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Cost Estimators

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Prepare cost estimates for product manufacturing, construction projects, or services to aid management in bidding on or determining price of product or service. May specialize according to particular service performed or type of product manufactured.

Related: Architectural & Engineering Managers Civil Engineering Technologists & Technicians Construction Managers Industrial Engineers Logistics Engineers

Industries: Construction Manufacturing Service

Summary
Details

Analyze blueprints and other documentation to prepare time, cost, materials, and labor estimates.
Establish and maintain tendering process, and conduct negotiations.
Visit site and record information about access, drainage and topography, and availability of utility services.
Establish and maintain tendering process, and conduct negotiations.
Assess cost effectiveness of products, projects or services, tracking actual costs relative to bids as the project develops.
Conduct special studies to develop and establish standard hour and related cost data or to reduce cost.
Prepare estimates used by management for purposes such as planning, organizing, and scheduling work.
Assess cost effectiveness of products, projects or services, tracking actual costs relative to bids as the project develops.
Review material and labor requirements to decide whether it is more cost-effective to produce or purchase components.
Visit site and record information about access, drainage and topography, and availability of utility services.
Conduct special studies to develop and establish standard hour and related cost data or to reduce cost.
Set up cost monitoring and reporting systems and procedures.
Confer with engineers, architects, owners, contractors, and subcontractors on changes and adjustments to cost estimates.
Consult with clients, vendors, personnel in other departments, or construction foremen to discuss and formulate estimates and resolve issues.
Prepare estimates for use in selecting vendors or subcontractors.
Collect historical cost data to estimate costs for current or future products.
Prepare and maintain a directory of suppliers, contractors and subcontractors.
Prepare cost and expenditure statements and other necessary documentation at regular intervals for the duration of the project.

Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

82900/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

39.86/hr

Currently Employed

7,820

Yearly Projected Openings

770

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

Attention to Detail
Integrity
Analytical Thinking
Dependability
Cooperation
Persistence

Desktop computers
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers
Scanners
Tablet computers

Accounting software
Analytical or scientific software
Computer aided design CAD software
Customer relationship management CRM software
Data base reporting software
Data base user interface and query software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Expert system software
Financial analysis software
Graphics or photo imaging software
License management software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Process mapping and design software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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