Construction
Excavation and Backfill BONUS Activity 4(%)
Given the following quantities, complete a cost estimate for the following excavation and backfill
project:
• Excavation Total 197 cubic yards
• Backfill Total 70 cubic yards
Based on the number of cubic yards of material provided, please answer the following questions:
An excavator takes ten minutes to load a truck with 12 cubic yards of material.
How many truck loads of material is there?
A truck takes 50 minutes to go and dump the load and return for another load. How many trucks would
you need to complete this excavation? (Remember you cannot have ½ a truck, it’s either present or
not).
How many hours will the excavator be operating for?
Building on your previous questions, a grade-person will need to be checking the excavation depth as
the excavator operator is digging.
How many hours will you need to have this person on-site for?
There is a $500 charge for delivery and pick-up of heavy equipment. 15 minutes is needed for unloading
and loading the equipment.
It is not uncommon for minimum times to be enforced when renting equipment of hiring staff. On this
project, assume a 4 hour minimum charge for equipment and personal (excavator and operator and
grade-person).
Trucking cost is $85.00 per hour per truck.
The excavator and operator cost is $350.00 per hour with a minimum of 4 hours.
The grade-person costs $45.00 per hour with a minimum of 4 hours.
How much would the total excavation cost?
