Last month, I covered the evolution of the problems with inaccurate scales on electrical plans. This month’s article will move on to continuing education.

The beginning

The first type of education I will mention is experience. My first job as a trainee estimator was about a year before I attended the NECA classes. I was in my ninth year working in the material supply part of the industry when a friend recruited me to become an electrical estimator. I was very concerned that I knew nothing about estimating, but he assured me that my extensive knowledge of electrical materials qualified me to make the move up. My friend told me he would provide all the training I needed. 

I believe the most important idea presented to me was that I would learn something from every estimate I prepared. This turned out to be one of the most important concepts I ever learned about the job, and it is still true 45 years later. I learn something new from almost every estimate I prepare. Experience is the most important teacher you will ever have during your career. 

I did eventually take the estimating classes, because I had first been taught to prepare estimates on a computer system. When I moved on to my next employer, he quickly found out I did not know how to prepare a paper-based estimate. The classes taught me much of what I needed to know to manually prepare an electrical estimate. Still, there is only so much you can learn in a class. After the classes are finished, you should keep learning from experience for the rest of your life.

Often, what you learn on the job can be rather subtle. An example may be figuring out a better way of organizing your estimates, or a shortcut for performing calculations. Along the way, I developed methods to prevent errors that I still use today. 

Sometimes, I have to relearn something I first learned in high school. For me, basic geometry was one of them, as I needed it to calculate volumes of concrete and sand for duct banks. Another high school math lesson you may need is order of operations (look up PEMDAS) if you start performing complex calculations. 

Staying in school

Beyond on-the-job training, I strongly believe that everyone should continue formal education. I was fortunate that a couple of my employers believed in education. They sent me to various classes about change orders, project management, time management and claims management. They definitely benefited my career, as the knowledge I gained applied directly to the electrical construction industry. 

I was also fortunate that while working at an electrical wholesale house, a will-call counter customer (the electronics teacher from the local junior college) talked me into going back to college. I ended up taking two years of classes in advanced electronics and digital logic. While not directly related to estimating, these classes were very beneficial, as I became accomplished at setting up, managing and using computer systems. 

For those of you interested in growing your careers all the way to managing and even owning electrical contracting companies, there are many classes at colleges and junior colleges beneficial to learning business management. If you do not have any colleges near you, there are many online courses available for learning business administration, computer science and other construction-related subjects. 

Real-time research

This is another form of learning that has become important in today’s fast-paced product development environment. I have to research some kind of material on almost every project for which I prepare an estimate. LED fixtures are most often something I have to look into, as there seems to be new types of fixtures with unusual form factors on many projects. Occasionally, I need to learn about products that are new to me, but have been available for a long time. I will never forget telling a customer that the conduit fitting he was asking for did not exist. He left, and 10 minutes later returned with the item he requested. Never assume something does not exist simply because you have not heard of it.

That lesson has served me well, as I learned to keep an open mind. This turned out to be very important to advancing my career in this industry, and becoming a better estimator. I also hope you can benefit from a lifetime of learning.

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