Material Costs

NOTE-- We retired the MacNail estimating program in 2000, and replaced it with Goldenseal estimating software. There are still die-hard MacNail users, so we keep the manuals online for them! Goldenseal is integrated software that also includes accounting, scheduling and contract writing features. It stores material prices in Cost Items, which and then listed as components in Assemblies (which are included as line items in an Estimate).

Material Cost Estimating

To increase calculation speed, the MacNail construction estimating software stores material costs as a straight dollar cost per unit.

EXAMPLE: In the example on the previous page, the material cost per square is $36. It is multiplied by the quantity (11.7 squares) to arrive at a total material cost of $421.

To help calculate the material unit cost, The MacNail construction management software uses a material assembly-- a list of the actual materials needed in one unit of work.

EXAMPLE: MacNail figures that it takes 3.24 bundles of roof shingles to cover a square (3 bundles plus an 8% waste factor). It also figures in .07 boxes of roofing nails per square.

The material unit prices in MacNail estimating software worksheets are calculated based on the assembly quantities and waste factors, multiplied by the most recent supplier price for each item. When you type in the latest supplier prices,

MacNail's Update Material Prices command will use the assemblies to recalculate all material unit prices so they 'll reflect the latest costs (see page 104).

Material assemblies are also used by MacNail Scheduling to tell you how much material to actually buy, when you make 'material takeoffs' or material purchase lists. The Takeoff Master stores this information for you-- see pages 122 and 188 for more about creating and using this file.