Design Build Estimator- Residential and Commercial

Design Build Estimator – Residential and Commercial

Position Summary

Torrison Stone & Garden is seeking an experienced Estimator to prepare accurate, detailed, and competitive estimates for residential and commercial landscape and hardscape projects.

This position is responsible for reviewing plans, completing quantity takeoffs, calculating labor and equipment requirements, soliciting vendor and subcontractor pricing, and developing complete project budgets. The Estimator will work closely with the sales, design, production, purchasing, and project management teams to ensure that proposed projects are properly scoped, priced, and prepared for a successful hand-off to production.

This is not simply a data-entry or takeoff position. The Estimator must understand how landscape and hardscape projects are constructed, identify potential scope gaps, challenge unrealistic assumptions, and recognize conditions that may affect production cost or profitability.

Primary Responsibilities

• Review residential and commercial plans, specifications, site information, proposals, and construction documents.
• Complete detailed material, labor, equipment, subcontractor, disposal, trucking, and mobilization takeoffs.
• Estimate patios, walkways, retaining walls, outdoor kitchens, pool surrounds, drainage systems, grading, masonry, planting, irrigation, lighting, lawns, site improvements, and related landscape construction.
• Prepare conceptual budgets, preliminary estimates, bid estimates, and final construction budgets.
• Develop accurate labor-hour and production-rate assumptions for each phase of work.
• Solicit, organize, and evaluate pricing from suppliers, subcontractors, and specialty contractors.
• Identify exclusions, allowances, alternates, contingencies, and potential change-order conditions.
• Conduct site visits to evaluate access, grading, drainage, soil conditions, staging, demolition, material handling, and equipment requirements.
• Perform plan reviews and identify missing information, constructability concerns, and potential scope conflicts.
• Assist the sales and design teams with value engineering and alternative material or construction recommendations.
• Prepare clear scopes of work that can be understood by clients, project managers, foremen, vendors, and subcontractors.
• Participate in estimate reviews before proposals are delivered to clients.
• Maintain and improve estimating templates, assemblies, production rates, cost databases, and historical job-cost information.
• Compare estimated costs against actual project results and adjust future assumptions accordingly.
• Prepare organized turnover packages for production and project management.
• Support change-order pricing and additional-work estimates during construction.
• Maintain accurate records within the company’s CRM, estimating, and project management systems.

Qualifications

• Three or more years of estimating, project management, field supervision, or production experience in landscape construction, hardscaping, masonry, excavation, civil construction, or a related trade.
• Strong understanding of landscape and hardscape construction methods and sequencing.
• Ability to read landscape plans, architectural drawings, grading plans, details, specifications, and civil plans.
• Experience completing digital and manual quantity takeoffs.
• Strong mathematical, analytical, and organizational skills.
• Ability to calculate areas, volumes, elevations, slopes, quantities, production rates, and labor requirements.
• Proficiency with estimating software, spreadsheets, PDF takeoff software, CRM systems, and project management platforms.
• Ability to manage multiple bids and deadlines without sacrificing accuracy.
• Strong written communication and scope-development skills.
• Valid driver’s license and ability to visit project sites.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Aspire, Arborgold, Bluebeam, STACK, PlanSwift, AutoCAD, or comparable software.
• Experience estimating both high-end residential and commercial projects.
• Field experience installing hardscapes, masonry, drainage, grading, planting, irrigation, or landscape construction.
• Familiarity with Techo-Bloc, Unilock, natural stone, concrete pavers, segmental retaining walls, and masonry construction.
• Knowledge of Connecticut construction conditions, suppliers, labor markets, permitting, and subcontractor pricing.

Measures of Success

• Estimate accuracy compared with completed project costs.
• Gross-margin performance of sold projects.
• Reduction in missed scope and unplanned production costs.
• Timeliness and completeness of estimates.
• Quality of project handoffs to production.
• Accuracy of material quantities and labor-hour assumptions.
• Improvement of the company’s cost database and estimating process.

Pay: $60,000.00 - $140,000.00 per year

Benefits

• 401(k) matching
• Paid time off

People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply

Work Location: In person