Questions contractors ask.

We become the team behind your contracting business. Three engines cover it: Revenue (bids, proposals, lead generation, sales), Growth (website, marketing, campaigns, brand), and Operations (systems, automation, hiring, admin). Every client also gets the same Foundation of account management, portal, dashboards, and reporting.

Yes, construction is our focus. We specialize in general contractors and subcontractors across trades. We understand plan sets, ITBs, RFQs, and the GC/sub relationship. If you need support outside construction, talk to us — but our systems are built for this trade.

BidEngine is our AI procurement platform built for contractors. It reads RFPs, RFQs, IFBs, ITBs, plan sets, and vendor applications, identifies the requirements, checks eligibility and compliance, scores win probability, and builds a submission plan — backed by our proposal team.

No. Start with one engine. Add the second or third when the business is ready. Add-on services are flat rate and can be bolted on at any time.

By level of support rather than by department: Essential is one engine, Professional is two, Enterprise is your full outsourced preconstruction and back-office team. We quote your number on the growth call once we understand the scope.

We learn your trade, your goals, and your bottlenecks, then map the first 30 days around the work that moves revenue fastest.

Yes — that's the entire point. Most of our clients are GCs and subs running crews and estimating bids. We educate you on what we're doing and then perform the work on your behalf as your managed team.

No. Whether you're a young subcontracting shop or an established GC that's never needed to market before, we meet you where you are. We teach as we go and execute everything for you.

Weekly meetings with a dedicated account manager, plus async updates in between. You always know what's being worked on and what GCs we're building relationships with.

No. SMC Agency works with general contractors and subcontractors across every trade — electrical, mechanical, concrete, roofing, and beyond.

Most agencies advise and hand you a deck. We actually do the work. Campaigns, GC relationships, branding, websites, posts, follow-ups — our team executes so you can focus on the jobsite.

Five instant employees: Sales, GC & Owner Relationships, Marketing, Customer Service and Advisory — plus access to our technology, tools, software and team.

Yes. Although NAICS officially replaced SIC in 1997, SIC codes are still required by Dun & Bradstreet (D&B), most commercial banks for credit underwriting, many state procurement portals, insurance carriers for class-rating, and the SEC's EDGAR system. Construction contractors typically need both their SIC and NAICS codes on file.

It depends on the building type. Single-family residential GCs use SIC 1521; multi-family/hotel GCs use 1522; industrial/warehouse GCs use 1541; and commercial/institutional GCs use 1542. Heavy/highway is in Major Group 16, and specialty trades are in Major Group 17.

Electrical contractors use SIC 1731 (Electrical Work), which covers wiring, low-voltage, fire alarm, security, and telecom installation. The NAICS equivalent is 238210 — Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors.

Plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors all share SIC 1711. NAICS splits these out — plumbing/HVAC/mechanical typically falls under 238220.

Look up your primary business activity in the OSHA SIC Manual or the U.S. Census Bureau's classification tools. For construction, the table on this page covers every 4-digit code in Major Groups 15, 16, and 17. Pick the code that best matches your primary revenue source.

Baseline for most prime contracts: $1M/$2M CGL with per-project aggregate, products-completed operations, additional insured endorsements (CG 20 10 + CG 20 37); $1M commercial auto; statutory WC with $1M employer's liability; $5M umbrella; waiver of subrogation. Add pollution (CPL) if you disturb soil or do demo/abatement, and professional liability for design-build.

Insurance protects you against your own losses (you pay the premium, you collect on the claim). A surety bond protects a third party (the obligee) against your failure to perform (you pay the premium, but the obligee collects if you default — and the surety then comes after you for reimbursement under the indemnity agreement).

Not by law. Whether one is required depends entirely on the contract. Most private commercial owners require performance + payment bonds at 100% of contract for projects above a threshold (often $500K–$2M). Subs may be bonded back by the GC under similar thresholds.

Below 1.00 is below industry average — anything below 0.85 is excellent and a strong prequalification advantage. Above 1.00 means worse-than-average losses; most major GCs use 1.00 as a hard cap on subcontractor prequalification.

Typical bond premium runs 0.5%–3.0% of contract value depending on contractor financial strength, project size, and bond type. Standard-market contractors with strong financials get rates around 0.6%–1.2%. SBA-supported programs and contract surety bonds for newer contractors run 2.0%–3.0%.

A 1931 federal law requiring contractors and subcontractors on federally funded or federally assisted construction projects over $2,000 to pay laborers and mechanics no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for similar projects in the area. Administered by the Department of Labor Wage & Hour Division.

When the project is federally funded above $2,000 (Davis-Bacon), federally assisted under one of 70+ Davis-Bacon Related Acts (HUD, DOT, EPA, FAA, etc.), or covered by a state 'little Davis-Bacon' prevailing wage law. About 30 states have their own prevailing wage rules for state-funded work.

A DOL-issued schedule listing the minimum hourly wage and fringe benefit rate for every construction classification in a specific county and construction type (Building, Residential, Highway, Heavy). It must be incorporated into the contract and posted at the job site. Find current WDs at SAM.gov (formerly WDOL.gov).

Weekly form (Federal: WH-347) that each contractor and subcontractor must submit listing every worker on the federally-funded project, their classification, hours, wages, fringe payments, and deductions. Signed under penalty of perjury. False certification is a federal crime.

No. Fringes can be paid as cash on the paycheck OR contributed to bona fide fringe benefit plans (health, pension, vacation, apprenticeship). Most contractors split — pay health/pension to the plan, pay the residual as cash. Either way, the total wage + fringe must equal or exceed the WD rate.

DOL determines prevailing wage either from the union collective bargaining agreement rate (when a single CBA covers ≥50% of workers in the classification in the area) or from a WHD wage survey of recent projects. CBA rates are typically higher; survey rates more reflective of local non-union market.

BuildingConnected (owned by Autodesk) is a preconstruction platform that helps general contractors invite subs to bid and helps subcontractors track invitations to bid (ITBs). It's primarily a bid invitation network and bid management workflow — it does not estimate, take off quantities, or write proposals for you.

BuildingConnected is a manual bid tracking platform — you still read the plans, do the takeoffs, price the scope, and write the proposal yourself. BidEngine is automated bid analysis — upload the PDF plans and specs and AI extracts scope, quantities, compliance flags, and produces a starting estimate and proposal in minutes.

Yes. Many subcontractors receive ITBs through BuildingConnected and then run those plan sets through BidEngine to analyze them and produce the bid. BidEngine also offers Growth and Scale plans where we actively find ITBs and solicitations for managed clients, plus a SaaS growth product for self-service lead generation — so we cover the invitation pipeline too.

BuildingConnected pricing is custom and typically quoted per-seat per-year (often $1,500–$3,000+/seat/year for the paid Pro tier; the basic Bid Board is free for subs). BidEngine plans start at a flat platform fee with 1 full seat plus unlimited read-only viewers — see our pricing page for current tiers.

The slowest steps in any commercial bid are reading the plan set, doing the takeoff, and writing the scope narrative for the proposal. Automating those three with AI plan analysis is the single biggest lever — it's why contractors switch from manual platforms to BidEngine for the analysis layer.

Product Service Code — a 4-character code published by GSA that describes WHAT the government is buying. Construction is in the Y group (new construction) and Z group (maintenance, repair, alteration). PSC codes are paired with NAICS codes on virtually every federal solicitation; the contracting officer uses PSC to define the requirement and NAICS to set the size standard.

PSC describes what's being bought (the product or service). NAICS describes who provides it (the industry). A solicitation for VA hospital roof replacement might use PSC Z2DA (Repair of Hospitals) and NAICS 238160 (Roofing Contractors), with the SBA size standard from the NAICS code determining small-business eligibility.

Go to SAM.gov, get a Login.gov account, request a UEI (Unique Entity Identifier), then complete the entity registration. You'll need your EIN, banking info for EFT, NAICS codes (use our NAICS reference), business size by NAICS, reps and certs, and any small-business socioeconomic certifications. Standard registration takes 7–10 business days.

Yes. SAM.gov registration is free directly through sam.gov. Third-party services that charge $500–$1,500 are not affiliated with the federal government — you do not need them. The only legitimate gov registration is at sam.gov.

Annually. Entity registration expires 365 days after the last update. Renew early — an expired registration disqualifies you from award even if you're the apparent low bidder. Set a calendar reminder 60 days before expiration.

SBA size standards by NAICS code determine whether your firm qualifies as a small business for set-asides. Most construction NAICS codes use a revenue standard ($19M–$45M average annual receipts over the last 5 fiscal years). See our NAICS reference for the standard tied to each code.

Most states regulate contractors at the state level (CA, FL, NV, AZ, NC, TN, VA, OR, WA, LA, MS, AL, AK, HI, MN, MD, NJ, NM, ND, RI, SC, UT, WV, plus DC). Others (CO, IL, IN, KS, KY, ME, MO, MT, NH, NY, OH, OK, PA, SD, TX, WY) leave general contracting to municipalities, but still license trades (electrical, plumbing, HVAC) at the state level.

Thresholds vary widely. California requires a CSLB license for any job $500+. Tennessee requires a state license at $25,000+. North Carolina at $40,000+. Louisiana at $50,000+ commercial. Always check the state board directly — thresholds change and local jurisdictions can be stricter than the state floor.

Yes — every state where you contract requires its own license. Some states have reciprocity agreements (LA/AL/MS/AR/GA/SC/TN/NC for trade exams), but most require separate application, bond, and proof of experience.

Used in Mississippi, Florida, and a few others — it's an entity-level credential that lets your company bid public-works projects above a threshold. Different from the qualifying-agent license held by an individual.

Most state-licensed jurisdictions require a contractor surety bond ($1,000–$25,000 typical for residential, higher for commercial). Some (NC, LA, MS, TN) require a financial statement / net-worth proof instead. Bond amount sometimes scales with project size or license class.

Almost always, yes. A state contractor license authorizes you to perform the work; a city/county business license authorizes you to operate as a business within that jurisdiction. They're separate. Many cities also require a contractor registration in addition to the business license.

Authority Having Jurisdiction. The local code official who reviews plans, issues permits, performs inspections, and signs off the certificate of occupancy. Always confirm requirements directly with the AHJ — interpretation of model codes (IBC, IRC, NEC) varies and amendments are common.

No. The permit must be pulled by the licensed contractor performing the work, or by the homeowner if owner-builder rules allow. Pulling permits for an unlicensed contractor is illegal in most states and exposes you to civil and criminal liability.

Trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) in most metros are over-the-counter or same-day. Residential building permits run 1–4 weeks. Commercial permits run 4–12 weeks for first review, longer with revisions. Many cities offer express/expedited review for an additional fee.

Stop-work orders, double or triple permit fees, fines, mandatory uncovering of completed work for inspection, voided insurance coverage, voided manufacturer warranties, and personal liability for any future defect. Resale of the property triggers disclosure of unpermitted work, which routinely kills deals.