The short version
- Six lines: frame metal, infill, slide kit, automation, finish, labour.
- Metal is rarely the biggest cost. Labour and automation usually are.
- Price the metal off a cut list, not a guess. Read lengths, multiply by rate.
- Charge labour at a shop rate, separately. Do not hide it inside the metal markup.
- Always add a consumables line and a freight line. They are always forgotten.
- Quote firm off a drawing, and list your exclusions so a variation is a calm conversation.
Where the money actually is
The mistake that costs shops money is quoting metal and forgetting the rest. On a 4 m automated cantilever gate, the aluminium and infill together are often only a quarter to a third of the price. The slide kit, the motor and safety gear, the finish, and the hours to build and install carry the bulk.
| Line | What it covers | Rough share |
|---|---|---|
| Frame metal | Aluminium box section + cantilever rail, off the cut list | 15–25% |
| Infill | Battens, slats, or louvres, plus off-cut waste | 8–15% |
| Slide kit | Cantilever rollers, end stops, catcher bracket, guide | 8–15% |
| Automation | Motor, rack, receiver, photocells, safety edge | 15–30% |
| Finish | Powder coat to AS 3715 or anodising to AS 1231 | 8–15% |
| Labour | Cut, weld, assemble, coat prep, install, commission | 25–40% |
Those shares are a guide, not gospel. A manual gate drops the automation line and the percentages shift. A 6 m span lifts the metal and the labour. The point is to see all six lines before you name a price.
1. Frame metal, off the cut list
A sliding gate leaf is wider than the opening. It carries an overlap past the post, and a cantilever gate adds a counterbalance tail behind the opening, often 40 to 50 percent of the span. So a 4 m opening can mean a 6 m gate leaf. Price the metal off the real lengths, not the opening width.
Read every member off the cut list, round each up to the stock length you will actually buy, and price at your supplier rate plus your handling markup. This is where a drawing pays for itself: the lengths are already worked out, so quoting the metal is arithmetic, not a sketch on the back of a docket.
2. Infill
Battens, slats, or louvres, costed the same way: total run length off the cut list, plus a waste allowance for the off-cuts you cannot avoid (5 to 10 percent is sensible). A close batten gate uses a surprising amount of aluminium once you add up every bar, so count it from the list rather than eyeballing it.
3. The slide kit
For a cantilever gate this is the cantilever rail, the roller carriages, the end stops, the catcher bracket, and the top guide. For a ground-tracked gate it is the track, the wheels, and the guide rollers. Price the kit to the span, because the rollers and rail step up as the gate gets heavier. See the cantilever vs tracked guide if you have not picked yet.
4. Automation
If the gate is automated, the motorand its gear is a line on its own: the operator sized to the gate weight, the rack, the receiver and remotes, the photocells, and a safety edge. This is also a safety line, not just a cost line, so do not trim it to win a job. Note that power to the motor location is usually the customer’s electrician, and put that in your exclusions.
5. Finish
Powder coatto AS 3715 is priced by surface area and colour, anodising to AS 1231 by area and finish grade. Get the coater’s price against the real area, not a flat add-on. A big slatted gate has more surface than it looks, and a non-standard colour carries a premium. Quote the colour you specified, not the cheapest one.
6. Labour, at a shop rate
This is where your profit lives, so price it openly. Estimate hours by stage: cut and prep, weld the frame, fit the infill, hang and align the rollers, prep for coating, then the site work to set posts, hang, wire, and commission. A plain 4 m cantilever gate is often 8 to 16 shop hours plus 2 to 4 on site. Multiply by your real shop rate, the one that covers wages, the shed, the machines, and your time.
Then add consumables (welding wire, discs, fixings), freight, and the measure-up visit as their own lines. Finally apply your margin to the lot. A 15 to 40 percent material markup plus an honest shop rate is a normal shape for a fabrication quote.
Put it together: the 4 m gate
Walk the lines once. Metal off the cut list at supplier price plus markup. Infill plus 8 percent waste. Cantilever kit sized to the span. Motor, rack, photocells, and edge. Powder coat by area in the specified colour. Labour at, say, 12 shop hours plus 3 on site, times your rate. Add consumables, freight, and the site visit. Total it, apply margin, and you have a firm price you can defend line by line. The drawing and cut list do the slow half for you, so the quote takes minutes, not an afternoon.
Get the cut list that prices the quote
Type the opening, height, and style. CAD60 draws the gate and lists every member and length, so the metal and infill lines price themselves. Start with a sliding gate:
Browse the full catalogueQuestions people ask
How do you quote a sliding gate?
Break it into six lines: frame metal, infill, the slide kit (track or cantilever rollers), automation, finish, and labour. Cost each from the cut list and your supplier prices, add consumables, multiply your labour hours by your shop rate, then apply your margin. Quote the lines you can defend, not a number you pulled from the air.
What is the biggest cost in a sliding gate?
Usually labour and automation, not the metal. On a 4 m automated gate the aluminium and infill might be 25 to 35 percent of the price. The cantilever kit, the motor and safety gear, the finish, and the hours to build, coat, and install carry the rest. Quoting metal only is how shops lose money.
How long does it take to build a sliding gate?
A plain 4 m cantilever gate is often 8 to 16 hours in the shop: cut and prep, weld the frame, fit the infill, hang and align the rollers, and prep for coating. Add 2 to 4 hours on site to set posts, hang, wire the motor, and commission. Automation and a long span push both numbers up.
How much should I mark up materials?
Most fabrication shops run a material markup of 15 to 40 percent on top of the supplier price, then charge labour separately at a shop rate. The markup covers handling, waste, freight, and the off-cuts a cut list cannot avoid. The shop rate is where your real profit lives, so do not bury labour inside the metal.
Should I quote a fixed price or a range?
Fixed, once you have measured and have a drawing. A range invites the customer to remember the bottom of it. Quote a firm number off a cut list and a finish callout, and list what is excluded (site works, power to the motor, concrete for posts) so a variation is a conversation, not a fight.
Does a drawing help me quote faster?
A lot. A dimensioned drawing with a cut list turns a guess into arithmetic. You read the member lengths straight off the list, price them, and you are most of the way to a quote. CAD60 builds the drawing and the cut list from your numbers, so the slow part (working out what to buy) is already done.
What do people forget to include?
Consumables, freight, coating, and the site visit. Welding wire, cutting discs, fixings, and the trip to measure all cost money and all get left off. So does the gap between supplier price and what lands on your floor. Put a consumables line and a freight line on every quote so they are never forgotten.