Common exclusions in M&E subcontract quotes: a checklist

The price on an M&E subcontract quote is only half the offer. The other half is what it leaves out, usually in the footnotes, and that is where margin goes once the package is let. This checklist covers the exclusions and qualifications to read for before you compare prices.

Where exclusions hide in a quote

Exclusions are rarely in the price build-up. They sit in the places people read last, after the totals are already in the tender analysis:

Footnotes under the summary page or the last schedule
Clarifications and qualifications headings, often on a separate page
"Based on" lines, such as "based on drawings rev C" or "based on a single visit"
Assumptions like "assumes free use of main contractor's scaffold and hoists"
Attached terms and conditions, referenced by one line: "subject to our standard terms"

An exclusion says something is not in the price. A qualification says what the price depends on. Both move cost and risk back to you, and both are easy to miss when you are comparing six quotes at once.

Scope boundaries

Many of these exclusions are normal. The risk is not that a subcontractor excludes them; it is that nobody has priced them, or each side assumes the other has.

Builder's work in connection (BWIC). Holes, chases, plinths, making good and sealing penetrations. The main contractor usually carries this, so "BWIC excluded" is expected. Check that your own BWIC allowance actually covers what this package needs.
Attendances. General attendance is site-wide support everyone shares: welfare, scaffolding, temporary power and lighting, hoists, waste disposal. Special attendance is anything one trade needs for itself, such as a dedicated hoist or a plinth. Watch for "special attendances by others" with no list of what they are.
Access equipment. "MEWPs, towers and access equipment excluded" is common. On a job with high-level services, that can be a large number.
Lifting and cranage. Getting plant onto a roof or into a basement plantroom. "Assumes use of main contractor's crane" only works if your crane is there when they need it.
Temporary services. Power, lighting and water during installation and commissioning.
Waste and packaging. "Removal of packaging by others" quietly adds skips and labour to your preliminaries.

Testing, commissioning and handover

The end of an M&E package is where small exclusions turn into programme delays, because handover cannot happen without them.

Commissioning. "Commissioning by others" or "commissioning engineer excluded" leaves you to buy it separately, late, at short notice.
Witness testing. Quotes often allow a set number of witness visits. If the client's engineer needs more, each extra visit is a variation.
Seasonal commissioning. Heating and cooling systems may need a return visit in the opposite season. Check whether it is in or out.
Cleaning, flushing and water treatment. Pre-commission cleaning, chemical dosing and disinfection are easy to leave out and hard to skip.
Testing and certification. Electrical test certificates and other sign-offs that building control or the client will ask for.
O&M manuals, as-built drawings and training. Often thin or excluded, and always needed for handover.
Warranties. Check when the warranty starts. "12 months from installation" can run out before your defects period ends. Check whether collateral warranties are offered at all.

Design responsibility and interfaces

Gaps between packages are where nobody owns the cost, so they end up with the main contractor.

Design responsibility. "Installation only, design by others" or "no design responsibility accepted". On a design and build job, that design risk stays with you unless another package takes it.
Coordination drawings. Builder's work drawings, coordinated services drawings and surveys are often excluded or limited.
Controls and BMS. "Controls by specialist" or "BMS integration excluded" can leave plant that runs but does not talk to anything.
Fire stopping around services. Who seals the holes the services pass through is a frequent argument. Decide it at tender, not on site.
Final connections. "Final connections to equipment supplied by others excluded" catches kitchen equipment, lifts and anything free-issued.
Utility connections. Supply authority charges for electricity, gas and water mains are usually excluded and can be large.

Programme and working conditions

These read like small print, but each one is priced on an assumption about how the job will run.

Working hours. "Normal working hours, Monday to Friday" means out-of-hours, weekend and night work is extra.
Phasing and mobilisations. "Based on continuous working" or "single mobilisation" does not survive a phased programme or an occupied building.
Access. "Assumes clear, unobstructed access to work areas" puts the cost of other trades being in the way on you.
Occupied or live premises. Working around tenants or live systems is often excluded or carries a premium.
Asbestos and unforeseen conditions. "Any asbestos encountered will be treated as a variation" is standard on refurbishment work. Make sure your survey covers the service routes.

Commercial terms

The last page of a quote can rewrite the deal behind the price.

Price validity. "Valid for 30 days" on a tender that takes three months to award means the price you levelled may not be the price you get.
Fluctuations. "Subject to material price fluctuations", often on copper, steel or cable, turns a fixed price into an estimate.
Drawing revisions. "Based on drawings rev C" makes every later revision a potential variation.
Payment terms, retention and LADs. Quotes may set their own payment terms, refuse retention, or cap or exclude liquidated damages. Compare these with your subcontract terms, not just with other quotes.
Whose terms and conditions apply. "Subject to our standard terms" matters. Under English law, courts usually apply the "last shot": the terms sent last before work starts tend to win. Make sure your order or subcontract clearly states that your terms apply and the quote's do not. This is general information, not legal advice. (source)
VAT and provisional sums. VAT excluded is normal. Provisional sums inside a quote are not a price; they are a placeholder for one.

How to check a quote before you level it

Run this on every quote before the prices go into your tender analysis.

Read the last page first. Footnotes, clarifications and terms before the summary total.
Search the PDF for the giveaway words: excl, by others, not included, assumes, based on, subject to, provisional, valid.
List every hit in one schedule, one column per supplier, mapped to the relevant section of the spec.
Compare the lists, not just the totals. A low price with a long exclusions list is not low.
Decide each gap: get it included, carry it yourself and price it, or write it into the subcontract as a qualification.
Put the agreed position in the subcontract order, so the quote's footnotes cannot override it later.

Steps 2 to 4 are what Subcamber does for you. It reads each quote against the engineer's spec, quotes the supplier's exact words with the page they are on, and lines the gaps up across suppliers.

FAQ

What is the difference between an exclusion and a qualification?

An exclusion says an item is not in the price. A qualification sets a condition the price depends on, such as "based on a single visit" or "assumes free use of the main contractor's hoist". Both shift cost or risk to the main contractor.

What does BWIC mean?

Builder's work in connection: the building work that services need, such as holes, chases, plinths, making good and sealing penetrations. The main contractor usually does it on behalf of the M&E subcontractor. (source)

What is the difference between general and special attendance?

General attendance is support the main contractor provides to every trade, such as welfare, scaffolding, temporary power, hoists and waste disposal. Special attendance is support one trade asks for, such as a dedicated hoist or a plinth. (source)

Who is responsible for fire stopping around M&E services?

It depends on the contract, which is why it is a common gap. Agree it at tender and write it into the subcontract, rather than leaving it to site.