'What does an estimator do? We try to determine the cost price based on the drawings we receive: what does it cost to make a piece of furniture?'
Jan de Groot is an estimator at Zwartwoud. What exactly does that entail, and what are his responsibilities? Jan explains.
To calculate a cost price, I request quotes from suppliers and then try to estimate the hours involved.
What does an estimator's day look like? First thing in the morning, I go through my inbox. What's come in? Are there any new quotes? I try to check the schedule. Currently, there are two of us in the department, and a lot still happens ad hoc.
I'm also currently heavily involved with the technical aspects of Proteus, the system we use. For instance, we work with Sales to determine how quotes should look and ensure proper implementation. This includes things like quote readability and aesthetic appeal. I also write as much of the quote text for Sales as possible, to reduce their workload.
Furthermore, I'm involved in reading drawings, requesting quotes, and meticulously processing everything in the system. I do this as thoroughly as possible.
'I enjoy exploring whether a piece of furniture can be made cheaper by using different materials.'
I primarily collaborate with the Sales and Work Preparation departments. I also have frequent contact with the Head of Production, or Head of Assembly. They provide me with the necessary information. I'll approach them with a drawing and ask: how long will the factory and assembly take for this? They can then help me make an estimate. I align my preliminary estimate with them and then try to write guidelines so that my work becomes increasingly systematic.
The strategic aspect lies with Sales. My role is purely for the calculation. I do enjoy contributing ideas, but Sales naturally maintains client contact and thus has insight into the specifics of the request.
I lived in Germany for several years and always worked quite far from home, meaning I had at least an hour's drive to work. That always involved a lot of commuting. Due to COVID, we somewhat turned our lives upside down and moved to the city, so we would at least live close to my wife's work. Once we settled here, I started looking for a company nearby so I could also cycle to work. I was completely fed up with the travel. It's just a waste: you burn through a few hundred euros in diesel and you also lose a lot of time!
The only difference is that after a long drive, your head is clear when you get home. Now I have a bit less time to process everything, haha. But in return, you get a lot of free time back.
So, I applied to Zwartwoud and was hired, which I'm very happy about.
I actually just fell into the estimating profession. But I think I am a typical estimator: truly detail-oriented. I want to be able to answer everything. I enjoy the calculations, the details behind them. I also like calculating competitor prices and our own to understand the margins. I'd like to pursue that for Zwartwoud as well, but that's something for the future.
I enjoy exploring whether a piece of furniture can be made cheaper by using different materials. Of course, part of that responsibility lies with the design department, but an intermediate layer of a tabletop, for example, also affects the price. Nobody sees it, but you can still do something with it to make it cheaper.
Currently, I mainly work on many pantries and cabinets. I believe there's an opportunity for us in the future to calculate these more quickly. I enjoy seeing how that can be made more efficient. The goal is to configure Proteus in such a way that we can estimate faster. It's a great challenge to explore that. Many pieces of furniture are similar, which should enable automation.
'The development of circularity significantly impacts my work, because during calculations, we deal much more with hours than with products.'
What's so great about Zwartwoud? What I enjoy most are all the different projects. One time it's a library, another time a kitchen, and then a chip shop or a bike store. It's never boring. And I think it's also a bit about the people here. I find the atmosphere very pleasant. There's pressure, we have to perform, but the interpersonal relationships are always good.
At Zwartwoud, we also work with more women than I ever have before. I have a feeling that this mix of men and women benefits the company's atmosphere. It's open and congenial. More free-thinking.
I'm very curious about what will happen with AI. I think a large part of estimating can easily be taken over by a computer. I'm very curious about where we're headed and what the role of the estimator will become. I don't think that role will disappear. Because someone still needs to purchase and someone still needs to sell, and there are several people in between, including someone who determines the cost price. That will remain.
The development of circularity significantly impacts my work, because during those calculations, we deal much more with hours than with products. Traditionally, you purchase something from a manufacturer who produces it. But if we want to apply circularity, for example, reusing furniture, we have an existing piece of furniture that might need to be disassembled and processed in a specific way. We currently have various base stations that we go through, and that's no longer the case with circularity. I still find that very challenging. There's no standard system for it.
Circularity is custom work. Everything is custom work. Nothing is standard. I find it very interesting that we're actively working on it. When you, as an estimator, hear back from a salesperson that something is too expensive, you take it personally. That's the challenge with circularity: people want to move towards it, but the human hours increase the cost price. That presents a great challenge for the coming period. But I'm convinced we'll find our way there."
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