Case Study — Commercial/Lab
Office Tenant Improvement with Lab Space — San Diego, CA
Project Overview
Tenant improvement electrical estimate for a 45,000 sq ft Class A office with 15,000 sq ft of CLIA-certified lab space. The project occupied 2 floors of an existing 12-story building in the Sorrento Mesa area. Scope included: new 1600A service from SDGE, (6) 277/480V panelboards, (4) 225kVA step-down transformers, full LED lighting with Title 24 compliant daylight harvesting and vacancy sensing, lab-grade isolated power systems, emergency generator connection with automatic transfer, fire alarm system tie-in to existing building system, complete structured cabling infrastructure (Cat 6A), and specialized lab equipment power conditioning.
CSI MasterFormat Divisions Covered
26 05 00, 26 05 13, 26 05 33, 26 08 00, 26 09 23, 26 09 63, 26 22 00, 26 24 00, 26 27 26, 26 51 00, 26 52 00, 27 15 00, 28 31 00
Estimating Challenges
- Title 24 2022 energy code compliance required lighting power density of 0.60 W/sq ft or less for office and 0.80 W/sq ft for lab — the initial design was at 0.72 and 0.95 respectively, requiring fixture substitution and control zone reconfiguration
- Lab equipment electrical load diversity was impossible to verify because 60% of the lab equipment had not been selected — the takeoff included provisional load banks with allowance for future connection
- The existing building's 480V service had only 200A of spare capacity — the new tenant space required 1600A, requiring a new service tap and transformer vault installation in the parking garage that triggered a structural review
- SDGE required a 16-week lead for transformer and service point installation but the tenant lease commenced at week 12 — temporary construction power at ($22,000) was needed for the first month of fit-out
Change Order Prevention
During the takeoff review process, our team identified the following scope gaps that would have become change orders if not caught at the estimating stage:
- Identified that (3) of the (4) lab fume hoods required emergency power per NFPA 45 but only (1) was shown on the emergency distribution panel — ($14,000)
- Caught Title 24 non-compliance on the open office lighting zones — the design showed 4 zones per floor but the standard required 1 zone per 1,000 sq ft (22 zones per floor) — control system upgrade required ($28,000)
- Flagged the lab sink GFCI requirements — the plans showed standard receptacles near sinks in 6 locations, code required GFCI per NEC 210.8 — ($6,000)
Labor Forecasting
Applied NECA MLU tenant improvement factors with 15% premium for after-hours work (the building had strict 7 AM-6 PM work hour restrictions for core hours). San Diego IBEW LU 569 rates. Lab space work required additional coordination with casework and plumbing trades — added 10% to the lab area labor for multi-trade sequencing. The parking garage transformer vault work required a structural engineer and fire-rated construction — budgeted as separate line item.
Material Escalation Strategy
No significant material escalation concerns on this project — the 14-month duration was within standard pricing windows. The main risk was the 16-week SDGE transformer lead time — ordered immediately after award at a firm price. The lighting control system (Lutron) was quoted with 90-day price protection. Lab equipment isolation transformers were standard items with 4-week lead time.
Budget Comparison
| Line Item | Initial Estimate | Final Bid | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service & Distribution | $380,000 | $412,000 | +8.4% |
| Lighting & Controls | $312,000 | $341,000 | +9.3% |
| Lab Power Systems | $268,000 | $296,000 | +10.4% |
| Fire Alarm & Life Safety | $86,000 | $92,000 | +7.0% |
| Data & Structured Cabling | $124,000 | $131,000 | +5.6% |
| Labor | $630,000 | $678,000 | +7.6% |
| Total | $1,720,000 | $1,840,000 | +7.0% |
Risk Mitigation
Recommended the tenant engage a lab equipment coordinator to finalize equipment selections before the electrical rough-in deadline. Also advised pre-approving the lighting control system alternative (Lutron to Leviton) that saved $18,000 while maintaining Title 24 compliance. The SDGE service coordination was started before the lease was signed to avoid the 16-week timeline conflict — this decision alone prevented a 5-week schedule delay.
Result
Project awarded at $1.84M. Our estimate's early identification of the Title 24 lighting control zone deficiency saved the owner $28,000 in potential post-installation rework. The tenant completed the fit-out on schedule and the lab achieved CLIA certification on the first inspection. The service coordination started before lease commencement was credited by the GC as the critical path item that kept the project on schedule.