Concrete Estimator

Every project Gem State Builders starts on your screen. The number you put on a bid decides whether we win the work, whether the crews have a schedule they can actually hit, and whether the job makes money when the last slab is poured. We are not looking for someone to fill in a spreadsheet template. We are looking for the person who owns the number.

We are a self-perform concrete contractor working across residential and commercial projects, backed by the resources of Gem State Builders. That combination means you estimate work we actually build with our own crews and our own equipment, so your assumptions come back to you as real production data instead of disappearing into a subcontractor's black box. Few estimating jobs give you that feedback loop.

It is the fastest way there is to get genuinely good at this trade.

Takeoff and pricing. Complete, defensible quantity takeoff and pricing on residential and commercial concrete work — labor, equipment, material, and sub quotes built from real production rates and reconciled against our historical cost database.

Bid strategy and delivery. Reading drawings and specs hard enough to find what's missing, writing the RFIs and qualifications that protect us, setting markup and contingency you can defend, and delivering a clean, complete proposal on time — every time.

Handoff and feedback. Running buyout and turnover so the project team inherits your logic and assumptions, then sitting in job cost reviews and taking the variance data back into the cost database so next quarter's bids are sharper than this quarter's.

• First 30 days — Learn our cost database, crew production rates, and bid process. Shadow two to three active pursuits. Walk active job sites and meet the superintendents whose work you'll be pricing.
• By 90 days — Independently own bids in the $[X]M range end to end, from invitation through proposal.
• By 6 months — Carry your own pursuit pipeline. Your qualification letters and RFIs are the template others copy.
• By 12 months — You're a voice in go/no-go calls, your hit rate and margin performance are tracked and trending the right way, and you're mentoring whoever comes next.

• 5+ years estimating concrete construction, including at least 3 years pricing self-perform work
• Demonstrated ownership of bids from takeoff through award — not just takeoff support
• Fluency in reading structural and civil drawings and specifications, including the ability to spot scope gaps between disciplines
• Working command of concrete means and methods, including cold- and hot-weather practice
• Digital takeoff proficiency — On-Screen Takeoff, Bluebeam Revu, Plan Swift, or equivalent — and strong Excel
• The discipline to hit a hard bid deadline with a complete, accurate, well-qualified proposal

• Public work, prevailing wage, and certified payroll exposure
• Experience estimating across both residential and commercial project types
• Field background — time as a carpenter, foreman, or superintendent before moving to precon
• Idaho and Intermountain West market knowledge: local ready-mix suppliers, labor conditions, and inspection expectations

What we don't require: a degree, if you have the field experience and the numbers to back it up. Some of the best estimators in this trade came off a crew.

Primarily office-based work at a computer. Regular job site visits require walking uneven ground, climbing ladders or stairs, and working around active construction in all weather. Must be able to wear required PPE and occasionally lift up to 25 pounds. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this role.

Valid driver's license and an insurable driving record required. Employment is contingent on a background check and pre-employment drug screen.

Gem State Builders is an equal opportunity employer.