文档介绍：C HAPTER
14
ESTIMATING AND
BIDDING FIBER OPTIC
INSTALLATION
F. DOUGLAS ELLIOTT AND
PAUL ROSENBERG
THE ART OF ESTIMATING
In the beginning of this chapter we are concerned with the art of estimating,
which may include estimating a building’munications system, LANs, or any
other similar project. We look at the tools, the skills, the experience, and the
background that the estimator needs to do the job. In this chapter we generalize
the procedures and use generic materials if required.
Anyone involved with or considering the art of estimating must realize from
the outset that there are certain skills that require proficiency before the job
should be attempted. If you do not have these skills and are not willing to develop
them, you could be heading for big problems. You may get away with a bluff on
the first several jobs, but eventually ineptitude will give you away.
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144 CHAPTER 14 — ESTIMATING AND BIDDING FIBER OPTIC INSTALLATION
SKILLS
Knowledge of Mathematics
You must have a good knowledge of mathematics. Let me qualify this statement
by saying that many a job has been lost by improperly adding a column of fig-
ures. Many jobs have been taken because a decimal point has been misplaced
somewhere along the line or figures have been transposed incorrectly. A quantity
may not have been properly calculated or extended into the estimate itself. When
the final figures are incorrect, you are in a costly mess.
Command of the English Language
You must have a mand of the English language and a phenomenal
knowledge of acronyms and abbreviations. Remember, you are probably not the
only person who will read your estimates. You might be called away on business
and someone else may have plete your project. You will, in all probability,
have to hand over your calculations putations to the project manager in
order to control the hours, check your labor units, material lists, and so on. If
your colleagues cannot un