Why Grading Contractors Give Away Cut and Fill
Grading contractors give margin away when cut and fill quantities move past the plan and no change order follows, when fuel and equipment costs pool in overhead instead of the job, and when the winter slowdown drains the account. CONTROL prices the variance, costs the iron by the day, and forecasts the slow months before they hit.
The specific ways grading contractors lose cash, pulled straight from what makes this trade different.
Cut and Fill Variance
When field quantities move past the plan, the extra passes cost you money the same day. A change order standard turns that variance into billed revenue instead of a silent loss.
Fuel and Equipment Job Costing
Fuel and machine hours that pool in overhead make every job look better than it was. Costing them to the job shows you which sites the dozer paid for and which ones it subsidized.
Seasonal Cash Shortfalls
Grading revenue drops when the weather turns, while overhead keeps its full pace. A 13-week cash forecast tells you in September what January looks like.
The CONTROL chapters that solve this for grading contractors specifically.
Why do grading contractors lose money on cut and fill?
How should a grading contractor job cost fuel and equipment?
What profit margin should a grading contractor target?
