Unit Rate Build-Up — Material, Labor, Equipment, and Overhead
Every line in a BOQ has a rate. Building that rate from its parts — rather than pulling it from a price book — is what lets you defend and adjust it.
The structure
Build the direct cost per unit first, then apply mark-ups.
Material
Example — 1 m³ of 1:2:4 concrete: 7.3 bags cement + 0.44 m³ sand + 0.88 m³ gravel + water + admixture, each at current price, plus 4% waste.
Labour
- Crew hours per unit = 1 / output rate (m² or m³ per crew-hour).
- All-in rate = basic wage + statutory contributions + allowances + non-productive time + supervision share.
Plant and equipment
Owned or hired plant, per unit of output: (hourly plant cost + operator + fuel) / output rate. Include mixers, vibrators, pumps, hoists, compaction plant — whatever the activity needs.
Overhead and profit
- Site overhead (if not a separate BOQ item): 8–15% of direct cost.
- Head office overhead: 3–8%.
- Profit: 8–15% depending on risk and market.
Worked skeleton
Material 4,300 + Labour 900 + Plant 350 = 5,550 direct
× 1.10 overhead = 6,105 × 1.12 profit = 6,838 / m³
EngEst Pro builds unit rates from material, labour, and plant components with your local prices and output rates, then applies overhead and profit — every BOQ line shows the build-up, not just the final number.
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