Construction Estimating Services in Louisiana

Map quantities to the actual Louisiana bid-form descriptions

Louisiana's published uniform public-work bid form distinguishes base work from alternates and identifies unit-price descriptions assigned to either. It provides for a unit-price form when the contract contains unit prices.

Send the bid form and unit descriptions with the drawings. Assign a schedule ID and measurement unit to each applicable takeoff row. Check whether a stated unit item is already carried in the requested base amount before adding it again. Differences between a published form and issued contract instructions are questions for the owner/design team; estimating does not decide bid responsiveness.

Louisiana Division of Administration: official reference

Preserve the owner's alternate priority and add/deduct direction

The Louisiana Administrative Code's uniform-bid-form provisions describe alternates with descriptive titles and an order of priority, and separately address use of the unit-price form.

Request the exact alternate numbering, add/deduct direction and affected drawing details. For a roof alternate, reconcile insulation, membrane, edge metal and changed penetrations as one package; keep common work in the base once. Price each alternate's construction delta without renumbering the owner's priorities or assuming which combination will be awarded. Vendor inclusions, labor hours and tax/freight basis should remain reviewable beside that delta.

Louisiana Division of Administration — Office of State Register: official reference

Reprice issued substitutions instead of relying on an informal option

FPC's capital-project procedure manual assigns evaluation of prior-approval substitution requests and issuance of construction-document addenda to the designer, subject to the owner's procedures.

Include the written accepted product basis and its addendum number. Compare accessories, dimensions, supports and trade connections before replacing a material quote. Record quantities removed and added, plus the supplier's quote validity and field labor change. An unaccepted substitution remains a question or separately labeled pricing option; it should not silently reduce the required base scope.

Louisiana Division of Administration — Facility Planning and Control: official reference

Prepare the Louisiana estimate package

Issued bid form and unit-price descriptions

Map each quantity to the requested schedule and measurement unit.

Ranked alternate descriptions and details

Separate add/deduct deltas from common base work.

Accepted substitution notices

Confirm the priced product basis without selecting an alternative design.

Complete plans, specifications and addenda

Reconcile changes to whole assemblies and connected trades.

Dated vendor quotes and labor instructions

State freight, tax, production and any assigned wage-document inputs.

Specify the returned breakdown

Agree a base-bid takeoff plus an alternate comparison and unit-item register with drawing references. Priced trade rows should retain supplier dates and client labor assumptions, while revision sheets show the superseded quantities and new basis. Color-coded PDF markups support the scope comparison. Number of alternatives, document completeness and deadline affect the proposal; bid signing, award decisions and legal review are excluded.

Why can a Louisiana unit item appear beside the base bid?

The issued form and unit description determine how it is carried. Send both so the takeoff can reconcile the item with the requested base or alternate amount and avoid adding the same scope twice.

Can a Louisiana alternate be estimated from one substituted product price?

Only after its complete scope is identified. Include deleted and added accessories, supports and connected trades, preserve the owner's alternate number, and use accepted issued substitutions for the required bid basis.