What does an all-in rate include?

Everything the subcontractor needs to do the item: material delivered to site, labour, plant, consumables and wastage. It excludes the main contractor's profit and attendance (the mark-up for supervising the subcontractor and giving it water, power, scaffolding and access), preliminaries, and any applicable SST. Add 10% to 15% on top of these rates to get to a main contractor's tender rate.

How much reinforcement is there in a cubic metre of concrete?

It depends on the element. From recent tenders: pile caps about 70 to 80 kg/m³, columns 125 to 230 kg/m³, floor and roof beams 110 to 245 kg/m³, and ground beams anywhere from 100 kg/m³ in a house to over 300 kg/m³ in a heavily loaded warehouse. Ground slabs on BRC mesh are better thought of per square metre: A8 mesh is about 4 kg/m², A10 about 6 kg/m². These ratios are a check on a take-off, not a way to price one.

Do the concrete rates include formwork and reinforcement?

No. Concrete, formwork and reinforcement are measured and priced separately, as the Malaysian Standard Method of Measurement requires, because their quantities move independently: a thin slab has far more formwork per cubic metre of concrete than a pile cap, and a transfer beam far more steel than a lintol.

Why is piling priced per metre and per number at the same time?

Because the piling contractor's costs split that way. The pile itself is bought per metre, driving or jacking is paid per metre penetrated, but pitching each pile, each welded joint, each cut-off and each dolly is a fixed cost per pile regardless of length. Pricing it all into one metre rate hides the difference between 6 m and 30 m piles.

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All-in rates: structural works

Trade rates for the structure of a building in the Klang Valley: piling, excavation and earthwork, blinding and ground slab, ready-mixed concrete by grade, bar and mesh reinforcement, formwork and structural steel.

RINGGIT MALAYSIA · KLANG VALLEY · UPDATED SEPTEMBER 2026

Structural work is the part of a bill where the quantities are large and the rates are few, so a small error in either moves the total more than anything in the finishes. These are the rates we see on Klang Valley tenders for the standard items of an RC frame on precast piles, plus the steel portal frame of a factory or warehouse.

Concrete rates are for ready-mixed concrete placed, vibrated and cured; reinforcement is per kilogram cut, bent and fixed, mesh is per square metre laid; formwork is per square metre of surface in contact with the concrete, measured as fixed. Piling is split the way a piling subcontractor quotes it: supply per metre, pitch per pile, drive per metre, joints and cut-offs per number.

Rates are in Ringgit Malaysia for the Klang Valley and come from tenders and subcontractor quotations priced by WE Quantity Surveyor for recent projects. They are all-in rates at the trade level: material, labour, plant and wastage are included; the main contractor's profit and attendance, preliminaries (unless the page is about preliminaries) and any applicable SST are not. Where a range is shown, the low end is usually a large, simple job and the high end a small or awkward one. Use them to check a budget or a tender, not in place of a quotation for your own project.

Piling (precast RC square piles)Excavation and earthwork Substructure and ground slab Concrete (ready-mixed, placed, vibrated and cured)Reinforcement Formwork Structural steel Steel content Questions

Piling (precast RC square piles)

Piling (precast RC square piles): all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)	Notes
Mobilise and demobilise a jack-in piling rig, small residential site, including temporary platform	item	3,000 – 5,000
Mobilise and demobilise piling rig, medium project, per rigBy rig type; large sites add moving and handling between blocks	item	20,000 – 100,000	By rig type; large sites add moving and handling between blocks
Piling recordsPer pile	no.	15	Per pile
Supply 150 x 150 mm RC pile	m	34 – 40
Supply 175 x 175 mm RC pile	m	40 – 46
Supply 200 x 200 mm RC pile	m	55 – 65
Supply 250 x 250 mm RC pile	m	90 – 100
Handle and pitch pile, 150 to 250 mmBy size	no.	20 – 35	By size
Drive or jack in 150 x 150 mm pile	m	12 – 18
Drive or jack in 175 x 175 mm pile	m	8.5 – 15.0
Drive or jack in 200 x 200 mm pile	m	18
Drive or jack in 250 x 250 mm pile	m	22
Welded pile joint, 150 to 250 mmBy size	no.	25 – 40	By size
Cut off pile head, 150 to 250 mmBy size	no.	30 – 45	By size
Dolly (pile extension for driving below platform level)	no.	120
PDA (pile driving analyser) test	no.	1,200 – 2,800
Maintained load test (MLT), 150 to 250 mm pilesBy pile size	no.	7,500 – 22,500	By pile size

Excavation and earthwork

Excavation and earthwork: all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)	Notes
Excavate pits and trenches for pile caps, stumps and ground beams, not exceeding 2 m deepMachine excavation on an open site at the low end	m³	10 – 25	Machine excavation on an open site at the low end
Remove surplus excavated material from site	m³	25 – 35
Backfill and compact with excavated material	m³	18 – 22
Imported earth fill, compacted in layers	m³	25 – 30
Bulk earthwork: cut	m³	5
Bulk earthwork: fill from cut, compacted	m³	3

Substructure and ground slab

Substructure and ground slab: all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)
Lean concrete G15, 50 mm blinding	m²	15 – 22
Hardcore / crusher run, 150 mm thick, compacted	m²	12 – 18
Damp-proof membrane, polythene sheet	m²	2.5 – 5.0
Anti-termite soil treatment with warranty	m²	5 – 10
Extra over ground slab for saw-cut groove lines	m²	5
Power floating to ground slab	m²	6
Floor hardener, dry-shake	m²	8.5 – 9.0

Concrete (ready-mixed, placed, vibrated and cured)

Concrete (ready-mixed, placed, vibrated and cured): all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)
Concrete G25	m³	330 – 370
Concrete G30	m³	340 – 400
Concrete G35	m³	380 – 420

Reinforcement

Reinforcement: all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)	Notes
High-tensile bar reinforcement, all sizes, cut, bent and fixedSmall residential jobs at the high end	kg	4.5 – 5.5	Small residential jobs at the high end
Mild steel bar reinforcement (R6 links)	kg	4.5 – 5.5
BRC mesh A6 (2.22 kg/m2)	m²	16
BRC mesh A7 (3.02 kg/m2)	m²	20.6 – 22.0
BRC mesh A8 (3.95 kg/m2)	m²	21.2 – 28.0
BRC mesh A9 (4.99 kg/m2)	m²	26 – 32
BRC mesh A10 (6.16 kg/m2)	m²	38 – 40

Formwork

Formwork: all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)
Sawn formwork to sides of pile caps, stumps, columns and beams and to soffits of slabs	m²	40 – 55
Formwork to sides of ground beams, not exceeding 500 mm high	m	27.5
Formwork to sloping soffit of staircase flights (over 15 degrees)	m²	60
Formwork to raking sides of steps, 250 to 500 mm wide	m	27.5
Formwork to risers, not exceeding 250 mm high	m	13.75
Formwork to edges of slabs, not exceeding 250 mm thick	m	13.75

Structural steel

Structural steel: all-in rates, RM, Klang Valley, September 2026
Item	Unit	Rate (RM)
Structural steel portal frames, purlins, trusses and girders: supply and fabricate	kg	9.5
Connections (plates, bolts and nuts), allow about 10% of the frame weight	kg	9.5
Erection	kg	1
Primer and gloss paint to structural steel	kg	0.5 – 1.0

Reinforcement content, kg per m³ of concrete

A check on a take-off rather than a way to price one: the weight of bar reinforcement per cubic metre of concrete, element by element, from the same tenders. Heavily loaded industrial ground beams sit at the top of their range; a house at the bottom.

Bar reinforcement per m³ of concrete, from recent Klang Valley tenders
Element	kg/m³
Pile caps	70 – 80
Column stumps and columns	125 – 230
Ground beams	100 – 340
Floor and roof beams	110 – 245
Suspended slabs (bar reinforcement)	12 – 60

Questions we get asked

What does an all-in rate include?: Everything the subcontractor needs to do the item: material delivered to site, labour, plant, consumables and wastage. It excludes the main contractor's profit and attendance (the mark-up for supervising the subcontractor and giving it water, power, scaffolding and access), preliminaries, and any applicable SST. Add 10% to 15% on top of these rates to get to a main contractor's tender rate.
How much reinforcement is there in a cubic metre of concrete?: It depends on the element. From recent tenders: pile caps about 70 to 80 kg/m³, columns 125 to 230 kg/m³, floor and roof beams 110 to 245 kg/m³, and ground beams anywhere from 100 kg/m³ in a house to over 300 kg/m³ in a heavily loaded warehouse. Ground slabs on BRC mesh are better thought of per square metre: A8 mesh is about 4 kg/m², A10 about 6 kg/m². These ratios are a check on a take-off, not a way to price one.
Do the concrete rates include formwork and reinforcement?: No. Concrete, formwork and reinforcement are measured and priced separately, as the Malaysian Standard Method of Measurement requires, because their quantities move independently: a thin slab has far more formwork per cubic metre of concrete than a pile cap, and a transfer beam far more steel than a lintol.
Why is piling priced per metre and per number at the same time?: Because the piling contractor's costs split that way. The pile itself is bought per metre, driving or jacking is paid per metre penetrated, but pitching each pile, each welded joint, each cut-off and each dolly is a fixed cost per pile regardless of length. Pricing it all into one metre rate hides the difference between 6 m and 30 m piles.

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Rates compiled by WE Quantity Surveyor, a BQSM-registered quantity surveying practice in Kuala Lumpur, from its own tender pricing. They are published as general guidance for the Malaysian construction industry; no liability is accepted for their use on any particular project. Reproduction with a link to this page is welcome.