Why the cheapest industrial quotation often costs the most
Not an argument for paying more. An argument for comparing quotations that actually cover the same work.
How to avoid scope gaps in an industrial BOQ
Scope gaps are not found during tendering. They are found on site, at the worst moment, and somebody always pays for them.
A scope gap is work that everybody assumed somebody else was doing. It is not dishonesty. It is the predictable result of a BOQ written from one side’s point of view.
Where they hide
Between trades. The civil contractor casts the foundation, the mechanical contractor installs the machine, and nobody has grouted the base plate.
At the utility boundary. Cable laid to within three metres of the machine, because the drawing stopped there.
In the word “supply”. Supply, supply and install, supply and commission, and supply with training are four scopes. BOQs frequently say only the first and expect the last.
In disposal. Old machine removed. Removed to where? Scrap disposal, gate pass, transport and weighment are real cost.
In reinstatement. Floor made good, area cleaned, temporary works removed. This is always assumed and rarely written.
In supervision hours. A job priced for day shift, executed across nights and a Sunday.
Six questions that close most gaps
- Who supplies power, air and water up to the equipment, and who connects beyond it?
- Who does the site measurement, and what happens if it differs from the drawing?
- What is the working window, and what changes if the plant runs alongside?
- Whose lifting equipment, and who pays if it stands idle?
- What is the condition the area is handed back in?
- Who decides, on site, when something is found that is not on the drawing?
The honest version
The last question matters most. Every industrial project meets something unexpected. What separates a controlled project from a disputed one is whether the decision route was agreed before the surprise, or invented after it.