For most of my estimating career, I have worked with general contractors. While I was estimating as an employee, I dealt with them directly. As an independent estimator, I work with them through my customers.

A near-perfect project

I will start with an example of a great general contractor from earlier in my career. The project was the manufacturing facility for the U.S. Air Force C-17 aircraft. The scope consisted of constructing new hangars around three sides of an existing McDonald Douglas hangar, expanding the facility to about 1 million square feet. From the beginning, this GC displayed more competence than others I had previously worked with. The bid documents were clear and the plans easy to interpret. Before awarding the project, they interviewed each of the bidders, moving page by page through the specifications and plans. It was obvious they were not just interested in the low bidder.

After the job was awarded, it became apparent that the contractor also excelled in project management. Weekly meetings were informative, fostering cooperation between trades and delivering concise schedule updates. We only had two trade conflicts, both of which were solved with minimal impact on cost and schedule.

There was also only one design flaw. The plans included a 1-inch conduit stubbed in the floor for a 60A circuit. My general foreman found out that the circuit was for a very large, automated welding machine. He was suspicious that the circuit was not large enough and called it to my attention. The engineer confirmed the circuit was correct. Then, I learned a lesson in relationship management. 

My general foreman advised that we install two extra 4-inch conduits from the substation to the trench system in the floor, just in case the engineer was wrong. I approved it, and we moved on to other work. 

A month or so later, I got a panicked call from the engineer. The machine manufacturer misplaced a decimal point. The load was not 60A, it was 600A. A meeting was called at the job site to find a way to get a 600A circuit to the machine. I have never seen a group so happy as when we pulled up the trench cover and showed them the two extra 4-inch conduits we had installed. The result was that for a very low cost, we solidified our position with the GC.

Dealing with problems

The preceding was a rare example of an almost perfect project. Often, as an electrical subcontractor, I have had problems with the GCs. The problems often start with the bidding process, which requires a project to be awarded to the low bidder. Sometimes the wording is “low qualified bidder,” but those words are frequently meaningless. 

GCs are looking for the lowest number available from a subcontractor, and often resort to bid shopping to get it. Bid shopping is the practice of revealing the competitor’s bid and asking you to beat it. This practice has led to electrical subcontractors turning in their bids at the last moment to minimize the time GCs have to shop their numbers. 

If you do end up with the low number, it does not mean you have won the job. The general contractor will often negotiate for a lower price after the bid date.

My favorite way of dealing with these problems is to work on relationships with GCs that appear to be ethical and talented. If you find a GC that does not attempt to cheat you at bid time, manages a project well and pays you on time, try to find ways to be their favored electrical contractor. 

Another strategy has to do with bidding on publicly funded projects. Many of these projects follow the Davis-Bacon rules, which require subcontractors to be listed on the bid form. After the bid is turned in, the winning GC must award the project to the listed subcontractors at the price shown on the bid form. There is no negotiating after the bid.

I have been talking about GCs as companies. However, the most important part of each general contractor is the people you will be making relationships with. It may be a specific person that helps you win work.

You must also remember that once you sign a contract, you will now be working with different people. You need friends in the GC’s estimating and project management departments. During my work as an estimator and project manager, I made sure to keep track of my favorite people when they changed jobs. They will often want to work with you in their new position.

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