Where to start
thing. Architects can prepare tender documents for you, but a builder’s practical knowledge can prove invaluable too: an experienced builder will have gone through this process hundreds of times, so get one involved and ask their advice.
Put as much detail as possible into your tender documents. Without fail, you will need complete scale drawings, Building Regulations drawings, structural calculations and a good build spec. The first three of these are usually provided in a pretty standard format. The last one, the build specification or job spec, can have many different layouts. This is the document that lays out exactly what you want to prospective builders.
Remember, the clearer your tender documents are, the more chance you will get back three estimates that are genuinely comparable.this is particularly important if your builder will be coordinating trades for you or specifying any of your materials. If one builder includes a high-end luxury vinyl tile (LVT) and the other chooses an inexpensive roll of vinyl, to fulfil a specification for ‘vinyl flooring’ in your home, you can begin to see how difficult it will be to compare prices, and why you sometimes get a high or low estimate.
Over the years job specs have changed dramatically for the better. Gone are the days when they were scrawled onto the back of a fag packet, barely legible and almost impossible to comprehend. Now, the majority of specs are done on computers and are a lot clearer to read and understand. However, there is no standard template, which can result in wild figures and general confusion. I personally think the best way to do a spec is the one that works for all the people involved. Some builders have a very simple way of working and trying to teach them new ways of working can be pretty difficult!
Having seen many different job specs in the tender document packs I’ve received over the years, this is what I feel works best.