# McDonalds



## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

Just got an opportunity to bid on a bunch of McDonalds restaurants. Looking over the plans, I see a lot of specifications for colours but nothing for particular products - and they don't specify which manufacturer has to be used ... only all the colours are Benjamin Moore. 

Anyone out there done one of these before? Are there particular products that McDonalds specs for their repaints? Neither me nor the GC that I met with this morning could find anything about this....

TIA.


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## NCPaint1 (Aug 6, 2009)

Do they spec finishes? We sold to quite a few Quizno's. I can't remember specifc products being speced, seemed that the colors were more important.


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

NCPaint1 said:


> Do they spec finishes? We sold to quite a few Quizno's. I can't remember specifc products being speced, seemed that the colors were more important.


No, finishes aren't spec'd either - your guess is the same as mine...I assume the colour is more important to them that what particular brands/products are used.


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## NorthEast (Sep 7, 2010)

I don't know how much of a help this is, but I've worked with two McDonald's owners in the past, one of which owns 27 stores. 

The woman who owns the 27 stores selects her own paint and wallcovering, she was never restricted to brand, type or model in any way other than remaining within fire, health & safety laws, etc. Obviously we chose products that are practical for the application. (durability, low odor, etc)

So I'm not sure if it's something the owners decide, or the actual corporation does. I'm just letting you know my experience with McDonald's so far. 

To add, all of the stores were remodels, not new construction. 

I'll give her a call and ask.


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## Schmidt & Co. (Nov 6, 2008)

If a paint brand and type is not in the bid documents, why not spec the exact product yourself and put it in the contract?


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## NCPaint1 (Aug 6, 2009)

Yep, I agree with Schmidt. Maybe a call to your BM Rep would be a good idea. They might have some special pricing for McDonalds.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

I didn't know BM gave special rates.


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## RCP (Apr 18, 2007)

Are you sure you have all the plans? Often there are addendums or specs in addition to the prints.


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## NCPaint1 (Aug 6, 2009)

ewingpainting.net said:


> I didn't know BM gave special rates.


They have national accounts for big accounts that have facilities nationwide. That way if a contractor is using a product in one state, then has another job for the same company in another state, they can get the same pricing. Regardless of the store they buy from. I don't know if McDonalds is one of the accounts, but a call to the Rep and you could find out easily.

RCONs in Canada so things may be different there.


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

Rcon said:


> Just got an opportunity to bid on a bunch of McDonalds restaurants. Looking over the plans, I see a lot of specifications for colours but nothing for particular products - and they don't specify which manufacturer has to be used ... only all the colours are Benjamin Moore.
> 
> Anyone out there done one of these before? Are there particular products that McDonalds specs for their repaints? Neither me nor the GC that I met with this morning could find anything about this....
> 
> TIA.


We have done repaints on mcdonalds. You should be able to get it speced with SW or PPG. We used SW on them. You can get either speced for about any job unless they are going with something like tnemic or some special paint the architect probably got a kick back for.


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## optimal (Feb 5, 2010)

If the prints do not spec out paint you should spec your own. I would also add that if a specific product must be used your contract will need to be adjusted propely based on square footage coverage and price. When Autozones are repainted they use sw paint and they supply the paint. When bidding on new construction advanced auto parts they use ici paints. The gc or the blues prints should have rep number to give you if they use a specific brand.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

CK_68847 said:


> unless they are going with something like tnemic


Just got a job that was speced Tnemic, ya'll complain about BM being high price, holy chit man! I'd go BM in a heart breat without the discount.


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## Lambrecht (Feb 8, 2010)

I painted and hung the vinyl in 14 different Mc Donalds last year in Indiana and Illinois. None of them specified which paint manufacturer was to be used, just the color and finish, ie satin, flat etc. I used PPG on all of them and had no complaints. These can be real money makers if you plan things right. We did most of our work after hours which made things a lot easier and better for everyone involved. We worked around carpenters, plumbers, electricians, floor guys, etc., if you are going to be in the same boat take the time to get to know them all and get on good terms it can get stressful having that many trades in a small restaraunt. Like I said plan right and you should make good money, let me know if I can help in any way.


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## TDTD (Jun 10, 2010)

Rcon said:


> No, finishes aren't spec'd either - your guess is the same as mine...I assume the colour is more important to them that what particular brands/products are used.


My guess is that they're going to want a hard, durable, easy to clean surface that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. If they haven't provided specs it would be a good question to ask rather than move ahead on assumptions.

If they don't have a corporate spec...

I like to take advantage of situations like this with my clients where I can make "expert" recommendations and "sell" my proposal complete with the full colour product technical bulletins and all. Surprises me how many guys don't do this. Some clients don't care about the details, but for the ones who do...

Check out my recent post on SW All Surface Enamel. Might be a good option for you.


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

Lambrecht said:


> I painted and hung the vinyl in 14 different Mc Donalds last year in Indiana and Illinois. None of them specified which paint manufacturer was to be used, just the color and finish, ie satin, flat etc. I used PPG on all of them and had no complaints. These can be real money makers if you plan things right. We did most of our work after hours which made things a lot easier and better for everyone involved. We worked around carpenters, plumbers, electricians, floor guys, etc., if you are going to be in the same boat take the time to get to know them all and get on good terms it can get stressful having that many trades in a small restaraunt. Like I said plan right and you should make good money, let me know if I can help in any way.


I hear ya about knowing all the trades. This is for a GC that I have done a lot of work for in the past, so I know most of the guys they use. 

This is a reno, not NC, and it looks like there will be a 2 week window where they will actually shut the restaurant down for construction - since this is primarily an exterior project that is a definite bonus - what sucks is that this particular starter project is 150 miles away  ... i'm only quoting it because if I get this one, I get all of them within a 200 mile radius - that's a lot of McDonalds!! 

I see much fat in my future. Good thing it's going to be winter soon, I'll be able to hide my McBelly under several layers :jester:

Anyhow, the more I look at the specs the more I think all they care about is making sure the colour is right, so this will be a BM job I think. 

Just a shame they've waited until now to do this - I won't even be starting the exterior until mid October at the earliest, which means crap weather, cold and rain. 

Whatcha got for crap weather paints NCPaint??


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## Marion (Mar 30, 2009)

Same scenerio for me last year. Specs only called for BM colors. I used Porter PPG products. No problem. Good luck dude!


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## j0tun (Jan 10, 2009)

Let me know if you need a hand Rcon  Although, painting after hours in October will be prettttty chilly


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## Rob (Aug 9, 2009)

I did a Mickey D's years ago, while it was still open. The drive thru was the worst, no matter what time it was, one roll, wait for a car, one roll, wait for a car, one roll........


Well, maybe painting the handreails was worse, what part of "wet paint" don't you understand lady, no, I am not going to have that drycleaned!


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## BC_Painter (Feb 14, 2010)

Good luck on this quote dude!

Hopefully it goes well for you.
Let me know if you need a hand too, if I'm not too swamped I am sure we can work something out .......


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

ewingpainting.net said:


> Just got a job that was speced Tnemic, ya'll complain about BM being high price, holy chit man! I'd go BM in a heart breat without the discount.


Tnemic is very expensive and very hard to work with especially if dealing with their oil epoxies. They make a different thinner for every one of their oils. We had three different tnemic epoxies on a job one time and the guy poured in the wrong thinner to thin it down to put into the sprayer and it pretty much destroyed the sprayer. When doing a tnemic job, and if you are spraying a fair amount of oil epoxy, figure on a new sprayer, or atleast on getting it repacked. We jack our bids when using tnemic.

There was a jail bid around us that was suppose to go tnemic, so we didn't bid it. The jail changed their mind after reading about it. They didn't think they could touch up with it because it was too nasty for them and were scared it would make them sick.

Tnemic is the painters worst enemy because they are in bed with the architect. The only reason they use it because they get a kick back I can figure. Tnemic will never stand behind their product. We did an outside of a a block building this past spring. The arhictect speced it for a tnemic peal stop and elastomeric. We talked with the city about going with PPG where it would have saved them 18,000 bucks and PPG was willing to give a 5 year warranty which tnemic wasnt willing to do, and the architect still talked the city into going with tnemic. On the same job tnemic, was calling the architect and making sure we used the amount of paint they had figured it would take.


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## Schmidt & Co. (Nov 6, 2008)

TDTD said:


> My guess is that they're going to want a hard, durable, easy to clean surface that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. If they haven't provided specs it would be a good question to ask rather than move ahead on assumptions.


Reminds me of a job we did a few years ago.

I put in a bid to paint a firehouse a few years back. When they got my bid, they realized that it was over a the dollar amount that was there benchmark to have to put it out to open bid.

Well they put it out to open bid and I was re-invited to bid it. The job specifications in the bid packet were _*word for word* _ my spec in the previous bid! Same products, prep everything....


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## bay area contractor (Sep 19, 2009)

Rob said:


> I did a Mickey D's years ago, while it was still open. The drive thru was the worst, no matter what time it was, one roll, wait for a car, one roll, wait for a car, one roll........
> 
> 
> Well, maybe painting the handreails was worse, what part of "wet paint" don't you understand lady, no, I am not going to have that drycleaned!


The only time to do a drivethrough is after hours.


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## athaire (Sep 11, 2010)

I did a number of A&W's a few years back and ran into the same problem. Seemed the color was the important part so I was able to clear my preferred product at the time. Though they did supply wall coverings themselves.


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## Rob (Aug 9, 2009)

bay area contractor said:


> The only time to do a drivethrough is after hours.


These were open 24 hours!


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## midatlanticpaintguy (Apr 16, 2010)

Guys, TNEMEC is spelled that way...not TNEMIC. FYI, it's the word "CEMENT" spelled backwards. Pretty good marketing huh?:whistling2:


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## ezpaintks (Mar 8, 2010)

Guys I know have used super spec with an eggshell finish. Not sure on special pricing from BM


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## NCPaint1 (Aug 6, 2009)

ezpaintks said:


> Guys I know have used super spec with an eggshell finish. Not sure on special pricing from BM


Checked into it. McDonalds does not have a national account with BM. That doesnt mean that YOU the painter cant get special pricing for the job. Especially if its that many units.


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## BC_Painter (Feb 14, 2010)

ezpaintks said:


> Guys I know have used super spec with an eggshell finish. Not sure on special pricing from BM



I hate super spec, spreads like junk, AND as soon as you touch the stuff the colour rubs off. Spread isn't as bad as the midline, moorestyle here.

If I am using benny moore I can only use the good stuff. :whistling2:


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## wje (Apr 11, 2009)

BC_Painter said:


> I hate super spec, spreads like junk, AND as soon as you touch the stuff the colour rubs off. Spread isn't as bad as the midline, moorestyle here.
> 
> If I am using benny moore I can only use the good stuff. :whistling2:


Moorestyle is horrid, We just used 5 gals of the Collection Ulti-mat, It is fairly nice to work with. We used the Pearl on trim and it was a wee bit tacky, but dries out beautifully.


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## Last Craftsman (Dec 5, 2008)

Rcon said:


> No, finishes aren't spec'd either - your guess is the same as mine...I assume the colour is more important to them that what particular brands/products are used.


You might want to ask.

We do work for a couple similar corporations, and they spec specific materials.

Materials that incidentally don't cover for sh*t, and they don't stay where you put them once they have been applied.

These types of accounts are the only times we make an exception as to which products we will be using. In all other situations, we decide what product we will be using.


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

Last Craftsman said:


> You might want to ask.
> 
> We do work for a couple similar corporations, and they spec specific materials.
> 
> ...


I asked the only person I could - the project manager. We reviewed the plans together looking for product specs, but there were none to be found. 

Anyhow, i've already submitted the bid - and spec'd BM paints. Already been asked to bid another one! :thumbsup:


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## Last Craftsman (Dec 5, 2008)

Rcon said:


> Just got an opportunity to bid on a bunch of McDonalds restaurants.


BTW.

I was so busy bitching about having to use speced materials that I forgot to say:

That is awesome news!

GO RCON!


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## TrinityPaint (Nov 14, 2020)

Rcon said:


> Just got an opportunity to bid on a bunch of McDonalds restaurants. Looking over the plans, I see a lot of specifications for colours but nothing for particular products - and they don't specify which manufacturer has to be used ... only all the colours are Benjamin Moore.
> 
> Anyone out there done one of these before? Are there particular products that McDonalds specs for their repaints? Neither me nor the GC that I met with this morning could find anything about this....
> 
> TIA.


Hello .. we are a fairly new painting business and looking for some tips and help on how to get commercial business. Where should I start on Bids? Is there a certain website you would recommend ?


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