The types of projects I am asked to prepare estimates for tend to fall into the same categories most of the time, including water, wastewater, transportation, commercial and institutional. While I like the kinds of work I am doing, it is interesting when new types of work come along. 

Photovoltaic

Many new projects relate to clean energy, including photovoltaic (PV) installations and electric vehicle charging. The PV estimates have included a few large ground-based installations and rooftop installations on school and commercial buildings.

However, the most interesting was on top of a parking structure. There were two fascinating aspects. The first was the extensive steel structure to be built on top of the parking garage for mounting the solar panels. The structure was tall enough to park cars underneath, which also made it a sun canopy. The second and more interesting feature of the PV system was the DC switches, maximum power point trackers, inverter and AC switches being incorporated into a single enclosure. All the installations I had estimated prior to this included these four items as separate pieces of equipment.

EV charging equipment

The EV charging installations I often see are designed for a few parking spaces for a commercial installation. The biggest EV installation I worked on was for a large, all-electric delivery fleet. Completely separate from the building power, seven 4,000A outdoor switchboards were needed to power charging stations dedicated to the delivery trucks—that’s 28,000A of power for electric delivery trucks. The amount of copper wire required to feed the switchboards was enormous, as the switchboards were scattered around a large parking lot. I am very curious about the facility’s monthly power bill. 

Also, this project makes me even more concerned about the nation’s power grid. Even the largest wastewater plants I work on rarely exceed one 5,000A service. This one fleet charging installation was over five times that size. Imagine how much power fleet charging stations for all delivery companies across the country would draw. 

Subways

Some of the most intriguing estimates have to do with transportation, particularly subways. These estimates require very careful analysis of the labor conditions, installation methods and materials. 

Let’s start with labor. The standard labor units that come in estimating guides and programs are often insufficient for working in underground stations and tunnels. It is time-consuming getting people and material down into the lower levels of a subway station. Even more time is spent working in the tunnels. I need to consider how much time it takes to get employees and materials into a tunnel and then to the work site. 

Materials went through some changes when it was discovered the zinc coating in conduits reacted with copper wire, which lowered the melting point. That meant we could no longer use metal conduit in tunnels. We now use PVC embedded or encased or fiberglass exposed. Another problem is the long schedules for subway work. It can be as many as five years between an estimate’s preparation and when the material is needed. Predicting what prices will be in five years is difficult and requires strategies to protect material pricing.

The data center

One of the most stimulating projects I have ever estimated was a showcase data center for a major energy provider. This was much more than the average data center. The electrical service had four redundancies, including four large generators. Most of the electrical work was visible to the public, so everything had to be installed perfectly parallel or perpendicular to building lines. Concentric bends had to be exact. Each of the four power services even had to use different colored conduits. The light fixture spacing was so dense I thought people would have to wear sunglasses if it was turned all the way up. Many pieces of equipment were required to be stainless steel just for appearance. Also, the grounding under the raised computer floor, though unseen, was far more complex than required by the code. I had a blast estimating this project. 

Stretching yourself

Early in my career as an electrical estimator, I became bored with the work I was bidding. I started looking for more interesting and challenging projects. This led to my career being much more exciting than if I had stayed on a less diverse path. Just remember, if you decide to stretch yourself into new types of work, make sure you fully understand the requirements of the projects. Reach out for advice from those with more experience and educate yourself as much as you can.

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