Bid review
| Decision | What to record |
|---|---|
| Same quantities | Write one quantity sheet and ask each bidder to price it. If bidders measured their own areas, the prices are not comparable until you know whose area you are buying. Differences of a few percent may be measurement noise. A missing room is not. |
| Same inclusions | Make a column for substrate prep, furniture moving, protection, attic stock, tax, freight, and prevailing-wage or shift work if the project requires them. A blank cell is an exclusion. Fill it or accept that the bid is incomplete. |
| Alternates stay alternates | A deductive alternate for a cheaper product has to name the product. “Value engineer the floor” is not an alternate you can level. Price the specified item and the named alternate on separate lines. |
The low flooring number is often the quote that left out the base, the attic stock, the moisture test, or the night work. Leveling is the act of putting those items back on every quote before anyone is called the low bidder.
Invented round numbers to show the method. They are not market prices.
Related reading: bid preparation service, estimating scope, quantity basis.
Leveling removes scope tricks. It does not judge crew capacity, the product lead time, or whether the bidder will actually install what was priced. Those are procurement decisions outside the arithmetic.
It is the clean way to compare. If they will not, you can still list their stated quantities next to yours and reconcile the rooms that differ.