UNIVERSIDAD DE ESPECIALIDADES ESPÍRITU SANTO

Engineering Faculty
Exam
Teacher: Rafael Coello N. Ing., MgP. Term: Spring I Año: 2023 Mes: 03 Día: 19
Subject: Cost Engineering
UAQC- Signature:
Partial: I Paralelo: Cód. Materia:
N474_63
ARIEL JOSUE Qualification
Student: ______/100
HIDALGO SANTOS :
INSTRUCTIONS:
1.- The exam can be done with a pencil or pen (blue or black), but the answer must be enclosed in a box.
2.- Read each topic carefully before doing it, avoid cross-outs and disorder.
3.- The use of cell phones is not allowed in the exam, if you are found consulting the cell phone, the exam
will be withdrawn.

1. How is the segmentation of the construction market in Ecuador distributed? And indicate
which segment is the most representative in the country. (5pts)
La linea de produccion en el segmento es desarrollar estrategias comerciales adaptadas a la expectativas
de cada empresa.

2. What is a Cost Engineer and what is their main role? (5pts)

Es el encargado de llevar el control desde una pre obra y post obra, llevando a cabo un mejor desempeño
y mejor ahorro con temas de costo y de calidad.

3. The following personnel run a production line. What is the composite rate per hour for this
crew? (3pts)

Crew Mix Base Wage/Hr

1 foreman $20.00
2 operators $16.00
2 assistant operators $12.00
1 material handler $13.00
1 material handler helper $10.00

4. Which of the following are factors that could affect productivity? (5pts)

FACTOR YES NO
Union or non-union craft labor, x
Super Bowl week, x
Labor availability, x
A supermarket strike, X
Number of shopping days to Christmas, X
Weather conditions, X
Erection of temporary living quarters, X
Several large projects being built concurrently within X
5 miles of the jobsite. X

5. What is the difference between a detailed estimate and a square-foot estimate? (3pts)
Su Diferencia es que el estimador lleva consigo una referencia o conjunto de datos o tambien es una
proyeccion que lleva a un futuro de variables.

6. What is a single contract, and what are its principal advantages and disadvantages for the
owner? (5pts)
Un contrato es una base legal que se especifica con normas tecnicas y con la metodologia constructiva la
cual se llevara en su proyecto ademas una de sus principales ventajas es que se especifica el tiempo
necesario que se llevara a cabo la obra a definirse, otras de sus ventajas seria en que se especirficaria el
presupuesto general para ya no tener que como propietario preocuparse por costos extras en la obra, otra
ventaja es que seria un documento de respaldo y que da una garantía de que se llevara a cabo la obra con
sus respectivas funciones.
La desventaja seria en que no podrias hacer modificaciones del mismo contrato ya que ese contrato lleva
una base de presupuesto y de tal forma se llevaría a realizarse un nuevo análisis presupuesta y muchas
mas cosas.

7. What are the differences between direct and indirect costs? And list examples of each of
these. (5pts)
El costo directo es lo indispensable que se necesitara en la produccion como materia prima, y los costos
indirectos trambien llamados costos fijos son los costos independientes de la produccion por ejemplo
como los impuestos.
Costos directos
Materiales de construccion
Albañiles
Maestros
Costos indirectos
Predios
Impuesto a la renta
Alicuota

8. What are the differences between raw and fabricated materials? And list 3 examples of
each of these. (5pts)
The raw material is the virgin material that is found in an original way and the manufactured one
is where man intervenes for an elaboration or manufacture.
Example
Wood
Water
Granite
Limestone
Cement
9. What are the differences between direct, indirect, and overhead labor? And list 3 examples
of each of these. (5pts)
The operator who uses his hands to carry out some activity within the work is a direct labor force,
otherwise those operators who do not intervene in the production of a product but who are necessary in
some way constitute themselves as indirect labor.
Example:
masons
Hairdressers
cooks
and indirect labor
drivers
Graphic designers

10. Name 3 basic principles for Materials Handling. (3pts)

Example: Materials should be readily identifiable and retrievable.

The materials must be defined with respect to your needs.

The materials have limits of performance or use of itself.
The work carried out by each material must be minimized without sacrificing productivity to the
maximum by maintaining stable control.
11. What is a Unit Price Analysis (UPA)? How is a Unit Price Analysis prepared? Describe
each of its parts. (5pts)
 The unit price analysis known as UPA in English consists of spreading the cost for a unit of
item or identifying each yield between cost and quantities of each of the inputs or materials to
be used and thus establishing each cost in the established items. for example as materials such
as labor and extra items.
12. What is the difference between costing and pricing? (5pts)

It is a difference between covering previous values of a job to later fix values such as performing
the sale of a house for example
Investments such as houses or urbanizations
Certain amounts of money are paid for later to be able to define values in their sale.
13. The required level of accuracy coupled with the amount of information about the project
that is available will dictate the type of estimate that can be prepared. These estimating
methods require different amounts of time to complete and produce different levels of
accuracy for the estimate. Establish on the graph the types of estimation based on accuracy
and time. (5pts)

Detailed
Model

pametrict

Square foot

Project
comparasion

14. Problem: A manufacturing company is producing furniture and buys the hardwood lumber from
a supplier who make daily deliveries. Consequently, when the wood is inspected some is not
useable and is returned to the supplier. Of the wood used, some ends up as chips and scrap
pieces.
Question: Is the returned material a manufacturing cost element? How about the scrap?
Would these be direct, indirect, fixed, or variable costs? (5pts)
The returned material should cover the transportation of the person who is returning it, the scrap
would not be an adjustable option since the item was never used, they are variable costs since it is a
material which was not adequate and was returned allowing for variables of costs both in materials
and transportation.

15. Problem: A shopping mall is under construction. The general contractor owns some construction
equipment but needs to rent a crane for the steel placement.
Question: Is the crane rental a direct cost or indirect cost? How about the equipment that
is owned by the contractor? (5pts)
The rental of a crane is a direct cost since it is an auxiliary means which serves directly for my established
functions.
In addition, the equipment that belongs to the contractor already establishes a price before the work as a
contract which would leave a table of values already specifying the values that would be generated by that
work and by the use of those materials.

16. What is the difference between escalation and inflation, changes of costs during time?
(3pts)
The scale of cost is defined as changes in the price of specific goods or services in the economy over
a period of time. This is something between inflation and deflation except for a non-general scale as
in nature.

17. What is a profit? And how we determine it? (5pts)

It is identified as economic gain or an economic benefit is taken to a utility which is
obtained in an economic or productive process can be calculated as interest or investments

18. Name and describe 5 of the main assessing risks When selecting the profit to be added to
the bid. (5pts)
19. What is a Construction Budget and Why is it important? (5pts)
20. Enlist the five steps for construction budgeting and describe at least three of them. (5pts)
21. Prepare for the Take Off. In the following plane, determine the items corresponding to the
same. (20 points)
Quantification Items.
- Footing General Excavation (5pts)
- Concrete and Reinforcing Steel for Plinths (5pts)
- Concrete and Reinforcing Steel for Strip Footing Foundation (5pts)
- Roof and Columns Structural Steel (5pts)
22. Extra Points: Name and Describe Commonly Used Terms used in Building Industry (max
5)