How much $$ for big job

[Pat PJ Johnson]

Have a chance at our 1st big job. 74 pcs 68" x 45" 1 1/4 thick granite pnls to have names etched on it no art work. Coustomer to supply pnls and will deliver and pickup. I have 10 ton overhead crane and 5000 sq ft bldg so lifting and storage not a problem also our laser has 6'x10' work surface. Would it better to qoute job out by sq foot or by time it takes to do job. What would you grand masters of the laser world charge.
Thanks PJ

[Bill Jermyn]

I'd estimate the time for receiving, loading and unloading the pieces into the laser, lasering, packing and billing and multiply by my shop rate. If I'm billing the customer and I think he'll be awhile paying, I add a finance charge.

[Gary Hair]

Exactly what Bill said - time the job from start to finish and multiply times your hourly rate. I always add in a "perceived value" charge as well. For examply, if the timed rate comes to $100 and the piece looks like it should be worth $300, then I'll add a bit to my rate to make up the difference and get it closer to $300. You also need to account for mistakes. If you make a mistake on a $2.00 glass, no big deal, if you make a mistake on the size piece you are talking about, it's a big deal if you have to replace it. Nothing worse than finishing a job in the hole because you made a mistake. You could also have a disclaimer that, in the case of a mistake, you will be liable for re-engraving, not replacing the piece. Try to cover yourself as much as possible.

Congrats on such a great opportunity!

Gary

[Martin Boekers]

How long do you estimate it will take to laser it?

If you only have the one laser it may be down awhile with this job and you won't be able to do your regular work flow.

What do you percieve your unusable pieces to be? 1, 2 or more?

Are you planning on buying a laser for this job and hope to pay for it with the proceeds?

Are you set up now for the weight and size of the pieces?

Is the client delivering and picking up the finished pieces?


There are many variables to consider with a job of that size.


Good Luck with it! It's always nice to get opportunities to bid
on something like this, even though it takes us a bit
out of our "comfort zone"

Marty

[Alexander Stein]

1. Dont Worry About Quoting the Job

2. Send it to ME!!!!!!!!!

[Mike Null]

Handling one panel sounds like a two man job.

[Bill Cunningham]

Those panels are about 400 lbs each x 74 ..That's about 14 tons of stone.. You got a fork lift and a place to put it?

[Tim Bateson]

Those panels are about 400 lbs each x 74 ..That's about 14 tons of stone.. You got a fork lift and a place to put it?

Ouch! That's a reality check.

[Mitchell Andrus]

Perhaps you can more easily move the laser to where the materials are located and work there for a few days. You will need 3 or 4 guys to handle each piece. I'd pass on it myself. Seems like a PITA - unless the money's right.
.

[Mark Winlund]

Have a chance at our 1st big job. 74 pcs 68" x 45" 1 1/4 thick granite pnls to have names etched on it no art work. Coustomer to supply pnls. What would you grand masters of the laser world charge.
Thanks PJ

I'm not sure that this is a laser job. Sounds like a sandblasting job with cut vinyl masks, done on site where the granite is. Let your customer do all of the handling of the stone.

Mark

[Conrad Fiore]

Pat,
Although we are mechanical engravers and I can't give you advice on laser pricing, it appears that the LST610 is quite capable of handling such a job. If you have the power lift, it should make it all that much easier to handle the slabs. Figure your time in moving the slabs and do a test cut at the speeds you would use to laser the slabs to figure how much time it will take to load, cut and reload the machine. Simply multiply that by your hourly rate and you should have as honest a price as you can get. If you feel that the pricing competition is tight, drop your hourly rate to where you feel comfortable to get the job. Good luck, hope you get the job.

[Pat PJ Johnson]

Coustomer wants all lettering to be laserd

[Ross Moshinsky]

Well, lasering and sand blasting leaves almost the same look except sand blasting allows you to go deeper, easier. Lasering should be more cost effective as it is more efficient.

@400lbs you need 4 guys to move the pieces by hand. It could drop to 2 or 3 if you have a fork lift or someone ate their Wheaties.

From there you need to figure out how long each slab will take to engrave. You should be able to do some sort of simulation to figure out how long it will take. From there, multiply by your hourly rate.

If you wanted me to guess how much each one would cost to engrave without knowing how much text or the design, I'd take a shot in the dark and say $300/pc.

[Pat PJ Johnson]

The pnls will have only names from tob to bottom its a memorial wall.

[Ross Moshinsky]

That's not really specific. More text the longer it takes to engrave. If we are talking about just about every inch covered, it will take 3-4 hours per panel I'd guess.

The best thing you can do is a simulation. Go grab a piece of scrap granite somewhere and do 1 line of text engraved. Multiply that by how many lines per slab and you'll get close. Make sure you figure in a percent error. So although it may only take 2.5hrs by your calc, assume you are wrong and it will take 3-3.5hrs. A couple of long names it's not far from the truth. You should also account for learning curve.