Piping Estimating Essentials: Creating Accurate Material and Cost Forecasts A Piping cost forecast and an AACE-recognized estimate class should be used for a reliable evaluation. These are appropriate for project maturity. Early-stage forecasts are based on past records. Later-stage forecasts are based on line-item material and labor pricing. Accuracy improves as design documents such as P&IDs and isometrics mature. This narrows the cost range with every project...