How much does Parking Lot Line Striping cost?
Great question! But to answer a question with another question, how much will it cost you in…..lost customers? lost revenue? lost time? All things to be considered in the sticker price to have your parking lot painted. Without further ado, let’s actually discuss some of the costs associated with Line Striping and why the sticker price is the way it is.
First and foremost: Labor. It takes a dedicated team of professionals to not only conduct the job itself, marking out crisp and clean lines to organize traffic, but also to transport the equipment and maintain it. This is in addition to picking up paint from the distributor, the time needed to set-up the job-site, taping off edges and curbs, marking out new stalls, and an entire list of checks to ensure the top quality job is done for our customers! Additionally, weather checks can drive up organizational labor costs due to delayed jobs. Even a sprinkling of rain can shut down a day’s work, causing schedules to be pushed off, but still having to pay for teammates to show up until the weather call is made.
The equipment: Graco and Titan are the standard brands in Parking Lot Line Striping and Painting equipment. There are various models such as the Graco LineLazer 3400 and Titan Powerline 850 that are the entry level Airless Paint Sprayer designed to adequately atomize thick traffic paint and adhere properly to all paved surfaces. These machines are several dozen steps above a brush roller and as such, carry a price tag that supports that. The Graco 3400 starts at nearly $7,000. This upfront investment requires a significant rate of return to 1 - afford the machine and pay back the original financing, but 2 - the required upkeep. Many of the OEM-produced parts are hundreds of dollars each. Although Aftermarket parts may cost a fraction, they do not carry the same quality guarantees backed by the manufacturer. These costs start to add up as parts break over time and replacements are required. Now, the top machines in the industry able to spray all paint types can be nearly 6 figures in cost, around $100,000 in total. And that’s just to purchase it.
Other equipment include: Trucks, Trailers, miscellaneous transportation equipment etc. A basic truck can range anywhere from $38,000 to over $75,000 brand-new. Granted, not all equipment needs to be purchased brand-new, or even purchased at all, but the point stands: the overhead costs associated with transportation itself start to add up. A Trailer is yet another piece of the transportation pie. These can range in thousands of dollars and often require modification to ensure safe transportation of all equipment and material.
Let’s talk paint, the actual product going on the ground for parking lot line striping and decal spraying. There are several varieties of traffic paint: water-borne, solvent-borne, MMA, etc. Here’s a link to a full write-up of the various products used for pavement markings. The main point we’re going to say is that price varies by brand, location, and type. The longer-lasting a paint, the more expensive it is generally, same as most things in life. That being said, the legibility of a line may last a while, that is, the paint stays recognizable as far as shape and not peeling from the pavement; however, it can also fade and become barely visible as the sun degrades the pigmentation of the paint. We recommend a touch-up coat at every 2 years to ensure vibrancy and color of your lines!
Set-up fee: This can range from $100 to well over a $1000, depending on the company and the conditions present. Generally, most companies have a minimum price before they’ll even consider a job. This can be $500 or more, even if the lot size is small. It has to be worth the time to mobilize a team no matter the size. Additionally, distance can be a great factor, especially in North East Ohio, where traversing downtown Cleveland and making one’s way across town can be a lengthy trip.
Stencils are an interesting item. The standard stencils, such as Handicap Accessible parking spot symbols, “No Parking”, “Fire Zone”, are available across dozens of sites and suppliers. That being said, they do have an upfront cost that can be in excess of $100/stencil. If a Line Striping company needs dozens of each of these stencils for every possible situation, the costs add up. Let’s talk Custom Stencils for a moment. Getting these made through a 3rd Party Supplier is always an option, but again: everything has a cost. A large format CNC, Drag-Knife, Laser Cutter, can costs tens of thousands of dollars. Lines and Logos has our own in-house Laser Cutter to handle the manufacture of custom stencils to help bring down costs and most importantly: deliver the best possible result for our customers. Although we do have the Laser Cutter in-house, a trained teammate still needs to go through the stencil design process to ensure that it reproduces onto pavement with traffic paint adequately, that all pertinent details are visible!
Expendable items. Tape, buckets, tarps, chalk, string, etc. All these costs begin to add-up over time and during a job. We can easily go through 5 or more rolls of tape ensuring crisp lines and stencils. The same goes for chalk when marking out new stops to ensure all of are lines are straight and to the point!
Is there one cost calculator we can use for every job? Not quite. The scope of the project, the custom work required, the distance from HQ, all these variables come into play when determining the price of a Parking Lot Line Striping job in the Cleveland metro area. If you or your company are looking to get your parking lot touched up, feel free to contact us for more information about the cost for your next Parking Lot Line Striping job!