plumbing estimator

Must-have experience
Proven experience as a plumbing estimator (ideally 3+ years) in Australia.
Strong understanding of:
Domestic construction (townhouses, apartments, subdivisions) and/or commercial fit-outs/maintenance
Plumbing systems: water, sewer/drainage, gas, roofing/stormwater (as relevant to your work)
Demonstrated ability to price jobs with:
Labour hours and productivity rates
Materials, fixtures, and plant/equipment
Subcontractor scopes (e.g., excavation, concrete cutting, electrical, etc.)
Compliance allowances (inspections, certifications, sign-offs)
Software & technical requirements (non?negotiable)
Groundplan
Confident performing digital take-offs:
Set up scales, layers, and measurement sets
Measure pipe runs, fixtures, penetrations, roof drainage, pits, etc.
Export quantities/take-off summaries for costing
Ability to interpret architectural + hydraulic drawings and reconcile discrepancies.
Simpro
Strong working knowledge of Simpro estimating/quoting workflows:
Build quotes with accurate cost centres, labour, materials, and margins
Use/maintain prebuilds, catalogues, assemblies (or willingness to learn your structure)
Create job notes and handover packs for operations
Manage quote statuses, follow-ups, and basic reporting
Core responsibilities
Complete end-to-end estimating:
Review drawings/specs, clarify scope, identify exclusions/assumptions
Perform take-offs in Groundplan and translate into Simpro quote builds
Obtain and compare supplier/subbie pricing where required
Apply agreed margin/markup rules and ensure profitability
Produce professional proposals:
Clear scope inclusions/exclusions
Compliance notes and warranty statements where applicable
Timelines and payment terms aligned to company standards
Handover to operations:
Ensure job is set up cleanly in Simpro (cost codes, materials, labour allowances, notes)
Provide site/foreman brief and risk items (access, staging, long-leads)
Support business development:
Assist with tender submissions and builder/developer pricing requests
Follow up quotes to improve conversion rate (where assigned)
Commercial & financial capability
Strong costing discipline and ability to:
Spot under-scoped items and variations risk
Build allowances for unknowns (ground conditions, access, staging)
Maintain pricing consistency across similar job types
Comfortable working to targets such as:
Residential GM / net targets
Commercial markup rules
Quote turnaround times
Compliance & quality awareness (Victoria / AU context)
Familiarity with typical compliance requirements (e.g., plumbing compliance certificates, gas sign-off processes where applicable).
Ability to include appropriate compliance line items, documentation time, and inspection allowances in estimates.
Communication & stakeholder requirements
Clear communicator with:
Builders, developers, site supervisors, suppliers, and internal leads
Strong written documentation:
Assumptions, exclusions, clarifications, and scope notes are non-negotiable
Professional phone/email manner (represents the brand).
Personal attributes
High attention to detail (numbers, scope, and documentation).
Proactive and organised—can manage multiple quotes at once.
Calm under time pressure and able to meet deadlines.
Team-first mindset: works smoothly with ops/scheduling/field teams.
Nice-to-haves
Existing relationships with local suppliers/subcontractors.
Experience estimating civil drainage or larger commercial maintenance contracts.
Ability to help refine estimating systems:
Simpro prebuilds, templates, cost codes, quoting checklists
Ability to bring new builder/developer connections (if that’s a priority).
Practical requirements
Australian driver’s licence.
Ability to attend site visits when required (Frankston + SE suburbs).
Availability aligned to your business hours (Mon–Fri).
Suggested screening test (highly recommended)
Provide candidate with a small set of drawings and ask for:
Groundplan take-off summary
Simpro-style quote build outline (labour/materials/margin)
Inclusions/exclusions + assumptions list