Valuation day, and nobody knows how far the third floor got
You are the mechanical subcontractor on an office fit-out: VRF systems, ventilation, controls. The main contractor's cut-off for applications is the 25th. Your QS rings the supervisor to ask how much pipework is in on each floor, how many indoor units are hung, and whether the condenser lift happened. He searches his email for the variation instructions and a delivery note for materials stored on site. The application goes in late on the 25th, and some of it is a guess, generally on the low side.
Progress lives in people's heads
The contract schedule of rates or activity schedule says how to value the work. What is missing is reliable, current progress data. Engineers know what they did this week. Supervisors know roughly where each floor is. Variations are instructed in site meetings and confirmed, sometimes, by email. Nothing collects it in the shape the application needs.
Mechanical packages are also awkward to measure. Pipework and cabling go in progressively across floors, indoor units are hung before they are connected, and plant arrives in lifts that depend on the main contractor's programme. A percentage complete guessed over the phone rarely matches the schedule of rates.
- Progress per floor and system is estimated on the phone.
- Variations are instructed verbally and priced late.
- Materials delivered to site are not tracked for valuation.
- Previous applications and certified amounts are in a spreadsheet.
- Payment notices from the main contractor are compared by hand.
The cost of guessing
Underclaiming delays cash you have earned, which on a large package strains the business. Overclaiming invites disputes and damages trust. Unpriced variations become arguments at final account, when memories have faded. And the QS spends the last week of every month on detective work.
Contract terms on applications, payment notices and deadlines are strict. What matters here is having reliable data in time, and leaving the contractual judgement with your QS and advisers.
The valuation tool we build
- The contract's schedule is loaded as line items: systems, floors, activities and values, as your QS structures them.
- Supervisors and engineers update progress per line from their phones as work is done, with photos where useful.
- Variations are logged when instructed, with who instructed them, the instruction reference, status and estimated value, so none wait until final account.
- Deliveries to site are recorded from delivery notes (photo read automatically and checked), so materials on site are known.
- At cut-off, the tool produces a draft application: work complete by line, variations by status, materials on site, previous certified amounts. Your QS reviews and adjusts.
- Payment notices are recorded against each application, and differences by line are listed to support the conversation with the main contractor.
| Valuation input | Gathered now | Gathered with the tool |
|---|---|---|
| Progress | Phone calls at month end | Updates from site as work happens |
| Variations | Emails and memory | Logged at instruction |
| Materials on site | Delivery notes in the van | Recorded on delivery |
| Previous applications | Spreadsheet | Held per line |
| Certified differences | Compared by hand | Listed by line |
Applications you can stand behind
The QS starts from a draft built on current site data rather than a blank sheet. Applications go in on time and closer to the work actually done. Variations are visible and priced as they happen. Differences with the main contractor are specific, line by line, which makes them easier to resolve. And at final account, the history is there.
Supervisors also get something from it. The progress view shows which floors and systems are behind, which helps them plan labour, not just the application.
Is valuation day like this for you?
- Progress for applications is gathered by phone at month end.
- Variations are sometimes forgotten until final account.
- Materials on site are not claimed consistently.
- Your QS works late every valuation week.
- Differences between applied and certified amounts are hard to explain.