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External works and infrastructure rates
Trade rates for the works outside the building line in the Klang Valley: site preparation and earthwork, roads and paving, drains and culverts, sewerage, water reticulation, fencing, gates and the small ancillary buildings.
External works are the part of an industrial tender that surprises people: on a warehouse site the roads, drains, detention tank, sewer and water connections and fencing can come to a quarter of the contract sum, more than the architectural works. On a house they are a fifth. These are the rates we see priced against those items on Klang Valley tenders.
Road rates are given both by layer and as a complete build-up from formation, because tenders come both ways. Drain, culvert and pipe rates include the excavation, bedding and backfill; manholes, sumps and chambers are complete with covers.
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.
Site preparation and earthwork
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| General site clearance, light vegetation, including cart away | m² | 5 – 10 |
| Bulk earthwork: cut | m³ | 5 |
| Bulk earthwork: fill from cut, compacted | m³ | 3 |
| Imported earth fill, compacted in layers | m³ | 25 – 30 |
| RC retaining wall about 2.3 m high, complete | m | 1,000 – 1,200 |
| Gabion basket 1 m x 1 m x 1 m, filled | no. | 220 – 260 |
Roads and paving
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| Trim, level and grade road formation | m² | 2.5 |
| Sand bedding 50 mm consolidated | m² | 6.5 |
| Crusher run 300 mm consolidated | m² | 27 |
| Crusher run 450 mm consolidated | m² | 40.5 |
| Asphaltic concrete binder (base) course 50 to 60 mm | m² | 37.5 – 45.0 |
| Asphaltic concrete wearing course 50 mm | m² | 37.5 |
| Premix road complete from formation (sand, crusher run, binder and wearing course) | m² | 120 – 130 |
| Road resurfacing, 50 mm asphaltic overlay | m² | 35 |
| Precast concrete road kerb | m | 55 – 60 |
| Interlocking concrete paving blocks 80 mm, heavy duty, on sand bed | m² | 95 |
| Grass pavers | m² | 180 |
| Concrete walkway 1.5 m wide | m | 220 |
| Road line marking, lane or edge line | m | 3.0 – 3.5 |
| Parking bay marking, car | bay | 50 |
| Parking bay marking, motorcycle | bay | 21 |
| Parking bay marking, truck | bay | 91 |
| Parking bay marking, OKU with logo | bay | 58 |
| Arrow or symbol marking | no. | 150 – 250 |
| Road sign on post | no. | 650 – 900 |
Drains and culverts
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| 225 mm precast U-drain with precast slab cover | m | 170 |
| 230 mm precast concrete drain, residential | m | 180 |
| Precast slab cover laid on existing drain | m | 100 |
| 300 mm diameter pipe culvert | m | 280 |
| 750 mm diameter pipe culvert | m | 600 |
| RC U-drain 3 m x 3 m, cast in situ | m | 2,600 |
| RC on-site detention (OSD) tank, about 1.8 m x 1.8 m internal, cast in situ | m | 1,000 |
| Brick sump | no. | 3,500 |
| 600 x 600 mm grating with sump | no. | 1,900 |
| Entrance slab over drain with mild steel grating, residential | no. | 2,500 |
| Trash screen | no. | 3,500 |
Sewerage
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 150 mm VCP sewer pipe laid and jointed, including excavation | m | 220 – 330 | |
| 225 mm VCP sewer pipe laid and jointed, including excavation | m | 380 | |
| Precast concrete manhole with heavy-duty cast iron coverResidential at the low end, industrial at the high end | no. | 1,500 – 5,450 | Residential at the low end, industrial at the high end |
| Septic tank 5 PE | no. | 3,500 | |
| Septic tank 30 PE | no. | 22,000 | |
| Testing, CCTV inspection or flushing of the pipeline, each | item | 5,000 | |
| Connection to the public sewer | item | 1,000 – 15,000 |
Water reticulation
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| 150 mm ductile iron incoming pipe, laid and jointed | m | 380 |
| 150 mm mild steel hydrant pipe | m | 270 |
| Fire hydrant with sluice valve and chamber | no. | 6,500 |
| Sluice valve with chamber | no. | 2,500 – 4,200 |
| Air valve with chamber | no. | 6,500 – 7,000 |
| Scour valve | no. | 6,000 |
| Bulk meter | no. | 12,000 |
| 50 mm stainless steel communication pipe | m | 220 |
| Marker post | no. | 180 |
Fencing, gates and ancillary buildings
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) |
|---|---|---|
| Chain-link fence | m | 120 |
| 1.5 m high galvanised iron fence, residential | m | 280 |
| 1.7 m high BRC fence | m | 450 |
| Brickwall fence about 1.5 m high, plastered and painted | m | 720 – 1,200 |
| Mild steel sliding gate, residential | no. | 3,500 |
| Sliding gate 9 m wide, industrial | no. | 12,000 – 15,000 |
| Sliding gate 20 m wide, industrial | no. | 25,000 |
| Letter box and meter room | no. | 5,000 |
| Signage wall about 4 m x 1.5 m | no. | 3,400 |
| Guard house | no. | 80,000 |
| Refuse chamber | no. | 50,000 – 60,000 |
| TNB compact substation, builder's work | no. | 40,000 |
| Flag posts | item | 10,000 |
Landscape
| Item | Unit | Rate (RM) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turfing with vegetable soilSpot turfing at the low end, close turfing at the high end | m² | 12 – 20 | Spot turfing at the low end, close turfing at the high end |
| Rainwater harvesting system (SPAH), residential | set | 4,000 |
Questions we get asked
- How much of a warehouse project is external works?
- On a recent Klang Valley warehouse tender, infrastructure works were 26% of the construction cost: earthwork and imported fill, hoarding and ESCP, internal roads and the access road, a large U-drain and on-site detention tank, sewer and water reticulation, fencing, gates, a guard house, refuse chamber and substation. That is more than the architectural works (16%) and second only to the RC structure and piling together (30%).
- What is in the premix road rate?
- The complete rate from formation covers trimming the formation, a 50 mm sand layer, 300 mm of crusher run, a 50 mm asphaltic concrete binder course and a 50 mm wearing course. Heavy-duty roads for container trucks use 450 mm of crusher run and a 60 mm binder course, and price about 25% higher. Kerbs, line marking, signs and drains are separate items.
- Are the drain rates per metre complete?
- Yes: excavation, disposal, lean concrete bedding, the precast or cast in situ drain, covers, and backfill. Sumps, gratings and connections to the public drain are per number.
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Try Take-Off by WEQSRates 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.