The Gougeon Brothers on Boat Construction - WEST SYSTEM Epoxy

Estimating Materials and Labor
Certainly the material costs given in this chapter have changed since 1985, but the logic and calculations
used to estimate the total cost of your project remain sound. Please take the time to research and substitute
current material prices to arrive at an estimated cost for your proposed building project. As this chapter points
out, much of the expense of building a boat comes at the end of the project when the mechanical installations
occur. <strong>The</strong> exercises in this chapter are designed to help you stay within your means.
Realistic projections of material costs and labor requirements
greatly increase the odds that you will finish
your boat. If you are lucky, your designer has included
an estimate in the plans. If not, take the time to make
one yourself before you get started. While you can get
some idea of what a boat will cost by finding a similar
mass-produced model and dividing its price in half or
by two thirds, we recommend more reliable methods.
As you look over your plans, prepare a rough estimate
based on the price per pound of the materials your boat
will require. If this figure seems affordable and you’ve
decided on your design, move on to a more detailed
estimate. Calculate your hull costs according to its
surface area, and add up the prices of hardware and
miscellaneous items. Make realistic guesses about the
amount of time you’ll spend on each step of construction.
Consider all of these expenses before committing
yourself to the project.
Revise your estimate when you loft the boat. As you lay
out your lines, build the boat in your head to doublecheck
the accuracy of your numbers.
Rough Estimates
We divide the beginning estimate into two parts: bare
hull costs and hardware costs. From these, you’ll get a
rough indication of how much you’ll spend to finish
your boat, not including labor.
For a rough estimate of the bare hull cost, you need a
list of the materials used in your hull and deck and a
firm idea of your boat’s weight. This information should
be included in your plans. If it isn’t, ask your designer.
First, work out the proportion of each building element
to the entire weight of the hull. If, for example, you’re
CHAPTER
7
thinking about a design with bare hull weight of 5,000
pounds (2250kg), you might find that the materials
required are 1,000 pounds (453kg) each of Douglas
fir, Western red cedar, and mixed WEST SYSTEM ® Brand
epoxy, and 2,000 pounds (907kg) of 1 ⁄4" (6mm) Okoume
plywood. Next, work out the per-pound price of each of
these materials. Although WEST SYSTEM epoxy is not sold
by the pound, it is easy to calculate. (See Figure 7-3.)
Lumber is sold by volume and its price is listed in
board feet. To compute its cost per pound, multiply
board foot price by 12 to establish cubic foot price.
Divide this by the weight of the wood per cubic foot.
In the case of the 5,000 pound hull, you might work
out a table similar to that in Figure 7-1. To spare
yourself expensive surprises, add a 20% waste factor
for the total.
While this breakdown may not be absolutely accurate,
a small error is unlikely to cause any great change in the
final per-pound cost. <strong>The</strong> price of a basic hull structure
will vary a great deal according to the materials used to
build it. For most boats, in 1985 prices, hull and deck
construction will run between $2.00 and $3.00 per
pound, although it may be more if you plan to use
sophisticated materials or exotic woods.
<strong>The</strong> second part of the rough estimate, hardware costs,
includes rigging, sails, engine, keel, interior fixtures,
and deck items. It cannot be figured on a weight basis.
For a very general idea of these expenses, multiply your
bare hull costs by three. Hardware costs for a performance
racing boat might be as high as four times the bare
hull estimate, while simpler or smaller projects will
have hardware costs only double those of basic
materials.