Building Terms
Building term definitions, organised by category:
Building Terms: Surveying / Professional
- Bills of quantities
- A set of description of the materials and labour needed for construction work. Bills of quantities are prepared by a quantity surveyor for tendering purposes. They provide a common basis for contractors when estimating prices, as well as in the settlement of the final account.
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- Conditions of contract
- A contract document which describes contract matters in detail. It can have many clauses, covering rights and obligations of interested parties, usually taken from a standard form of contract.
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- Contingency sum
- A provisional amount in bills of quantities for unforeseeable work.
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- Direct labour
- Tradesmen and labourers employed immediately by the client or his agent, without the involvement of a contractor.
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- Domestic sub-contractor
- A sub-contractor selected by the contractor
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- Estimate
- The probable cost of project, usually arrived at using bills of quantities and applying a margin.
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- Fix only
- To install objects supplied and delivered to site by the client.
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- Main contractor.
- The contractor who has the main contract with the client and is thus responsible for all work on site, including that of sub-contractors. This is typically facilitated through a site foreman.
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- Nominated sub-contractor
- A company nominated by the client, not the main contractor. They are directly responsible to the client, not to the main contractor.
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- Nominated supplier
- A supplier selected by the client.
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- Overheads
- The costs of utilities, accounting, director's fees, etc., which cannot fairly be charged to one job and must therefore be distributed as a percentage over the flat cost of all items in a contract.
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- Practical completion
- The stage at which a project is ready for handover. It must be reasonably fit for occupation, and minor defects may still be put right provided they cause no inconvenience to the owner. The issue of the certificate of practical completion starts the defects liability period, although it is not uncommon for the commissioning of services to continue for some time afterwards.
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- Pre-contract stage
- The time before work begins on site. Tendering, sub-contracting, pre-ordering etc.
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- Preliminaries
- The project administration and site equipment required for work to go ahead or to be properly completed, but not part of the work. The cost of preliminaries is often partly reimbursed by an advance. This typically includes office overheads, giving notices, paying fees, taking out insurance, removing rubbish etc.
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- Provisional sum
- An amount of money in bills of quantities to provide for items or work for which an exact price cannot be obtained or which will be subject to re-appraisal.
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- Special attendance
- Use of the main contractor's plant or equipment by a sub-contractor normally charged per hour.
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- Sub-contractor
- A company or an individual employed by the main contractor to perform a sub-contract. The client can also select nominated sub-contractors
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- Supply and fix
- A process whereby the same firm supplies and installs materials.
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- Variation
- A change in the quantity or quality of, or time allowed for, the work agreed to in a contract.
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