Commercial electricians come in several types. If you own a commercial property, you will want to have a good working relationship with a commercial electrician that you know and trust. This will enable you to avoid costly setup expenses such as going over building plans. Every time you hire a new electrician, you need to go over the details of the building with him and cover the expense of a walk-through. You may even have to schedule a new inspection each time. But if you retain one contractor who you know and use each time, you can save time and money on setup and on the details.
A good commercial electrician will have several years’ experience in your area and know the local codes. You will want someone with a good reputation who can understand the complexities of your building area. Whether you are creating a new building or working with an existing one, each project has its own details. A sharp electrician will be able to keep track of those things while working with the difficult wire that commercial electricity requires.
You will probably have to write purchase orders for your commercial electrician to work with if you have a large project. While some electricians keep small amounts of wire and housing, for many projects you will need to order the materials for them. It’s a good idea to get bulk pricing if you can, because commercial electric wire can add up. Plan on several hundred to several thousand dollars in wire and housing, depending on how large your building is. It’s a good idea to have your materials ordered well in advance so that your electrician doesn’t have to rush order or buy pieces individually. These things can add to the cost of the full order, so buy early and in bulk.
The other thing you will need to do with your commercial electrician is share building plans and project updates. You may be working through a general contractor or you may just be working with your electrician, but either way you will need an established contact point so that you know who you can get updates from. All kinds of things can happen on buildings under construction, and many little hiccups can be avoided with a quick phone call. While communication can’t fix everything, especially the complexities of delivery times, it will go a long way toward making sure that everyone knows how much is left on the project.
Building plans are absolutely essential to working with your electrician. He needs to know where the wires and breakers are, but he also needs to be able to find his way around the building and properly label everything. Make sure that you bring him plans with order histories of any construction that took place on the property and any previous wiring updates. This way he can correctly measure wire and make sure that you have the right housings and breakers for your building code.