Director of Estimating or Director of Preconstruction and Estimating
Job Description
DIRECTOR OF ESTIMATING / DIRECTOR OF PRECONSTRUCTION AND ESTIMATING
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ABOUT US
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CT Mechanical, a division of Comfort Temp Company, delivers commercial HVAC, plumbing, and mechanical contracting solutions across Florida. With offices in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Orlando, and Tampa, we serve commercial, industrial, and institutional clients. Our core values are: Do what you say. Do what it takes. Walk with purpose. Do the right thing.
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POSITION SUMMARY
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CT Mechanical is conducting one search to fill one senior leadership position. Based on the selected candidate's experience and leadership range, the final title will be Director of Estimating or Director of Preconstruction and Estimating.
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Both paths require expert commercial mechanical and plumbing estimating capability. The selected leader will direct the complete bid process, lead the estimating team, improve department performance, support major pursuits, protect margin, and connect Estimating with Operations, Project Management, field leadership, and executive leadership.
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The Director of Preconstruction and Estimating is the larger role. It includes every responsibility of the Director of Estimating and adds direct leadership of the Business Development team, market and customer strategy, opportunity qualification, pursuit planning, pipeline accountability, and the complete front-end process. This is not a sales-only role. The leader retains full technical and departmental ownership of Estimating.
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WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
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- Accurate, competitive, and timely estimates across all markets.
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- Consistent pricing, labor strategy, scope review, proposal quality, and risk identification.
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- Clear department accountability, capacity planning, and workload visibility.
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- Strong quality control, vendor coverage, and turnover to Operations.
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- Useful post-bid and estimate-to-actual feedback that improves future pricing.
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- Development of a capable, scalable estimating team across offices and disciplines.
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- For the broader role, a qualified pipeline and unified process connecting Business Development, Estimating, and Operations to produce profitable backlog.
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KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
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Estimating Leadership and Bid Oversight
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- Lead the estimating department, Estimators, and Bid Coordination support, including workload, standards, accountability, staffing, development, and daily performance.
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- Assign and prioritize bids based on deadlines, team capacity, strategic fit, customer quality, opportunity value, risk, and operational workload.
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- Own the full bid lifecycle from invitation and bid/no-bid through takeoff, labor development, vendor and subcontractor coverage, scope review, pricing, proposal, clarification, award, and turnover.
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- Review major estimates for complete scope, labor and productivity, equipment and material pricing, vendor coverage, exclusions, alternates, contract risk, and expected margin.
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- Standardize workflows, technical practices, quality-control reviews, and submission standards across offices.
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- Ensure proposals are complete, professional, timely, and aligned with company standards.
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- Serve as CT Mechanical's senior estimating authority on complex, high-risk, and strategic pursuits.
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Preconstruction and Operational Alignment
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- Partner with Operations, Project Management, and field leadership so estimates reflect labor availability, installation methods, procurement, schedule demands, and field risk.
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- Lead conceptual budgets, negotiated work, design-build pricing, constructability reviews, and value-engineering options.
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- Participate in strategic pre-bid meetings, site walks, clarifications, turnover meetings, and planning discussions.
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- Create clear turnover standards with documented scope, assumptions, exclusions, commitments, schedule needs, and risks.
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- Use project results to improve future estimates and keep what is priced, sold, and delivered aligned.
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Team, Data, and Continuous Improvement
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- Recruit, onboard, coach, and develop estimating talent with clear technical standards, performance measures, career paths, and succession depth.
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- Maintain strong vendor, subcontractor, supplier, and industry relationships.
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- Strengthen labor assumptions, pricing references, historical cost data, market intelligence, and estimating resources.
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- Lead post-bid, win/loss, and estimate-to-actual reviews.
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- Improve estimating tools and workflows, including QuoteSoft or comparable software, Bluebeam, Excel, CRM, and reporting.
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ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE DIRECTOR OF PRECONSTRUCTION AND ESTIMATING
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- Retain full responsibility for every estimating duty, standard, outcome, and technical decision listed above.
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- Directly lead the Business Development team alongside Estimators and Bid Coordination support.
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- Set market priorities, target customers, territories, relationship plans, activity expectations, pipeline standards, and team accountability.
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- Build senior relationships with General Contractors, owners, designers, property stakeholders, and strategic partners.
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- Lead qualification and pursuit planning so estimating resources are invested in work that fits company capacity, risk, and margin expectations.
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- Use CRM activity, pipeline conversion, customer quality, win/loss data, backlog needs, and profitability to coach the team and improve decisions.
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- Create clear Business Development-to-Estimating-to-Operations handoffs and stop low-value, poorly qualified, or non-strategic pursuits.
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KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
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- Estimate accuracy, competitiveness, turnaround time, and on-time submission.
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- Win rate, awarded work, and gross margin performance relative to estimate.
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- Turnover quality and effective estimate-to-actual feedback.
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- Workload visibility and process consistency across branches.
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- Estimator development, vendor engagement, and pricing responsiveness.
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- For the broader role: qualified pipeline, customer development, pursuit conversion, Business Development accountability, and profitable backlog growth.
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REQUIREMENTS
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- 8+ years of progressive estimating experience in commercial HVAC, plumbing, mechanical contracting, or a closely related construction environment.
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- 3+ years leading Estimators, estimating workflow, preconstruction professionals, or related technical teams.
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- Expert knowledge of commercial mechanical and plumbing systems, takeoffs, labor drivers, vendor coverage, estimating methods, scope, bid strategy, and risk.
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- Ability to lead and personally evaluate drawings, specifications, addenda, labor, equipment, materials, vendor and subcontractor quotes, pricing, proposals, and turnover.
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- Strong knowledge of hard-bid, negotiated, conceptual, design-build, and value-engineering environments.
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- Practical understanding of how estimates affect procurement, labor planning, field installation, Project Management, schedule, cash flow, and margin.
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- Proven ability to lead people, improve systems, establish standards, and hold a department accountable.
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- Strong communication, organization, judgment, and cross-functional leadership skills.
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- Proficiency with Bluebeam, Excel, and estimating platforms. QuoteSoft, Trimble AutoBid, Viewpoint, or similar experience is .
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- Valid driver's license and ability to attend site, customer, and regional office meetings as needed.
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ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PRECONSTRUCTION SCOPE
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Candidates must meet every technical, estimating, and leadership requirement above. These requirements are additional, not alternative.
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- Proven experience leading Business Development, sales, market development, capture, or customer-facing construction professionals.
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- Ability to build and qualify a pipeline, set relationship strategy, coach accountability, and connect market development to profitable awards.
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- Experience developing senior General Contractor, owner, designer, property stakeholder, and strategic partner relationships.
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- Credibility with technical Estimators and relationship-driven Business Development professionals. A sales-only background without deep commercial mechanical and plumbing estimating capability will not qualify.
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QUALIFICATIONS
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- Estimating leadership across multiple branches, regions, or markets.
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- Both commercial HVAC and plumbing estimating experience.
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- Healthcare, industrial, institutional, data center, or other complex project experience.
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- Experience building department processes, labor standards, cost data, and pricing consistency.
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- For the broader role, CRM discipline, pipeline reporting, customer strategy, or capture planning experience.
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- Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Mechanical Engineering, Business, or a related field . Strong relevant experience may substitute.
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WHY THIS ROLE MATTERS
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This leader will shape how CT Mechanical evaluates opportunities, builds pricing discipline, develops talent, protects margin, and converts awarded work into successful execution. The broader Preconstruction title adds Business Development, market, customer, and pipeline leadership while retaining full estimating ownership.
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