timber wall estimate help

[picframer]

Originally Posted by Steve That is all very interesting. I would think there would be some customers that would say, I don't care about the specifics, I want the cheaper service. In such a situation as you described above, do you ever have a customer want you to rebid it with the lower level of quality? If so, should you do that or is that a sign it is going to be bad news in the future and you need to walk away from it? Not very often and I always walk with an explanation, I don't want to go down the road cutting corners, we are very fortunate to be able to choose what work we do, it would be a totally different matter if we were hungry for business as this gear has to be paid for. My network last year provided enough weekly contracts to provide cash flow to cover everything, then I started adding additional services clients were asking for. We have enough work to keep all the machines going 30 to 50 hours a week, I only need 15 to cover costs so I am good. I always brake a proposal down into parts with each one priced, this way if the client does not have the cash to do everything now, they can select some of the work now and some later on, this works very well, what I do see and I personally don't care for is people taking out a line of credit to have us finish as they get excited or caught up in the process, I generally try to talk them out of it, going head over heals into debt to have landscaping or excavation done is not a good idea, do what you can afford, clients appreciate this and we have around 40 jobs to go back to that we started last year. Landscaping/excavation/wood chipping can be expensive. We did a few jobs last year where we had two excavators, four loaders and 10 staff on site, you are pushing $600 an hour, a lot is getting done quickly but that is serious coin, I think we had three or four like that, and on two of them we are still not finished as the clients added more work for this year.

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Andy
Halifax, Nova Scotia

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

I don't want to go down the road cutting corners, we are very fortunate to be able to choose what work we do, it would be a totally different matter if we were hungry for business as this gear has to be paid for. For those who are in a situation where they are hungry for the work, do you feel they should take on jobs where corners are cut as long as the customer is aware? Or what's the best way to go about it when you NEED the work? I can see how someone could get into trouble really quickly going this route so I am thinking there must be some things they need to be cautious of.

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[picframer]

Originally Posted by Steve

For those who are in a situation where they are hungry for the work, do you feel they should take on jobs where corners are cut as long as the customer is aware? Or what's the best way to go about it when you NEED the work? I can see how someone could get into trouble really quickly going this route so I am thinking there must be some things they need to be cautious of.

I am not sure Steve as I have never gone down this road in any business that I have run. At the same time if I was hungry I would find a way, I would have to be put in the situation and really give it some thought, we all have to eat and we all have bills to pay so something has to give.

[PlymouthRiverLandscaping]

Can someone explain to what a crib is in a retaining wall. I have to give an estimate on a small timber retaining wall. I was wondering if someone could walk me through the process or if there is a link for step by step?

Thank you

[Steve]

Here is an article that explains it in more detail. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/...39/page10a.cfm

Does this help?