How to Review a Construction BOQ Before Approval

A total price is insufficient to judge proposal completeness. A BOQ is a measured list that still depends on drawings, specifications, measurement rules, site conditions, assumptions and responsibility boundaries.

How to assess this decision in practice

Start with completeness rather than price. Walk from drawings and specifications into BOQ items so unpriced work, duplication and overly broad descriptions become visible before commercial comparison.

Rates should be read with productivity, waste, equipment, access, materials, labour, overhead, taxes, risk and quantity. A price difference is not automatically wrong, but its basis should be explainable.

What to check

Use this list as a starting point. The depth of review should still match the project stage, decision value, documents and risks.

1. Match the drawing, specification and BOQ revisions forming the proposal baseline.
2. Check units, quantities, rates, totals, rounding and zero-value items.
3. Separate provisional sums, allowances, taxes, contingency, fees, owner work and exclusions.
4. Flag work shown on drawings without a clear item or responsibility.
5. Test price changes, escalation, progress measurement, retention and variation payment.

Turn the review into a recorded decision

1. Set the baseline: documents, conditions, dates, parties, reviewed areas and access limitations.
2. Separate observed facts, third-party statements, assumptions, risks and professional opinions.
3. For each issue, define the required decision, authority, action owner, target and closure evidence.
4. Retain document versions and approvals so later changes can be compared against the correct basis.

Questions before deciding

A useful answer should be traceable to documents, site conditions, a responsible party or a clearly stated assumption boundary.

• Are all bidders using the same baseline?
• Which items are most sensitive to quantity or specification change?
• Who carries necessary work that is not listed?

How to document the outcome

Record information sources, review dates, documents read, people interviewed, inaccessible conditions, key findings, decisions, owners and follow-up deadlines. Separate facts, third-party statements, assumptions and recommendations.

For legal, structural, geotechnical, tax, permitting, land, design or specialist-testing decisions, use appropriately authorised and qualified professionals.