Mowing Pipeline / Utility Right of Way Pricing

[reggie717]

The contact has a six month window to complete the 6000 acres. It also requires "hand trimming" fences and obstructions...likes the signs in the row as well as replacing signs as required. Any areas up to one half mile long that has to be "reclaimed" is left alone and not deducted from bid, over that they adjust or subtract money for contract value. That work is the contracted to someone with that equipment. Same with downed trees. I have the equipment for that so I thought that may be a selling point to the utility...yeah I'll charge extra but I am already there so there is a savings to them and an extra income to me.
As to the milage.. I may be off base here but 6000 acres is 6000 acres no real difference if it is square or 100 foot by a......uh. ..... Longways. I do get that narrower will take some time more due to obsticals...gates and such. Pleas tell me if I am missing something as I can't see it adding more than 20% to the total time.

Also, no one has had any input as to cost per acre averages. Like is 15-30 a good window or is this service usually more in the 35-50 range. I honestly have no idea. As I sai earlier I have a good idea of what it will cost me to do the work but what do companies pay for the service. Just like y'all I don't want to gouge but I certainly don't want to lose money or be the guy "undercutting everyone" which hurts the market.

 

[reggie717]

Guys thanks for all this feed back. I guess I can also ask....what's the best tractor and bat wing for this. I been stuck on kubota. ......... Let the shameless brand loyalty displays begin LOL

 

[cowski]

first i would not get a mulcher way too slow. for 4 men i would get a tractor with a 15 foot bush hog . and either a tractor with a brown tree cutter or a ctl with a bush hog. it will take the other 2 men cleaning to keep up. now i have a lot right of ways across my property. i can not keep you off the right of way ,but i do not have to let you cross my other property to get to the right of way . if you tear up my fence or damage pasture or crops you are liable. now i have collected a lot money for damages over the years. i am always notified before anything major is done. you do not do that the company you work for will. all you got to do too keep me happy is if you cut a wire on a fence put it back together.

 

[TheGoose]

Google Maps Area Calculator Tool

Here is a tool that will allow you to calculate the area you are bidding on. I really don't have an answer for you on price per acre but I wish you luck! Keep this thread updated if you win the bid.

 

[jenkinsph]

The contact has a six month window to complete the 6000 acres. It also requires "hand trimming" fences and obstructions...likes the signs in the row as well as replacing signs as required. Any areas up to one half mile long that has to be "reclaimed" is left alone and not deducted from bid, over that they adjust or subtract money for contract value. That work is the contracted to someone with that equipment. Same with downed trees. I have the equipment for that so I thought that may be a selling point to the utility...yeah I'll charge extra but I am already there so there is a savings to them and an extra income to me.
As to the milage.. I may be off base here but 6000 acres is 6000 acres no real difference if it is square or 100 foot by a......uh. ..... Longways. I do get that narrower will take some time more due to obsticals...gates and such. Pleas tell me if I am missing something as I can't see it adding more than 20% to the total time.

Also, no one has had any input as to cost per acre averages. Like is 15-30 a good window or is this service usually more in the 35-50 range. I honestly have no idea. As I sai earlier I have a good idea of what it will cost me to do the work but what do companies pay for the service. Just like y'all I don't want to gouge but I certainly don't want to lose money or be the guy "undercutting everyone" which hurts the market.

No one on here has been provided enough information to provide you with a cost per acre. You will have to do your homework on this to figure it out.

How long is this pipeline you want to bid? If very long and narrow I would spend the money to fly over it in a small plane to get some idea of what you are up against. Maps, very important to go over to determine problem areas. You need to see these problem areas to know how to bid them and to know whether you can do it.

Square versus rectangular shape, there can be a huge difference in cost operating within 10 miles of your base and working 750 miles from your base. What is the cost of lodging and meals along the path if you are away from home? The cost for a support vehicle goes up too if a long way from home. Thinking there is only about a 20% difference in costs tells me you need to do your homework. Employees working away from home can be a pain in the azzz. BTDT.

You really have to dive into this and spend the time to come up with an accurate estimate of your costs and put the foot work in to this. Blindly going into this could wreck you financially and may be hard to recover from.

 

[Redlands Okie]

In north central oklahoma guys are charging $60 to $80 dollars an hour and up for brush hogging pastures. One to two acres a hour with 5 and 6 ft brush hogs on heavier growth. I have a bit of a hard time thinking you could do anything cheaper when you figure in the cost of your heavier duty equipment and all the extras your going to have to deal with. I realize your going to use large batwings etc but still...........
Friend had a estimate recently for about 24 acres of modest cedar cover with 6 inch trunk range at $2000 a day and 8 to 10 hours was the estimate of time needed. Operater was using a front mount rotary unit of some kind and said he could just set it on top of the cedars and lower the unit and shred the tree. No chippers needed afterword. The math on that is in the $80 to $85 acres range.
I would think about your cost for the bad areas of the job and bid the whole thing based on that price range and a bit less for easy areas. Not bid it as the "normal" area and the heavy areas cost more.
Access, sign issues, fences, livestock, land owners, people who just are nosy and concerned about the environment, weather, equipment failure, lodging, transport, fuel, etc.
Your likely to loose some time and have to deal with the hassles due to staff needing replaced
What about state and federal EPA stuff on hydraulic leaks or creek crossing or wet land issues.
INSURANCE for the equipment and separate for the labors that covers such work in several states. Seems your going to need a paper work person that can handle these insurance and payroll issues so thats one more item to figure in.
Slow pay from your customer and whatever paper work their going to want that no one has told you about yet.
You personally will likely be spending quite a bit of time running errands so to speak and not running equipment.
One more thing, your not going to get 8 hours of work out of a 8 hour work day, 5 actual hours of productive work mowing and cutting in that 8 hours of the clock running would probably be in the ball park.

 

[GregP27]

No apartment owner has access without notice, anywhere. 24 to 48 hours notice is legally required.

Also, you need to figure in damage. Not all the bushogs will get through it without damage.

You have:

Cost of equipment
fuel
oil
maintenance (filters, lines, etc.)
lodging / food / transport for the drivers (per doem)
direct labor cost
fringe cost (insurance, vacation, medical, dental, etc ... if applicable)
damage-to-equipment cost and time. Will your bushog survive hitting a concrect block? Or an old concreate power pole foundation that is overgrown so you can't see it?
transport cost
cost to property-owner finces (bound to happen)
Delay when someone quits (bound to happen)
tires / roadside service (probably need one more tractor than if all are working productively)
Transport HOME when done
Pay for time to bill the customer in the end
unexpected expenses (WILL happen)
cost of TRACKING the progress / billing by office personnel (someone BETTER track it!, real time!) Includes computers and printers / paper / people to DO it, too!

Hope nobody operating the equipment gets INJURED! That gets expensive quickly.

I'm sure I missed some stuff ...

Hope your people don't kill a beloved pet along the way accidentally, say a state champion Irish Wolfhound or the like ... litigation is expensive!

Good luck!

 

[rustyshakelford]

I have a 5100e Deere with a mx15. Mows great and is one of the more common highway mowing rigs. For you, I'd look into the 6d series, no loader and the cx15 shredder. Buy the trans with the extra gears. Should be a 24/12. That's what I have and we love it. Will probably need atleast two tractors set up like this. Depending on the terrain, they might need to be shielded. There's so many variables, I agree with the guy that said rent a plane and see exactly what they are wanting done

Brett

 

[Lineman North Florida]

If I were the contractor, I would have called the sheriff myself. ROW permission is just that, you don't have to be notified in advance of anything. Any surface damage to your property might be paid for, but you cant refuse entry by the pipeline /electric/water etc company to suit your notion at the time or require written notification of entry. Yes, you could have called the sheriff but likely you would have been arrested, not the contractor. Legally, the ROW is no longer your property but has been leased to company xxxx, although most companies let the land owner use it for pasture, farming etc. but should they need to access it, any damage to crops is usually not recoverable by the lessee. The lease holder (company) has rights same as any other lease holder ( think apartment dweller)to freely access their property at anytime without prior notice.

We deal with these sort of people all the time, a few weeks ago we had a pole to change out in the ROW that was in front of this lady's house she came out furious that no one notified her that we were coming, I explained to her that we were in the ROW and we would not enter her property and we would not have her lights off, that wasn't good enough she was still very dissatisfied but that didn't stop the show, we worked this pole off of the public road but if we have to get to the ROW through someone's property I always attempt to make contact with them and always follow-up on any damages and make repairs to ruts etc, but I have still had the law called on me plenty of times, but like you said they have always let the owners know that we had the right to access and maintain our facilities.

 

[whis]

before you bid and lose everything you need to take a week and check the (row) it might not be as easy as pulling a batwing up and down a couple of times. and be sure and check on insurance and if it requires any kind of bond. if it is grown up with any trees tires will also be an issue. I'm not trying to bust your bubble but you are taking a big risk for first job

 

[paulfun9]

No apartment owner has access without notice, anywhere. 24 to 48 hours notice is legally required.

Not sure you have that right!

 

[dougtrr2]

If I were the contractor, I would have called the sheriff myself. ROW permission is just that, you don't have to be notified in advance of anything. Any surface damage to your property might be paid for, but you cant refuse entry by the pipeline /electric/water etc company to suit your notion at the time or require written notification of entry. Yes, you could have called the sheriff but likely you would have been arrested, not the contractor. Legally, the ROW is no longer your property but has been leased to company xxxx, although most companies let the land owner use it for pasture, farming etc. but should they need to access it, any damage to crops is usually not recoverable by the lessee. The lease holder (company) has rights same as any other lease holder ( think apartment dweller)to freely access their property at anytime without prior notice.

I think you missed the point. I fully agree that the pipeline company or its duly hired contractors have the right to work on the right of way. However, I have nine acres of forest and when a guy without any documentation shows up in a ratty pickup say he is here to cut trees on the pipe line I don't think I am out of line to get some proof of who he is and his right to be there. Additionally in my case the pipeline company does not own or lease the land, they only have an easement to maintain it. The definitive answer to any of these issues lie in the legal documents for that specific property. I was just trying to give the guy a heads up on potential issues. Taking the advice from here without verifying the actual documents he is dealing with could get him into trouble that could have been avoided.

Doug in SW IA

 

[aspg4]

Guys thanks for all this feed back. I guess I can also ask....what's the best tractor and bat wing for this. I been stuck on kubota. ......... Let the shameless brand loyalty displays begin LOL

I talked to a lady once that had a company that did this type of work, and asked her if they used Kubotas, and she no that they had tried them, but that they would just not hold up to that type work. She said they had tried the kubotas twice because they liked the dealer. Said they used John Deere. Might try to find someone somewhere that does this type work, and see what they use.

 

[OkieDave]

No apartment owner has access without notice, anywhere. 24 to 48 hours notice is legally required.

Not sure you have that right!

Even if he does, an easement is not the same as a lease. They will have different rights, both of which may differ by jurisdiction. I've never seen a mineral or pipeline/utility easement that required the easement holder to give notice of entry to the holder of the dominant estate, though, and there are a lot of mineral/pipeline easements here in central Oklahoma. So long as the utility company has the right to maintain (i.e. mow) the property, and especially if it has a duty to do so, any restrictions on entry would have to be written into the easement; otherwise, absent specific statutes to the contrary, the utility (or its agents) can enter without restriction for that purpose.

 

[newbury]

<snip>
I had figured averaging 6-8 acres an hour... Rustyshakleford says 8-10 above.....thanks Brett.

So if it is like 15 an acre... I'm losing based on the other requirements of the contract...hand mowing ... Side mowing as needed.. Signage upkeep....

I had read on o post somewhere that like in Alabama 42 to 45 an acre is about rate for ROW mowing. That seemed high to me...but I have nothing to compare it to as I Have no real acces to any verifiable info on the subject. Again...thus this post.

Thanks for all te replies fellas. Certainly appreciate them and any others that may come.

You need to do some research on public records. Can't you access past contracts and see what the winning bid was?

,
Not sure on mileage of row. It is 6000 acres. In three states so accommodations and food ect are one of the items I added to projection. I just used the GSA Per Diem table for meals and lodging to get a figure and calculated as a straight pass through cost

You need to add overhead to the PD rates or you are shafting yourself.

The contact has a six month window to complete the 6000 acres. It also requires "hand trimming" fences and obstructions...likes the signs in the row as well as replacing signs as required. Any areas up to one half mile long that has to be "reclaimed" is left alone and not deducted from bid, over that they adjust or subtract money for contract value. That work is the contracted to someone with that equipment. Same with downed trees. I have the equipment for that so I thought that may be a selling point to the utility...yeah I'll charge extra but I am already there so there is a savings to them and an extra income to me.
As to the milage.. I may be off base here but 6000 acres is 6000 acres no real difference if it is square or 100 foot by a......uh. ..... Longways. I do get that narrower will take some time more due to obsticals...gates and such. Pleas tell me if I am missing something as I can't see it adding more than 20% to the total time. <snip>.

It makes a heck of a difference. It will take a lot longer to mow edges and hand trim than just barreling down the middle. Your looking at your "Longways" being about 500 miles long if it's 100 foot wide. That's a LOT of edge.

Have you mapped it out on Google Earth?

 

[4570Man]

How do you get to and from your equipment on a job this long? How do you get fuel to your equipment? I'm thinking a pickup truck is the likely solution to both questions, but what about the time that takes and what if it's not passable by truck? If it's as long as distances mentioned earlier, do you plan on shipping your equipment home?

 

[4570Man]

I talked to a lady once that had a company that did this type of work, and asked her if they used Kubotas, and she no that they had tried them, but that they would just not hold up to that type work. She said they had tried the kubotas twice because they liked the dealer. Said they used John Deere. Might try to find someone somewhere that does this type work, and see what they use.

I've seen a lot of New Holland doing the roadside mowing around here. Deere is a distant second.

 

[AGRIMAN]

I'm wondering If you have actually looked at any of it? Perhaps it's a fairly well maintained line, but most of the power line ROW I seen are not. Other than the areas where the land is being farm or used, it's normally over grown with good size trees and thick brush, not something I would want to be cutting with a bat wing.

Most of the people i know use tractors outfitted with full cages, 30 ply tires and brown tree cutters. But as I said maybe this line is different, it not you may want to look at the Woods Boss.

Home

Sorry, I tried to fix the name on the above link. It does work.

 

[reggie717]

I'm wondering If you have actually looked at any of it? Perhaps it's a fairly well maintained line, but most of the power line ROW I seen are not. Other than the areas where the land is being farm or used, it's normally over grown with good size trees and thick brush, not something I would want to be cutting with a bat wing.

Most of the people i know use tractors outfitted with full cages, 30 ply tires and brown tree cutters. But as I said maybe this line is different, it not you may want to look at the Woods Boss.

Home

Sorry, I tried to fix the name on the above link. It does work.

Thanks for the link, I live in Alabama so going to Atlanta to check out Wood Boss is no big deal.