Job costing for paving and asphalt contractors

Paving jobs are won by the square yard and lost by the ton: patching that wasn’t in the bid, a thicker lift than planned, or trucks waiting at the plant. JobMargin puts tonnage, trucking, and crew hours on the job each day, so you know before the last load.

What paving contractors track in JobMargin

• Asphalt by the ton. Scale tickets post to the job’s Asphalt & Aggregate budget, and units include tons and square yards.
• Trucking separately. Truck hours and haul costs get their own line, so waiting time at the plant shows up.
• Striping and sealing. Restriping and sealcoat get their own budget, even when they’re done by a sub.
• Extra patching as a change order. Failed areas beyond the bid go in as change orders, with photos from the daily log.

Set up for paving from the first day

When you pick Paving & Asphalt as your trade, JobMargin loads these cost categories for budgets, receipts, and job costs. You can rename or add your own at any time.

• Asphalt & Aggregate
• Labor
• Equipment Rental
• Trucking
• Striping & Sealing
• Fuel
• Disposal
• Permits
• Subcontractor
• Other

Bid line items use the units paving actually bid in: square yards (SY), tons (TON), square feet (SF), linear feet (LF), and lump sum (LS).

Example: what a paving job looks like mid-way

Mill 2 inches, patch failed areas, overlay about 9,500 square yards, and restripe. Milling and patching are done; the overlay is about half down.

Asphalt is 56% spent with the overlay about half down, a little ahead, and the patching explains it: there were more failed areas than the bid allowed for. Trucking is at 74%, so watch the truck count on the last half. If the extra patching wasn’t in the contract, it’s a change order.

Guides and tools for paving and asphalt contractors