having a clear direction from the information gathering phase makes everything here more accurate and reduces rework.

With quantities in hand, we build out the full cost picture:

• Crews & Equipment: Operations manager handles crew organization. We balance owned vs. rented equipment — often bidding at rental rates to stay covered on older equipment.
• Production Rates: Mix of historical data, industry standards, and experience. Seasoned foremen help validate assumptions on bigger jobs.
• Materials: Supplier quotes, material pricing
• Subcontractor Quotes: Compile sub pricing that came back from early outreach
• Bid Items: Organize quantities into the bid structure with units that match bid form requirements

Capturing more production data from completed jobs is an ongoing goal — the more historical data, the more accurate future estimates become.

After the bid is built, we go through it with a fine-tooth comb. This is a dedicated review session:

• Field review: Bring in foremen or superintendents to walk through how the job will actually be installed — production rates, crew approach, equipment needs, sequencing
• Scrutinize everything: Quantities, rates, assumptions — fresh eyes catch what tired eyes miss
• Identify risks: What could go wrong? Soil surprises, access issues, schedule pressure
• Set contingency: Price risk appropriately based on unknowns
• Final margin: Make the pricing decision with full picture in view

Field staff validate what estimators assume. Their reality check on production rates and installation approach is critical — especially on larger or complex jobs.

Final push to get the bid out the door:

• Document preparation: HCSS generates most bid forms. Proposal generator handles schedule.
• Bonds: Coordinated with insurance provider when required
• Submission: Submit per client requirements
• Follow-up: Stay engaged with the client through the decision process

For smaller jobs that come in last-minute, we evaluate capacity and go after them if we can — historically we've done well on small jobs.

After award, we hold another estimating meeting to re-evaluate and make sure nothing was missed. If everything checks out:

• Pre-preconstruction meeting with the internal team
• Review project details, scope, production rates, equipment, crews
• Bring the whole crew in for training if needed
• Get suppliers and subcontractors the information they need

The goal is to set up the field team for a successful start with production from day one. A clean handoff means the field isn't inheriting estimating's assumptions without context.