08/19/2026
Join us for an engaging lunch & learn session on how contractors go about preconstruction & cost estimating for projects in the Holy City!
Join AIA Charleston at the Clemson Design Center for a candid look inside the estimating process: what actually goes into a conceptual budget, how a GC gets from a napkin sketch to a GMP, and why two projects that look nearly identical on paper can carry wildly different price tags.
We’ll pull back the curtain on how contractors use historical unit costs, detailed takeoffs, and subcontractor input to price your work. More importantly, we’ll detail what you can include in your concept packages to get a sharper, more reliable number back from the GC.
To close, we will look at current Charleston-market cost trends and what projects are actually costing in our city, straight from the precon leaders at Choate Construction, Trident Construction & Spire Contracting.
So, whether you’re setting expectations at the first owner meeting or defending a budget at the end of DD, you’ll leave with practical tools to give your clients cost guidance they can trust.
This event is for AIA members only. Lunch will be provided & this event will qualify for (1) HSW Credit. Link in the bio to register.
