Quoting on Plumbing Services

Kaiote · May 28, 2008

Hi all,

I am trying to set up a system for briefing plumbers and would really love it if any plumbers on the forum could help me by filling out a questionnaire - basically it involves finding out all of the services that you offer and the information that you would want from a potential client to be able to estimate properly. I'm looking at developing it for the sydney plumbing component of my website site

If there are any plumbers out there with the time to help me could you please email me at kai@briefit.com.au

Thanks in advance! I hope to develop a tool which is helpful to all of us but I really need some expert advice. Once I get a few responses, I will collate and post up here for review.

hj · May 28, 2008

You are kidding right?

I am trying to set up a system for briefing plumbers and would really love it if any plumbers on the forum could help me by filling out a questionnaire - basically it involves finding out all of the services that you offer and the information that you would want from a potential client to be able to estimate properly. I'm looking at developing it for the sydney plumbing component of my website site

You apparently have no experience in this field and you are going to guide plumbers, who hopefully have had at least some experience in the trade, to becoming successful plumbers? That has to be equivalent to the blind leading the blind. You only need a blueprint, or drawing, of the job and the list of materials to be used, if there is one. Once you have that YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE determines how much you have to charge for them and how long it will take YOU to do it. Not how long Joe down the street takes or how much he thinks he has to charge to turn a profit.

Sponsor · 2022-01-29T12:20:58-0800

Kaiote · Jun 1, 2008

Hi there. Thanks for your response - though I need to clarify my initial request. What I am looking for is not to guide plumbers, but to help plumbers guide their customers themselves as to what information is important. As I am not (as you pointed out) an expert in the field, I was hoping to consult with a few people who were experts in the field to get a basic list of questions you might ask a customer to determine how large or complex a specific job is to provide a ballpark estimate on timings and/or cost.

I'm trying to ensure that the mechanism by which people contact an expert provides that expert with the information they actually need to make an informed (albeit ballpark) estimate of he work involved.. Does that make more sense? Anyhow, I would still appreciate any input from you or anyone else who is happy to take the time to fill out a questionnaire I can send via email.

Thanks again.

hj · Jun 2, 2008

advice

Every job is different. On some jobs, all I need to know is what do you want to do and where am I going to do it. Others will need specific advice as to the fixtures being supplied and materials desired. I would rather interface with the customer on a one to one basis, and let the information develop during the conversation, rather than try to check off on a "check list".

Plumber Jim · Jun 2, 2008

I would have to agree with HJ. I would rather see the job or at least speak with the customer directly because every job is different and my questions would be different based on the answers to my first couple of questions. It sounds like you are trying to make a web based estimate request form were a customer trys to expalin what they need and a plumber replies with an estimate. That will be a challange even for an experianced plumber.

Kaiote · Jun 2, 2008

Yeah - it's definitely a challenge. Obviously I'm in the wrong place to get help with this - but I'll come back and post a link once I've got something together so you can at least see what I meant. Thanks anyway.

SRdenny · Jun 3, 2008

Kaiote
Are you attempting this for altruistic reasons, or just to make a buck?

Jimbo · Jun 3, 2008

Sounds like you are trying to recreate the flat-rate software which is already widely available.

Gary Swart · Jun 3, 2008

In the auto repair business, there are a finite number of repairs that can be done to an automobile. The time it should take a qualified mechanic to do a given repair can be and is quite accurately determined. This is the flat rate time. However, plumbing issues have so many variables that make a flat rate manual impossible.

TMB9862 · Jun 3, 2008

Gary Swart said:
In the auto repair business, there are a finite number of repairs that can be done to an automobile. The time it should take a qualified mechanic to do a given repair can be and is quite accurately determined. This is the flat rate time. However, plumbing issues have so many variables that make a flat rate manual impossible.

I've worked in both fields and trust me, those auto manuals are probably about as accurate as the plumbing ones (I've never seen a plumbing one). They assume everything goes perfectly which of course it never does.

Jimbo · Jun 3, 2008

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I won't plug anyone, but a quick google will find you lots of plumbing flat rate manuals and software. I don't know if they are any good. But they are out there.
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BAPlumber · Jun 3, 2008

Gary Swart said:
In the auto repair business, there are a finite number of repairs that can be done to an automobile. The time it should take a qualified mechanic to do a given repair can be and is quite accurately determined. This is the flat rate time. However, plumbing issues have so many variables that make a flat rate manual impossible.

Plumbing doesn't change that much, materials maybe, connections maybe.

as far as cars go, every make, model, year is differant and requires specific expertise because they are always changing. car mechanics have to keep up on an amazing about of changing information. The good ones are good but still don't know everything.

SRdenny · Jun 4, 2008

Brent
I guess you haven't worked on too many European shower valves. Or, faucets from manufacturers that have gone out of business.

hj · Jun 4, 2008

flat rate

They assume everything goes perfectly which of course it never does.

To the contrary, they assume there will be problems and include that in the price. That way they make their excess profit when the job does go perfectly. Which is no different than giving a contract price for anything up to and including a skyscraper. The contractor who figures everything out to the dime, and bids that way will lose. We had one building in Phoenix where the general bid the job at cost, in order to get the contract, with the assumption that he would make his profit with change orders. The owner gave ABSOLUTELY NO CHANGE ORDERS,and they lost their shirt on that job.

Sjsmithjr · Jun 4, 2008

You know that guy too?

hj · Jun 4, 2008

Yeah, but

Plumbing doesn't change that much, materials maybe, connections maybe

That is not where the problems come in. An automobile flat rate knows which bolts have to be removed and what it takes to get to them. That is not possible with a plumbing system that is individually designed by the person who installed it.

Quoting on Plumbing Services

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