E160: Nathan Schafer, Estimating Manager at Cornerstone General Contractors
From The Preconstruction Podcast - Commercial Construction. by Gareth McGlynn
May 26, 2026 · 35 min
About this episode
Gareth McGlynn interviews Nathan Schafer about preconstruction practices at Cornerstone General Contractors.
Gareth McGlynn speaks with Nathan Schafer, Estimating Manager at Cornerstone General Contractors, at Advancing Preconstruction 2026 in Phoenix. A self-performing GC based in Alaska, Cornerstone gives Nathan a hands-on perspective on preconstruction that is grounded in real field conditions. Key Topics Covered: Nathan & Cornerstone: Working across healthcare, hospitality, and federal military projects, with a focus on vertical commercial construction. New Estimators & Value Engineering: The shortage of talent entering the field, their understanding of value engineering, and professional development through ASPE and AACE. Lean Construction: Its growing impact on the estimating process and the role of AI takeoff tools as a lean principle in action. Data Science in Preconstruction: How Cornerstone is incorporating data science into its workflow, including labor productivity tracking and predicting quantity growth risk as a function of design maturity. Value Management in Practice: Cornerstone's formal pilot on a $90M project: 13 propositions totaling $9M, with $7M accepted. You can connect with Nathan via his LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-schafer-cpe-b75991178/…
People in this episode
Host: Gareth McGlynn
Guest: Nathan Schafer
Topics covered
- Estimating in construction
- Value engineering
- Lean construction
- Data science in preconstruction
- Value management
Keywords
- preconstruction
- estimating
- value engineering
- lean construction
- data science
- labor productivity
- quantity growth risk
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Cornerstone General Contractors, ASPE, AACE
Places: Alaska, Phoenix
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