Labor and Material Modifiers

NOTE-- We retired the MacNail estimating program in 2000, and replaced it with Goldenseal construction estimating software. There are still a significant number of die-hard MacNail users, so we keep the manuals online for them! Goldenseal is an integrated program that also includes accounting, scheduling and contract writing. It also includes labor and material modifiers for construction assemblies.

Most unit price items use simple formulas to compute the actual cost of the item. For labor, the formula is (skilled man-hrs * skilled wage rate + unskilled man-hrs * unskilled wage rate) * number of units, and for materials, it is material cost * number of units.

About 100 items in the 'stock' database included with the MacNail construction estimating software use special modifiers to these formulas to adjust the calculated cost.

For example, many of the framing material costs are adjusted for the stud/joist/rafter spacing, sheathing material costs are adjusted for plywood thickness, and both labor and material costs for painting are based on the number of paint coats. The 'minor' dimensions used in the modifiers are located at the far right in the Dimensions section of MacNail estimators.