Estimator
| Location: Edmonton, Alberta | Reports to: President
Company Overview
Edmonton-area plumbing and HVAC contractor serving commercial, industrial, and institutional clients across the region. The Company is known for delivering reliable, well-coordinated mechanical work and is growing its preconstruction and estimating capabilities to support an expanding project pipeline.
Position Summary
The Estimator contributes to the estimating department end-to-end, providing strategic and technical support to develop accurate, competitive, and coordinated plumbing cost estimates that support delivery of commercial and light industrial projects. This is a hands-on, high-accountability role, engaged across the business operating at a consistently high output.
Key Responsibilities
Department Leadership & Accountability
● Act as the champion of the estimating department, setting the pace, standards, and accountability expectations for all estimating output.
● Works with Directly with the HVAC Estimator and drafts person ensuring alignment, workload balance, and consistent quality across both trades.
● Own full accountability for every number pushed through to tender — accuracy, completeness, and defensibility rest with this role.
● Ensuring estimating output under short tender windows (typically 42–72 hours), prioritizing effectively across multiple concurrent bids.
● Bring a rounded, whole-scope understanding of the work — able to see across trades and disciplines rather than plumbing in isolation.
● Operate in-office daily, engaged and visible across the broader business, not solely within the estimating function.
Estimating & Cost Development
● Prepare plumbing estimates for commercial and light industrial projects, including offices, retail, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, distribution centers, and tenant improvements.
● Perform accurate quantity take-offs, cost analysis, labor analysis, and material pricing, frequently from incomplete or conceptual documentation.
● Evaluate and incorporate owner requirements, project phasing, site logistics, and schedule impacts into estimates.
● Prepare written scope narratives, clarifications, inclusions/exclusions, and pricing summaries.
● Support preconstruction efforts by preparing cost models, budget updates, and pricing checkpoints.
● Maintain historical cost data, estimating tools, and project benchmarking information.
Design Coordination & Technical Insight
● Review conceptual drawings, performance criteria, and partial design documents to determine project scope, budget requirements, and cost impacts.
● Participate in design coordination meetings, offering constructability feedback and cost-saving recommendations.
● Identify project risks, value engineering opportunities, and alternative system designs to improve budget performance — bringing a creative, solutions-oriented approach to problem areas.
● Collaborate with project managers, engineers, designers, and the HVAC estimating team to align estimates with evolving design and project goals.
Subcontractor & Vendor Management
● Solicit, evaluate, and level subcontractor and vendor pricing to ensure comprehensive coverage of scope.
● Build and maintain relationships with subcontractors and suppliers; manage the bid process and ensure competitive pricing.
Project Handoff & Support
● Assist with handoff to operations teams and provide support during project buyout.
● Provide input to project managers during early project mobilization to ensure a smooth transition from estimate to execution.
Qualifications
● Red Seal Journeyperson (Plumber or Diploma/Degree in Mechanical Engineering or Construction Management preferred.
● 7+ years of plumbing estimating experience, specifically with commercial and light industrial construction, including demonstrated ownership of full estimate outcomes.
● Prior experience leading or mentoring other estimators, with the credibility to keep a small department on track and accountable.
● Proven ability to produce accurate, defensible estimates under compressed timelines (42–72 hour turnarounds) and with limited design information.
● Understanding of plumbing systems such as domestic water, sanitary, storm, gas, process piping, and equipment used in commercial and light industrial facilities.
● Familiarity with building codes and regulatory requirements for commercial and industrial occupancies in Alberta.
● Proficiency with estimating software.
● Strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and the ability to manage multiple estimates simultaneously under pressure.
● A creative, high-output individual with strong leadership skills and the presence to represent the estimating department across the business.
● Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to negotiate and work with subcontractors and suppliers.
● Advanced Excel and Microsoft Office skills.
● Available to work in-office daily.
What Offers
● A leadership role with real ownership within a growing local plumbing and HVAC contractor.
● Exposure to a diverse range of commercial and light industrial project types across the Edmonton area.
● Competitive compensation commensurate with experience and scope of accountability, plus a comprehensive benefits package.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: From $125,000.00 per year
Experience:
- plumbing estimating: 5 years (preferred)
Work Location: In person
