WebLEM

MCAAs Latest Member Benefit

The Internet-Based Database Version
of the MCAA Labor Estimating Manual
www.weblem.org

Presentation Content
Development of the LEM
History of LEM
Use of WebLEM
Definition of a Labor Unit

Tour of the WebLEM website

Organization of the WebLEM
Basic Assumptions of the WebLEM
Performance/Correction Factors
Whats new with the WebLEM committee?

WebLEM Committee
Members
Kevin Daubendiek Humphrey Company,
Houston, TX
Paul DeBella DeBella Mechanical, Santa
Clara, CA
Bob Durr Durr Mechanical Construction,
New York, NY
David Gallo Gallo Mechanical Contractors,
New Orleans, LA
Ron King Trimble, Toronto, Canada
Tim Moormeier U.S. Engineering
Company, Kansas City, MO
Patrick Reilly John W. Danforth Company,
Buffalo, NY
Nick Nikpourfard Mechanical Contractors
Association of America, Rockville, MD.
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Purpose of the WebLEM

Committee
This Committee exists to serve the needs
of the MCAA membership. As such, we are
committed to providing a resource as well
as education of the MCAA membership in
the areas of estimating plumbing and
piping construction work. We are
committed to timely responses to member
questions, requests for information and
recommendations.

Purpose of The WebLEM

Committee
The Committee will research, calculate and publish
labor units for new materials and methods for plumbing
and piping products.
For a product to be considered for inclusion in the LEM, it must
meet the following criteria:
The item must be available commercially for a period of at least
two years.
The item must be nationally available to all members for the sizes
listed in the product literature.
The product must be involved in work that is typically executed by
plumbers and/or pipefitters.
The MCAA membership must have an interest or need for the labor
units related to the product.
Any new item must be specifically different than other items
currently in the LEM from the standpoint of labor units.
Naming of all items contained in the LEM will be a generic
description of the material or joining method to avoid
commercialism as much as reasonably possible.
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Purpose of The WebLEM

Committee
The Committee is charged with keeping historical
records of the development of data contained in the
LEM.
The Committee will ensure the existing labor units are
kept up to date with the goal being to have accurate,
consistent units for all materials and methods. The
accuracy begins with utilizing empirical formulas
developed over many years that have proven to
generate uniform labor units for all materials and
joining methods. The Committee is committed to
updating or revising existing labor units for a specific
product if it is determined that our MCAA members are
factoring a specific material or joining method
significantly different than the rest of the data in the
LEM.
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Purpose of The WebLEM

Committee
The Committee is committed to providing educational
opportunities to the MCAA membership on how to use
the WebLEM and the information contained in it
appropriately.
The Committee shall have representation from all
geographical areas of the Country as well as
representation from all disciplines within the plumbing
and piping construction industry.

What the WebLEM Committee

Does
Reviews and updates the information in
the Labor Estimating Manual (LEM) on an
ongoing basis.
We meet two times a year to review
homework and publish new and corrected
labor units.
The Committee makes decisions on what
items should be included in the LEM.
The Committee members calculate the
labor units for the LEM using empirical
formulas developed and proven out over
many years to be accurate and consistent.
Members of the Committee represent all
areas of our industry such as commercial,
industrial, plumbing, HVAC piping,
industrial piping, etc.
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What is the WebLEM?

The MCAA web based Labor Estimating
Manual contains labor units for a vast
variety of activities related to the
mechanical construction industry specific
to piping and plumbing trades.
It is not an estimating system, rather a
database of labor units proven to be the
most accurate and complete collection in
the world for our industry.
In the past, the LEM Committee provided
updates on a yearly basis. Those updates
consisted of new information as well as
revisions to existing information. However
now, updates to the WebLEM occur on a
more frequent basis.

WebLEMs Key Benefits

All information in the WebLEM is fully
available to any subscriber from any
computer with internet access.
Much faster to locate information than
former formats and includes complete
search capabilities.
Updates from the LEM Committee are
made real time giving subscribers instant
access to new and updated information.
All data tables are downloadable in MS
Excel or CSV formats for local use.
All subscribers are notified automatically
via email anytime a change is made to
data in the WebLEM. Those emails contain
links directly to the specific tables and the
data points changed will be highlighted for
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the next 12 months.

WebLEM Access
All MCAA Member Companies receive full
access to the WebLEM free of charge as a
membership benefit.
Each Company has been given a username
and password for access. They have also
been given a username and password for
Company Contact user access.
The Company Contact is responsible for
keeping the company profile information
up to date in the WebLEM. This individual
will also receive the update emails.
The WebLEM will automatically change
passwords for all users on a set basis for
security reasons. New passwords will be
emailed to the Company Contact, who in
turn will distribute to all users within your
Company.
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Accessing WebLEM
Website Address
www.weblem.org
www.mcaa.org

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WebLEM Home Page

A short Flash Demo is provided for a quick
4 minute overview of the WebLEMs basic
use.
In addition, theres a pdf file located in the
Help menu that can be downloaded or
printed. It also has basic instructions on
the WebLEMs use.
User profile information can be updated
from the link in the Login box.
There are several links to more
information on MCAAs website as well as
email interfaces you can use to submit
questions electronically.
There are also Recent Updates, My
Bookmarks, and Recently Viewed links
located on the
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WebLEM Data Tree

All data is laid out in a tree structure, and is
generally in alphabetical order.
Folder names are always in black font. Data
tables and files that can be viewed are always
in blue font.
Once a table is chosen, the font size can be
modified if you would like it to appear larger
or smaller by clicking on the + or button on
the top of every table.
Any data points that have been modified
within the past 12 months will show up
highlighted in yellow.
A paperclip symbol at the top of a column or
above a data point indicates there is a file
attached that can be viewed by clicking it.
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WebLEM Data Tree

A breadcrumb is listed at the top of the
page when you are viewing a table. An
example of such is
LEM Data->Fittings->Carbon Steel (Forged)>Buttweld. You can click any part of the
breadcrumb to go back to that portion of the
data tree.
Notes or diagrams pertaining to tables will be
located at the bottom of the webpage after all
tables are displayed. It is very important to
read the notes associated with each table.
On long and/or wide tables, column and row
headings are automatically repeated to keep
the user from having to scroll to find the
labels.
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Searching, Downloading,
Printing
A search box is always present in the
upper right corner of the webpage. Even
most mis-spellings and synonyms are
accounted for. Search Tips is a link to
some directions on how to use the search
functionality.
You can always go back and view your last
search results by clicking on the Search
Results menu located on the top toolbar.
This function will display the last search
performed.
All data tables can be downloaded in
either Excel or CSV formats by clicking on
the link in the upper right part of the
page.
All tables can be printed by clicking on the
print link. Tables are automatically broken

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WebLEM Administrative
Capabilities

LEM Committee updates are made in real

time.
Each change to data is logged
automatically. Change logs are emailed to
subscribers as frequently as needed.
Reports can be generated to show most
frequent searches, mis-spellings, etc. As a
result, the database can be updated
accordingly to make access easier for the
subscribers.
Pictures, pdf files and notes can be
attached to any data point, column
heading or table. Other pieces of
information such as administrative notes
and important reference documents can
also be attached to any data point for
reference by the Committee.
The history of all changes made to every
data point in the entire database is

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Organization of the
WebLEM

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Organization of the
WebLEM

Acknowledgment
WebLEM Committee Members
Introduction
Proper Use Of the WebLEM
Copyright
Basic Assumptions
OPUS
Branch Connections
Cleanroom Procedures
Computerized Estimating
Correction Factors
Excavation & Backfill
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Organization of the
WebLEM
Fittings

Flanges
Flange, Orifice
Hangers, Sleeves & Inserts
HVAC Equipment
HVAC Hook-Ups
HVAC Specialties
Instrumentation
Misc Labor Operations
Nipples
Pipe
Plumbing Equipment
Plumbing Fixtures
Plumbing Hook-Ups

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Organization of the
WebLEM
Pipe

Plumbing Equipment
Plumbing Fixtures
Plumbing Hook-Ups
Plumbing Specialties
Refrigeration Equipment
Refrigeration Specialties
Treatment Plant Equipment
Valves
Appendix
Glossary and Abbreviations
Joint Method

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Development of the LEM

Labor Estimating
Manual

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History of LEM
Created in 1968. Published in 1971.
Developed by a committee of contractors /
prepared from contractors point of view
Labor units were developed from a
formula, which are reviewed and proven
over time
The formula was developed to obtain
consistency
LEM committee is a Source for contractors
questions and comments on labor manhours
Provides a consistent and methodical
method of estimating

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Definition of a Labor Unit

An Expression in Terms of Man-Hours
Required to Install a Unit of Material
(i.e., Foot of Pipe), an Individual Item
(i.e., Fitting or Valve), a Specialty Item
or a Piece of Equipment.

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Elements of a Labor Unit

Material Handling
Receiving, Unloading, Stockpiling,
Distributing
Joining
Type Of Connection, Quantity Of Joints,
Type Of Material
Normal Pressure Testing
Installation/Erecting
Weight (Which Relates To The Handling)
Size (Diameter Of Pipe, Fitting / Etc.)
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Basic Assumptions
What are the Basic
Assumptions of your
Estimating System?

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Basic Assumptions
Labor Unit For
4 Carbon Steel Std. Wt.
Buttweld Long Radius 900 Elbow

Basic

WebLEM= 4.84 Hrs

Means = 4.65 Hrs
PHCC = 3.66 Hrs
s
n
o
ti
p
m
u
s
As

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Basic Assumptions
Labor Unit For
4 Carbon Steel Std. Wt.
Buttweld 900 Elbow

Basic
Assumptions

Correction Factors Shall Be Applied For Labor

Conditions Outside The Box As Defined By The
Basic Assumptions.

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Basic Assumptions
The Basic Assumptions
Represent the Average Working
Conditions Assumed to Exist at
the Work Site. Thus, the User of
the Manual Must Understand
What Constitutes Average
Working Conditions and Must
Be Able to Anticipate Changes to
These Conditions When
Preparing an Actual Estimate.
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Basic Assumptions
The Following Represents Average Working
Conditions:
A Working Location
B Stockpiling
C Installation / Surface Conditions
D Worker Qualification & Productivity
E Materials Handling
1 Inside
a 0-250 lbs.
b 251-1,000 lbs.
c 1,001 - 10,000 lbs.
2 Outside / Wide Open Spaces
a Directly From Delivery Truck
b Use of Power Equipment
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Basic Assumptions
F

Special Considerations
1
2
4
5
6
7

Joint Labor (Female vs. Male)

Spooled Pieces (Hunt & Peck)
Nut, Bolt and Gasket Sets
Gasketed Fittings
Back to Back Fittings
Footnotes

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Correction Factors
What is the Difference Between a
Correction Factor and a Performance
Factor?

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What Items Affect a Jobs

Productivity?

Geography
Labor Availability
Logistics of Job Site
Customer Requirements / Relations
Adverse Temperature or Weather
Schedule / Crew Size
Design Completeness / Complexity of Job
Stacking of Trades
Morale and Attitude
Reassignment of Manpower
Crew Size Inefficiency
Dilution of Supervision
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What Items Affect a Jobs

Productivity?

Learning Curve
Fatigue / Overtime
Weekly Jobsite Meeting
Multitude Of Change Orders
High Absenteeism / Turnover
Inadequate Lighting
Material Shortages
Jurisdictional Disputes
High Accident Rate
Availability of Skilled Labor
Uncontrolled Breaks / Lunches, Early
Starts / Quits
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What Items Affect a Companys

Productivity?
Project Management System
Preplanning Process / Handoff / Post-Job
Review
Safety Policies of Your Company
Company Expertise
Condition of Tools - Age
Company Culture - Motivation Level
Geography
Usage of Fabshop
Training

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Labor Tables and Factoring

Labor is to be factored for abnormal
installation conditions, for example:
Hazardous working conditions
Weather
Working heights above and below grade
Shop pre-fabrication
Repetitive installations

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Correction Factors
Review the WebLEM Corrections Factors

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Overtime Impact on
Productivity

Review the WebLEM Table For

Calculation Of Premium Time &
Inefficiency On Overtime Work
Overtime Multiplier (1-1/2 Time)
Overtime Multiplier (Double Time)

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Overtime Impact on
Productivity
SCHEDULE OF EFFICIENCY LOSS FOR
VARIOUS LENGTHS OF WORK WEEKS

LOSS IN % OF ALL HOURS WORKED

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10

0
5-8's

5-9's

5-10's

5-11's 5-12's

6-8's

6-9's

6'10's

6-11's 6-12's

7-8's

7-9's

7-10's

7-11's 7-12's

# OF DAYS/# OF HOURS WORKED EACH DAY

NOTE: This chart was compiled from statistics contained in Dept. of Labor Bulletin
No. 917 entitled Hours of Work and Output.

8's

9's

10's

11's

12's

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Overtime Impact on
Productivity

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Overtime Impact on
Productivity

CUMULATIVE EFFECT OF OVERTIME ON PRODUCTIVITY

50 AND 60 HOUR WORK WEEKS

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Calculating Your Companys

Performance Factor
Dual Estimates
Comparison to Completed Projects
Using Estimating Software with Multiple
Labor Table Capability

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Whats Next for the WebLEM?

In May of 2011, the WebLEM Committee
proposed to the MCAA Board of Directors
that we should develop and publish an
entirely new method of estimating
mechanical piping systems and
components that we termed the Joint
Method. The MCAA Board of Directors
approved the proposal and since then our
committee has been working on this new
development.
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What is the Joint Method?

The joint method will consist of counting
and laboring the number of joints in a
system, and adding labor of the
installation of items and assemblies based
on the equivalent length of the item or
assembly.

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Why the Joint Method vs. the

Fitting Method?
The joint method better supports the ability
of contractors to identify labor associated
with the different labor components of
fabrication and installation than the fitting
method.
See example to explain better.
Example Drawing Spool
Example Take-Off Presentation
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