The Challenge
A regional hospital contractor was preparing a bid for a 300-bed replacement hospital in California — a project under HCAI (formerly OSHPD) jurisdiction. The electrical scope had to comply with NFPA 99, HCAI Chapter 6, and the California Electrical Code, with essential electrical systems feeding life-safety, critical, and equipment branches separately. The contractor had won similar work before but had lost margin on the last project by under-pricing the essential branch-circuit infrastructure. They needed an estimate that priced every HCAI requirement — with no budget for rework.
The Approach
We assigned a senior estimator with healthcare and California code experience, and started by mapping the HCAI essential electrical system requirements against the electrical drawings — transferring switch positions, essential branch loads, and Type 1/Type 2 system demands. Every patient care area was walked through the code requirements sheet by sheet.
The takeoff covered normal and essential power distribution, generators and ATS, imaging equipment feeds with dedicated isolation, UPS systems, and full fire alarm and nurse call infrastructure. The estimator flagged 14 areas where the drawing scope understated essential branch requirements, adding $210K in compliant scope the contractor's own takeoff had missed.
Deliverables included a color-coded marked-up plan set, an Excel line-item estimate organized by Division 26/27/28, a PDF summary, and an HCAI compliance checklist showing how each code requirement was addressed.
The Result
The contractor submitted a competitive bid with confidence and won the project. At close-out, the final electrical cost landed within 3.1% of our estimate — and the HCAI inspection passed with zero electrical plan-check findings attributable to scope gaps. The $210K of essential branch scope was already priced, protecting the contractor's margin through construction.
- Compliance: 100% — passed HCAI plan check with no scope findings
- Accuracy: 3.1% vs final closed-out cost
- Scope captured: $210K in essential branch-circuit work