The “Our House Viscri” project, funded by the National Heritage Institute through the Historical Monuments Stamp program, offers us the perfect opportunity to describe in greater detail each step behind the execution of a technical restoration project. Though hardly the most glamorous topic, the bill of quantities is one of the most important steps behind any restoration. This document is crucial to contextualizing both the proposed works on a site and a contractor’s quotes, thus ensuring the most efficient deployment of funds possible.
There are several types of bills of quantities, the most important being the F3 form, also known as the “Quantities List.” The F3 form lists the quantities and costs per unit of necessary material, including labour requirements, transportation costs, and equipment usage fees required to undertake each discrete construction activity.
Normally, each specialist involved in the project (architect, structural engineer, electrician, plumber, heating engineer, landscape architect, etc.) submits their required materials (for example, “10 square meters of brick + medium lime-based finish”), together with their specialized work plan and work memorandum (describing the works) to a quantity surveyor. The quantity surveyor analyses the proposed works and quantities and proceeds to prepare the quantity lists, adding necessary related tasks to the F3.
Although anyone could theoretically prepare a bill of quantities, it is preferable to rely on an experienced, trained quantity surveyor who is familiar with standardized bill codes. The state makes such bill codes readily available for each construction activity, comprising a “recipe” of labour hours, equipment usage hours, and transportation costs corresponding to each unit of measure necessary to complete a construction activity.
For example, the table below lays out the five codes necessary to create an interior partition wall measuring ten square meters. The quantity surveyor chose the most appropriate codes and incorporated the quantities corresponding to the project. The surveyor then added any other codes necessary for finishing the wall (e.g., corresponding to one layer of quick-setting plaster, one layer of finishing plaster, and one layer of paint for each part of the wall). Oftentimes, bills overestimate the material quantities necessary in a particular situation owing to anticipated material leakage (for example, paint sometimes spills, tiles break during construction, etc.) Note that bill code CD71A06 (1) includes the price of labour, equipment used, and transport for each square meter of brickwork. You may also notice that the price for equipment used (“Utilaje”) is quite low. The stated price (2.70 lei per square meter) of equipment usage (in this case, a lifting device) reflects the equipment’s depreciation cost rather than its purchase price (we can verify precisely which equipment is used by consulting From C6, the Equipment List). Although codes are not set in stone, any modifications must be denoted accordingly in their names (in our case, “(1)” has been added to the code names) and their “recipes” updated accordingly to include revised material consumption, labour costs, equipment usage, and transportation necessary per unit of measurement. Typically, transportation costs are calculated separately using code TRA02A05. The F3 bill of quantities can help generate more precise materials estimates and aide in assessing construction quotes for any project, be it building a house, a garage, or simply painting the living room. When assessing a contractor’s quote, simply knowing the materials and quantities required is far more helpful once the necessary hours of work, transport costs, and equipment usage fees per square meter have also been accounted for.