Bidfident

Bidfident for paving contractors

Estimating software for paving

If you pave parking lots and roads, Bidfident lets you price aggregate base by the square yard, asphalt by the ton and curb by the linear foot, each with a waste percentage on the material. The paver and blade are charged for the hours they run, striping comes in as a sub bid, and traffic control follows the job by the week.

Get started

Enter your email and Bidfident sends you a sign-in link. New companies start with a starter rate library. Who runs Bidfident, and what it keeps about you.

Sound familiar?

  • Tons, square yards and linear feet in one column

    A paving spreadsheet mixes base by area, asphalt by weight and curb by length, and a total can end up adding them together. In Bidfident each line keeps its own unit, and the cost report shows a code's quantity as mixed instead of adding tons to feet.

  • The paver charged for the whole shift

    The paver is one of the most expensive machines on the job, but it doesn't lay mix every hour the crew is on site. In Bidfident each asphalt line gives the paver its own hours per ton, apart from the crew's.

  • Traffic control that stays put

    The job slips a week and the traffic control line in the spreadsheet stays at four weeks. In Bidfident weekly items like traffic control follow the job duration.

How Bidfident fits your work

  • Bidfident screenshot: asphalt by the ton, base by the square yard

    Asphalt by the ton, base by the square yard

    Each line has its own unit, quantity, crew hours per unit, and material price with a waste percentage, like 3% on the base and surface courses. Copy, paste and fill down as you would in Excel.

  • Bidfident screenshot: paver and grader for the hours they run

    Paver and grader for the hours they run

    Give the paver its own hours per ton and the grader its own hours per square yard of base. Each is charged for its own hours, not the crew's.

  • Bidfident screenshot: paving crew and cement masons at their own rates

    Paving crew and cement masons at their own rates

    The paving crew, cement masons on the curb and laborers on the base each take their trade's rate from the library.

  • Bidfident screenshot: traffic control by the week

    Traffic control by the week

    Add traffic control and the super by the week, linked to the job duration. Change the weeks and both follow.

  • Bidfident screenshot: striping bids side by side

    Striping bids side by side

    Enter each striping sub's number for lines and stall markings, see the lowest flagged, and carry it or the one you pick.

  • Bidfident screenshot: a thicker lift as an alternate

    A thicker lift as an alternate

    Price an option, like an extra lift or speed bumps, and switch it off. It stays on the sheet, struck through, with what it comes to shown beside the totals.

Worked example: asphalt paving for a 120-stall parking lot

A made-up job, priced in Bidfident: 24 lines of your own work, 4 subs and 5 general conditions items over a 4-week job. The 4 lines this page talks about are listed one by one, and the rest are added up in one row. It's the same job you can open as an example project in Bidfident, so every figure below matches it.

To open this job in Bidfident: sign in and set up your company in the US, then on the Projects screen, under Example project, pick "Sitework and civil" and "Paving" and press Add example project.

Your own work
ItemAmount
Crushed aggregate base, 12", compacted, 4,665 SY
  • Labor: 4,665 SY × 0.017 hrs = 79.31 hrs at $45.00/hr (laborer) = $3,568.73
  • Material: 4,665 SY × $18.00 + 5% waste = $88,168.50
  • Equipment: motor grader, 4,665 SY × 0.0033 hrs = 15.39 hrs, less than the crew, at $135.00/hr = $2,078.26
$93,815.49
HMA base course, 2", 505 ton
  • Labor: 505 ton × 0.23 hrs = 116.15 hrs at $56.00/hr (paving crew member) = $6,504.40
  • Material: 505 ton × $88.00 + 3% waste = $45,773.20
  • Equipment: asphalt paver, 505 ton × 0.055 hrs = 27.78 hrs, less than the crew, at $185.00/hr = $5,138.38
$57,415.98
HMA surface course, 1-1/2", 410 ton
  • Labor: 410 ton × 0.25 hrs = 102.5 hrs at $56.00/hr (paving crew member) = $5,740.00
  • Material: 410 ton × $94.00 + 3% waste = $39,696.20
  • Equipment: asphalt paver, 410 ton × 0.065 hrs = 26.65 hrs, less than the crew, at $185.00/hr = $4,930.25
$50,366.45
Concrete barrier curb, 6", 1,700 LF
  • Labor: 1,700 LF × 0.09 hrs = 153 hrs at $58.00/hr (cement mason) = $8,874.00
  • Material: 1,700 LF × $9.50 + 5% waste = $16,957.50
$25,831.50
20 more lines of your own work
  • Labor $34,686.96 + material $81,534.51 + equipment $13,276.93
  • 2 more lines are priced but left out of the total
$129,498.40
Subcontractors
ItemAmount
Striping and stall markings
  • Bids: Bidder A $3,400.00, Bidder B $3,100.00, Bidder C $3,700.00
  • Carrying the lowest: Bidder B
$3,100.00
Asphalt and compaction testing
  • Bids: Bidder A $4,500.00, Bidder B $4,900.00
  • Carrying the lowest: Bidder A
$4,500.00
Parking signs and posts
  • Bids: Bidder A $3,040.00, Bidder B $3,320.00
  • Carrying the lowest: Bidder A
$3,040.00
Soft subgrade repairs, allowance
  • No bids yet: carrying a plug number
$4,800.00
General conditions
ItemAmount
Superintendent
  • 4 wk × $2,500.00, following the job duration
$10,000.00
Traffic control
  • 4 wk × $1,300.00, following the job duration
$5,200.00
Mobilize paver and rollers, lowboy
  • 1 LS × $7,800.00
$7,800.00
Survey and staking
  • 1 LS × $3,000.00
$3,000.00
Portable toilet
  • 4 wk × $85.00, following the job duration
$340.00
Bid summary
ItemAmount
Own work
  • Labor $59,374.09 + material $272,129.91 + equipment $25,423.82
$356,927.82
Excluded lines, not counted$18,161.32
Subcontractors$15,440.00
General conditions
  • 4 weeks
$26,340.00
Direct cost
  • Own work + subcontractors + general conditions
$398,707.82
Contingency
  • 3% of direct cost
$11,961.23
Fee
  • 10% of direct cost plus contingency
$41,066.91
Subtotal before the bond$451,735.96
Bond
  • 1% of the subtotal
$4,517.36
Insurance
  • 0.5% of the subtotal
$2,258.68
Bid total
  • The price you submit
$458,512.00

See it in Bidfident

Equipment that runs less than the crew The paver gets its own hours per ton, so it's charged for the time it lays mix. 30 sec
Site costs that follow the schedule Traffic control by the week follows the job duration. Add a week and it updates. 38 sec
Alternates, kept but not counted An extra asphalt lift kept on the sheet as an option, struck through and not counted. 31 sec

Coming soon Ask your estimate anything. Claude first, ChatGPT to follow. See how it will work

Questions

Can I price asphalt by the ton and base by the square yard?

Yes. Each line has its own unit, so ton, SY, LF and EA all work on one sheet.

Does it figure tons from area and thickness?

No. Bidfident doesn't convert between units. Enter the tons you've worked out, and price the line in tons.

Can I add waste to asphalt and curb?

Yes. Every line's material price has its own waste percentage.

Can I show an extra lift or speed bumps as an option?

Yes. Switch the line off. It stays on the sheet, struck through, and what it comes to is shown beside the totals, for reference only.

Can traffic control follow the schedule?

Yes. Add it by the week and link it to the job duration. Change the duration and it updates.

Can the paver be charged for fewer hours than the paving crew?

Yes. Give the paver its own hours per ton on each asphalt line. Leave it blank and it runs for the crew's hours.

Does Bidfident work with Claude or ChatGPT?

Not yet, but it's coming. You'll be able to connect Bidfident to your own Claude or ChatGPT account and ask about your estimates in plain English. The answers will come from Bidfident's own figures, so they match the estimate. It will use the account you already have: Claude first, ChatGPT to follow.

Price your next paving bid in Bidfident

Get started

Enter your email and Bidfident sends you a sign-in link. New companies start with a starter rate library. Who runs Bidfident, and what it keeps about you.