Fit-Out Quotation Comparison: Put Three Quotes on One Basis

What it calculates

The comparison takes up to three fit-out quotations and shows, side by side:

• each quote before GST, whether it was quoted with GST or without;
• a comparable price that adds back your estimate of what each quote leaves out;
• the comparable price with GST;
• how far each quote is above the lowest, in rupees and as a percentage;
• the cost for each sq ft of carpet area, if you enter the area;
• the share of the price that is provisional and could change;
• the cash paid as advance and the cash held as retention.

All figures are yours. The calculator stores nothing and starts blank.

Inputs

For each quote:

• Quoted amount: the total on the quotation.
• GST in the quoted amount?: whether the total includes GST or GST is added on top.
• Your estimate of items left out: the cost, before GST, of anything you need that the quote excludes.
• Provisional sums inside the quote: the total of allowances that will be re-measured.
• Advance asked: the percentage paid before work starts.
• Retention held: the percentage kept back until the defects period ends.
• Programme and defects liability period: for reference alongside the price.

Optionally, the carpet area the quotes are for, and in the assumptions panel the GST rate.

Method

1. Quoted before GST = the quoted amount, or the amount divided by (1 + GST rate) when the amount includes GST.
2. Comparable before GST = quoted before GST + your estimate of items left out.
3. Comparable with GST = comparable before GST × (1 + GST rate).
4. Above the lowest = comparable before GST − the lowest comparable before GST.
5. Cost for each sq ft of carpet = comparable before GST ÷ carpet area.
6. Provisional share = provisional sums ÷ quoted before GST.
7. Advance and retention = the percentage × the quoted amount with GST.

Assumptions

The quality of the comparison depends on the exclusions estimate. If one contractor excludes the HVAC changes and another includes them, the comparison is only fair once you have put a realistic figure against the missing work.

Limitations

• It compares price, not scope. Two quotes with the same total can describe very different offices. The only way to compare scope is line by line against the same drawings and specification.
• It trusts your exclusions estimate. A low guess for a missing item flatters that quote.
• It does not value programme or risk. A quote that finishes four weeks later may cost you four more weeks of rent on two premises.
• It does not judge payment terms. It shows the cash involved; whether those terms are acceptable is a commercial decision.
• It does not check arithmetic in the quotes. Check the quantities and totals on each quote separately.

Worked example

Suppose three quotes arrive for the same office. The figures below are invented for the example and are not market prices.

• Quote A: 100 units, GST extra, nothing excluded.
• Quote B: 110 units, GST included, nothing excluded.
• Quote C: 88 units, GST extra, but the HVAC changes are excluded and you estimate them at 9 units.

At an 18% GST rate:

Quote B looked the most expensive on its headline figure but is the lowest once GST is treated the same way. Quote C looked cheapest but moves to second once its exclusion is added back. Quote A, which looked mid-range, is actually the highest.

How engineers use it

On a tender, a quantity surveyor or project manager prepares a tender comparison: every contractor prices the same bill of quantities against the same drawings, and the comparison is made line by line. Gaps are queried, unusual rates are explained, and exclusions are either priced in or removed before any recommendation is made.

This calculator is the summary at the top of that process. It is useful when quotes have arrived on different bases and you need a fair first view of where they stand before going into the detail.

When a professional design must replace it

Use the calculator to get quotes onto one basis and to decide which ones deserve a detailed review. Replace it with a line-by-line comparison against the same drawings, specification and quantities before you award the work, and have the contract terms (payment, retention, defects liability, delay damages and variations) reviewed before you sign.