32 - Exterior Improvements
Paving bid estimating, without the grind.
The paving number is set less by the tonnage than by which DOT spec governs, the subgrade demarcation with earthwork, and the ADA/PROWAG curb-ramp details. Drop in your package and get back a cited first-pass: asphalt by TON from the pavement section, concrete paving by design thickness, the DOT-spec and earthwork-line flags, and the RFIs that keep a paving bid from losing on the details under the pavement.
✓ PE-reviewable✓ Cited to source✓ Your paving workflow
✓
REVIEWED
REVIEWED
Subgrade prep + proof-roll (coordinate with earthwork)measure TON (by mix + lift) or SY— cite
Aggregate base / subbasemeasure TON or CY (by depth)— cite
Asphalt binder + surface course (by lift)measure TON (by mix + lift) or SY— cite
Concrete paving / sidewalks / ADA rampsmeasure SF or SY (at design thickness) → CY— cite
Curb & guttermeasure LF— cite
5
governing codes
10
line-item groups
6
units of measure
6
risk flags
What it surfaces for paving
Priced for the way paving is actually bid.
The engine reads your package and flags exactly what bites paving estimators — before it costs you.
Governing codes named: State DOT specs (THE controlling reference for public work — mix designs, compaction, testing), AI MS-2 (asphalt mix design + thickness), ACI 330 (concrete parking-lot + site paving), ASTM D6926/D6927 (asphalt Marshall prep + testing), ADA/PROWAG (accessible routes, curb ramps, slopes, detectable warnings).
Line-item groups your bid breaks into: subgrade prep + proof-roll (coordinate with earthwork); aggregate base/subbase; asphalt binder + surface course by lift; concrete paving/sidewalks/ADA ramps; curb & gutter; pavement markings/striping/signage; wheel stops/bollards/site accessories; sealcoat/crack seal; milling + patching (reconstruction); testing (compaction/cores).
The paving risks ranked: subgrade/earthwork demarcation (proof-roll + prep responsibility is a classic gap); DOT spec compliance (public-work mixes, compaction, testing are stricter + costlier); ADA/PROWAG compliance (curb ramps, slopes, detectable warnings mandatory and often under-detailed → rework); asphalt liquid-AC escalation (oil-linked, volatile); weather + season; traffic control/phasing (reconstruction/occupied-site MOT).
The RFIs drafted (verbatim): "Which DOT/agency spec governs (mix designs, lift thicknesses, compaction, testing), or is it commercial/private paving?" "Subgrade prep + proof-roll — our scope or the earthwork contractor's, and to what compaction?" "ADA/PROWAG accessible routes, curb-ramp details, running/cross slopes, and detectable warnings?"
The trade's anatomy
Everything paving needs, structured.
Line-item groups
Subgrade prep + proof-roll (coordinate with earthwork)Aggregate base / subbaseAsphalt binder + surface course (by lift)Concrete paving / sidewalks / ADA rampsCurb & gutterPavement markings / striping / signageWheel stops / bollards / site accessoriesSealcoat / crack seal (if in scope)Milling + patching (reconstruction work)Testing (compaction / cores) coordination
Governing codes
State DOT specs · THE controlling reference for public work — mix designs, compaction, testingAI (Asphalt Institute) MS-2 · asphalt mix design + thicknessACI 330 · concrete parking-lot + site paving designASTM D6926 / D6927 · asphalt (Marshall) sample prep + testingADA / PROWAG · accessible routes, curb ramps, slopes, detectable warnings
Units of measure
asphalt pavement → TON (by mix + lift) or SYconcrete paving / sidewalk → SF or SY (at design thickness) → CYaggregate base → TON or CY (by depth)curb & gutter → LFstriping / signage / wheel stops → LF / EAmilling / patching (reconstruction) → SY
The risks that usually bite
Subgrade / earthwork demarcationDOT spec complianceADA / PROWAG complianceAsphalt liquid-AC escalationWeather + seasonTraffic control / phasing
“"Paving's a TON + SY bid; I price asphalt by the lift."”
The tonnage is the floor — the three things that sink a paving bid are the DOT spec you didn't cite (stricter mixes/testing/cost on public work), the subgrade/earthwork demarcation, and the ADA/PROWAG curb-ramp details that trigger rework when under-detailed. The analysis surfaces all three from the set, so the estimator bids against the governing spec and the real scope, not the easy estimate. Cited hands clean to the site-civil PE.
Run this on your own paving package.
30 minutes. Bring a real set — a DOT-spec public street, an ADA-heavy site, or a reconstruction job with phasing — and watch the cited line items, the spec-compliance flags, and the subgrade demarcation RFIs on your actual drawings.