How to Write a Construction Bid Proposal
What goes in a bid proposal, in the order an owner reads it: the letter, the scope, the price on a schedule of values, exclusions, clarifications and the terms.
A proposal is read twice
The first time, the owner or general contractor is deciding whose number to take. The second time is months later, when somebody asks whether a piece of work was in the price. A good proposal answers both readings: it is quick to compare, and it says plainly what the money buys and what it does not.
What goes in it, in order
- A cover with your company, the project, the date and who it is prepared for.
- A short letter: thanks, the documents you priced from, and the scope of work as a list.
- The proposal amount: the base bid, and any alternates priced separately.
- A schedule of values: the price broken into lines of work that add up to the base bid.
- Exclusions: work the price does not cover.
- Clarifications: what the price assumes, such as working hours or reusing existing material.
- Terms of acceptance and a place to sign.
Name the documents you priced from
List the drawing set and its date or revision, the specifications and any addenda. If an addendum arrives after you bid, this is what shows your price did not include it. It is one line in the letter and it settles a common argument before it starts.
Break the price into a schedule of values
A single lump sum is hard to compare and hard to trust. Lines of work, each with its amount, show the owner what they are buying and give you the starting point for every pay application once the job is awarded. Group the lines by CSI division if the owner works that way, or by area if the job is a set of similar rooms.
Exclusions and clarifications protect the price
Most disputes about a bid are about something nobody wrote down. Permits, after-hours work, hazardous material, testing and patching outside the work area are common exclusions. Clarifications state the assumptions behind the number. Keep each one to a single plain line; a reader should not need a lawyer to know what is in.
If a document was unclear when you bid, say what you assumed and that the price changes if the answer is different. That is the line that lets you price the change later.
Terms that say how long the price holds
Say how long the proposal is valid, when payment is due, how retention is handled, and that work outside the proposal is priced as a change order before it is done. Material prices move, so a price with no expiry date is a promise you may not be able to keep.