Factors which affect the cost of shrink wrap installation
What are the dimensions of the area to be shrink wrapped?
A large area of scaffolding to be covered in shrink wrap sheeting will usually attract a lower square meter rate / price than a small area. This is because there are extra efficiencies and once on a large job, the work process becomes faster.
What is a large area? Well, for us anything over 1000 square metres would be considered a large area.
For a job less than 100 square metres, a per metre rate becomes impossible to maintain. For that reason, for a scaffolding encapsulation less than 100 square metres we would charge a day rate of £495/man day rate (minimum of two men).
What is the purpose of the proposed shrink wrap?
The purpose of the scaffold encapsulation can also make a difference. Is it for weather protection, environmental containment or for the appearance of the sheeting. Although the grade of material we use is the same, a scaffolding project which requires fully encapsulating for the environmental containment of shot blasting, will need to be completely sealed. This ‘final seal’ can involve the installation of a skirt around the bottom of a project to the floor, it may involve sheeting up to and sealing against a wall. This last but essential stage can be time consuming.
Is a shrink wrapped temporary roof part of the scope of works?
To encapsulate the vertical sides of scaffolding (facades), 7m wide sheets of sheet are hung, clipped, welded. Temporary shrink wrapped roofs are much slower to install than facades. Moving around the roof is slower, safety lines. The roof sheeting needs battening (normally at 2 metre intervals).
Roof sheeting is also much more susceptable to delays caused by bad weather. To create an effective joint between two sections of shrink wrap sheeting, the joint must be dry. To shrink properly, wind speeds must be low.
What material will be used?
Flame retardant shrink wrap is standard on most construction sites but in the UK there are two standards. The essential level is EN13501. However, the LPS scheme is much more thorough. However, this scheme is more expensive to manage and so this sheeting has a cost premium.
Where is the job to take place?
At Rhino Shrink Wrap we are be located in the middle of the UK (between Birmingham and Manchester) which means that we can reach most projects within 3 hours. However, for very distant jobs, then the extra travelling time and accommodation will be factored into the cost. However, we don’t necessarily charge more than £6 per square metre if accommodation is required.
However, we find that it is the nature of the jobs that make more difference.
Working in London can be costly – parking / congestion zone – getting to the site
As an extreme article, we have worked on The Shetlands and this required flights and / or an overnight ferry!
How is the work to be accessed?
Most shrink wrap jobs are installed from a fully boarded and complete / signed off working scaffolding lift. Sometimes however, typically during the installation of temporary partitions or temporary exterior building screens there is no scaffolding structure. In this case it is possible to work from a scissor lift or cherry picker but this may slow the process down.
Is the work to take place indoors or outdoors?
Scaffold shrink wrapping indoors will often be less costly than shrink wrapping outdoors. Although we use the same grade of scaffold wrap for indoor or outdoor work (300 microns thick, flame retardant to EN13501), the main reason for indoor work being cheaper this is because the sheeting will not be exposed to wind loadings, the teams can do longer drops. On an external scaffolding, the largest drop is normally 6 metres (3 scaffolding lifts) although in some cases this may be reduced to 4 metres (2 scaffolding lifts).
Is it day work or will working at night be required?
Employees on night work are generally paid extra…..
What is the nature of the site
The scaffold shrink wrap price will be affected by the type of site. On a large construction site, such as a bridge, it can take a significant time for the teams to reach the working area. A large site may require cranes to get the materials to the work area, there may be a booking in procedure.
What are the costs of offering a scaffold shrink wrap service ‘in house’?
If you are looking to carry out the work yourself then the price of fitting scaffold shrink wrap will depend on the following;
The cost of the scaffold shrink wrap rolls
The ‘signature’ roll size for scaffold wrapping is the Rhino Verisafe® 7 metre wide x 15 metre long scaffold shrink wrap roll. This is 300 microns thick and flame retardant to EN13501. These rolls cost £186 each or £145 in pallet quantity. Although each roll contains 105 square metres of scaffold shrinkwrap film, we normally reckon on getting around 90 square metres after allowing for overlaps and any offcuts.
