Li Tao | Steel Structure Expert, China
To request a useful steel structure quotation, send a coordinated drawing package, the project location and design basis, a clearly defined supply scope, technical specifications, and the required delivery sequence. Ask each supplier to list the documents and revisions priced, the assumptions made, the exclusions, and the conditions that could change the price or programme.
If some information is unavailable, identify it openly and request a budget quotation with stated assumptions. The objective is to make the uncertainty visible before a price is treated as a purchasing commitment.
This guide is for factory owners, developers, general-contractor procurement teams and engineers buying fabricated structural steel for overseas projects. The checklist is a suggested procurement workflow. The project’s responsible engineer and the applicable contract determine technical requirements and approval authority.
1. Decide whether you need a budget estimate or a defined-scope quotation
An early budget estimate can support feasibility decisions before the structure is fully designed. It should identify the concept geometry, preliminary quantities, assumed materials, included services and unresolved design inputs. Request the conditions for updating that estimate when the design develops. Avoid an unsupported promise that an early estimate will fall within a universal accuracy percentage.
A defined-scope quotation needs an identifiable technical and commercial baseline. That can include drawings, specifications, a bill of quantities, agreed clarifications and a schedule of exclusions. The documents should explain what happens if actual quantities or requirements change.
Before issuing the request for quotation, or RFQ, state which decision the price will support:
- Feasibility budgeting: compare concepts and identify missing information.
- Tender comparison: evaluate suppliers against the same package and assumptions.
- Purchase-order preparation: resolve material qualifications and agree the scope and change process.
A quotation can be detailed while still containing provisional items. Ask the supplier to mark those items individually, rather than hiding them in a general note that everything is subject to final drawings.
2. Issue one coordinated RFQ package
Give the package an issue number and date. Include a document register so the buyer, engineer and suppliers can establish whether they are discussing the same information. The following checklist is a practical starting point; expand it for the project.
| RFQ input | What the buyer should provide | What to check in the supplier’s response |
|---|---|---|
| Project and use | Country, site location, building use, procurement stage and responsible technical contact | The intended project and use are identified; unknowns are listed |
| Geometry and interfaces | General arrangements, grids, spans, levels, sections, openings and available interface drawings | The priced dimensions and interface assumptions match the RFQ |
| Design basis | Engineer-issued loading criteria, governing codes and editions, performance requirements and design responsibilities | No unapproved local-code or loading assumptions are presented as settled facts |
| Drawing and model register | Document numbers, titles, revisions, issue dates and status; model version where used | The quotation cites the exact package and any later clarifications |
| Supply boundary | Included steelwork, connection items, secondary members, finishes, documentation and services | Inclusions, exclusions and separately priced options are explicit |
| Technical specification | Material requirements, connection requirements, corrosion/fire protection and required inspection/documentation | Exceptions and proposed alternatives are identified for technical review |
| Quantities and measurement | Available bill of quantities and the intended quantity/payment basis | Estimated versus firm quantities and the method of reconciliation are clear |
| Delivery and programme | Delivery point, proposed trade term, required batches and decision milestones | The price and schedule identify their commercial and technical dependencies |
Keep a separate missing-information list. For each gap, identify its owner, the temporary pricing assumption, the date needed and the decision it prevents. This lets the procurement team distinguish a manageable allowance from an unresolved requirement that could change the structure.
3. Define the steel supply boundary item by item
The words “steel building package” can cover different things in different quotations. List the actual items and interfaces instead of relying on that label.
For example, separate primary frames, secondary steel, bracing, connection plates, supplied bolts, anchor assemblies, stairs, handrails, decking, roof and wall systems, and accessories. Include only the items relevant to the enquiry. State whether coatings, fire protection, packing, engineering coordination, detailing and technical guidance are included or separately priced.
For anchor assemblies, establish who supplies the assemblies, who provides the setting-out information and who verifies the foundation interface. For cladding, identify whether the enquiry includes only structural supports or also the complete envelope package. For fire protection, define whether the price covers factory application, site application by others, or an interface requiring further coordination.
AISC’s general-contractor resources use responsibility checklists and a matrix to help teams clarify steelwork roles. Their useful procurement lesson is to name the party responsible for each deliverable and interface. Apply the project’s actual appointments and contractual arrangements; do not assume a US industry resource assigns responsibilities on every overseas project. AISC general-contractor resources
Ask for a simple response against each scope item: included, excluded, provisional, or optional. A blank cell needs clarification.
4. Add the inputs that matter to your building type
A common RFQ template needs project-specific additions. The examples below identify information to obtain from the appropriate designer or equipment supplier. They are not a substitute for structural design.
Industrial plants
Identify process equipment, service openings, suspended services and any cranes affecting the building. Where cranes are involved, obtain the relevant crane supplier’s loading and interface information, together with the engineer’s performance criteria. A lifting-capacity figure alone leaves important pricing inputs unresolved.
Warehouses and logistics buildings
Clarify clear-height requirements, dock and door openings, mezzanines, conveyors and any structural interfaces with storage systems. Tell the designer about intended roof-mounted services or future equipment. For cold-chain facilities, coordinate the building-envelope and support interfaces with the specialist team.
Heavy-industry structures
Provide available equipment layouts and the supplier-issued loads and connection interfaces. For equipment frames and pipe racks, flag operating, maintenance or movement requirements that the responsible engineer has identified. Track information still awaited from process and equipment suppliers as separate RFQ qualifications.
Multi-storey steel frames
Coordinate floor systems, slab edges, stairs, cores, façade interfaces and service penetrations. Identify the engineer’s serviceability and fire-performance requirements. State who will complete the floor and façade interface details so the steel quotation does not silently assume that another package resolves them.
Large-span structures
Identify geometry, support conditions, cladding interfaces and project-specific movement or deflection criteria. Ask the engineering and logistics teams to coordinate proposed transport segments and site assembly interfaces before pricing is finalized. The appointed erection contractor must separately develop its construction methods and temporary-stability arrangements.
5. Specify performance and evidence early enough to price them
“Standard paint,” “equivalent steel” and “normal inspection” are incomplete pricing instructions. Ask the responsible technical team to define the relevant material properties, protective system, connection requirements and evidence to be supplied.
SteelConstruction.info explains that an execution specification combines drawings, general technical requirements and project-specific requirements. Its steelwork-specification guidance also identifies connection-design information and protective treatment as inputs needed by the steelwork contractor. This supports using a coordinated specification alongside the drawings. It does not mean the UK standards discussed on that page automatically govern another country’s project. Steelwork specification guidance
For the quotation, use a deliverables schedule to identify required calculations, drawings, material records, inspection reports and any purchaser review or witness activities. Ask suppliers to flag requirements they cannot yet price. Resolve technically significant qualifications with the authorized engineer before treating alternative offers as comparable.
Where a supplier proposes a different material or protection system, request a separate alternative identifying the proposed change and its implications. Preserve a quotation against the original requirements where practicable. The buyer can then evaluate the alternative without losing the baseline comparison.
This stage defines what evidence is included in the purchase. The later review of actual manufactured components and shipment records is covered in the steel structure pre-shipment inspection checklist.
6. Compare quotations on the same quantity and delivery basis
A rate per tonne can be useful, but only after the parties define the tonne and the scope attached to it. Ask whether the quantity is theoretical or measured, whether connection plates and bolts are included, and how changes will be reconciled. For lump-sum offers, identify the documents and assumptions supporting that sum.
Prepare a comparison sheet using the following sequence:
- Confirm the priced drawing issue and scope.
- Separate firm items, allowances and optional alternatives.
- Obtain a price or clarification for material omissions.
- Identify who bears each delivery and site-interface cost.
- Compare payment milestones, validity and change provisions as well as totals.
Do not enter zero for an excluded item. Mark it as unpriced until the responsible party has supplied a supported allowance or quotation. If an omission cannot yet be quantified, show that the total remains incomplete.
For export delivery, record the agreed Incoterms® rule, edition and precise named place or port. Ask the logistics team to clarify terminal handling, onward transport, unloading, customs responsibilities and insurance as relevant to the chosen arrangement. ICC’s guidance distinguishes the delivery/risk-transfer point from the destination to which transport is paid, particularly under the C rules. A price including freight therefore needs more explanation than the words “delivered price.” ICC delivery and risk-transfer guidance
Agree price, currency and payment conditions in the commercial documents as well. The procurement team should obtain appropriate trade or contractual advice for its actual route and transaction.
7. Control drawing changes from quotation to fabrication
Drawing revision control should start with the RFQ. Keep the quotation baseline identifiable even as design development continues.
A suggested change register should record:
- The previous and replacement document numbers and revisions
- A description of the change and affected members or interfaces
- Open technical questions and the authorized decision-maker
- The supplier’s stated quantity, price and programme implications
- The buyer’s commercial instruction and technical approval where required
- The fabrication documents and work packages affected
Keep technical approval, acceptance of a price change and authorization to proceed distinguishable in the record. Identify which documents are current, withdraw superseded copies from the relevant workstream and confirm that affected parties have received the revised issue.
AISC describes its Code of Standard Practice as a framework for shared understanding when contracting for structural steel. For a project adopting that code, consult the applicable edition and the contract’s provisions directly. The register above is a suggested coordination tool, not a reproduction of mandatory code clauses. AISC explanation of its Code of Standard Practice
Example: an opening changes after tender
Suppose a tender drawing is revised to enlarge a service opening after suppliers have priced the frame. This is an illustrative scenario, not a reported Zhonghengfeng project.
First, identify which quotations used the earlier revision. The responsible engineer determines the structural implications. The supplier then identifies affected detailing, materials and production status, with any proposed cost or schedule change. The buyer records the agreed instruction and the applicable fabrication release.
Until that review is complete, avoid assuming either that the change is free or that the original quotation remains valid for the revised scope. If any affected work has started, obtain a specific disposition for that work rather than simply replacing the drawing file.
8. Check readiness before turning the quotation into an order
Before award, the procurement lead and responsible technical team should be able to answer these questions:
- Which exact documents and clarifications define the price?
- Which technical qualifications remain unresolved, and who can decide them?
- Which quantities, costs or services are still provisional?
- Who owns each interface with foundations, equipment, envelope and site work?
- What must be received or approved before procurement, detailing and fabrication proceed?
- Which milestones mean factory completion, dispatch, arrival or site availability?
- How will changes be instructed, priced and recorded?
If an important answer is missing, keep it visible as an open item with an owner. Where an early or partial release is contemplated, define the precise scope, dependencies and approval route before proceeding. An RFQ package can develop in stages, but each purchasing decision needs a clear basis.
Frequently asked buyer questions
Can I request a steel structure quotation without structural drawings?
Yes, for an initial budget discussion. Provide the location, use, approximate geometry, known operating requirements and desired supply scope. Ask the supplier to state all assumptions and outstanding design inputs. Before relying on the price for an order, establish the technical baseline and the appointed engineer’s role.
Is a bill of quantities enough for comparable quotations?
Usually more context is needed. Quantities do not necessarily explain connections, finishes, interfaces, inspection requirements or design responsibility. Issue the available drawings and specifications with the quantities, and identify discrepancies for clarification.
Should every supplier price the same drawing revision?
Yes, for a direct comparison. Issue changes consistently to the suppliers involved and request revised quotations or written confirmation of the effect. Record suppliers that have not yet priced the change separately in the comparison.
Does a BIM model replace the drawing register?
It can be part of the information package, but the parties still need to identify its version, intended use and relationship to drawings and specifications. Agree which information governs and how conflicts will be resolved. Avoid treating an undated model link as a complete pricing baseline.
Who should approve connection-design assumptions?
Identify the party with authority under the project’s engineering appointments and contract. Ask the responsible structural engineer to clarify the connection-design scope, criteria and review process. A procurement email alone should not be treated as engineering approval.
How should I compare an alternative material with the specified material?
Request a clearly identified alternative and supporting technical information for the authorized engineer’s review. Keep its price and programme effect separate. Similar names or a single strength value do not establish suitability for the project.
When should a fabrication lead time begin?
The quotation should define its trigger. Possible dependencies include the agreed order conditions, required payment, material availability, complete design information and relevant approvals. Ask for separate milestones for detailing, review, fabrication and dispatch rather than relying on one unexplained duration.
What does overseas installation technical guidance include?
Clarify the particular deliverables, attendance arrangements and limits in the quotation. Technical guidance may support the appointed site team’s understanding of the supplied steelwork. The project must separately assign erection execution, lifting operations, temporary works and site-safety responsibilities.
Prepare your enquiry
Send the current drawings and revision register, project location, specifications, proposed supply scope and delivery requirements through the Zhonghengfeng project enquiry page. Mark unavailable information as pending and identify the person responsible for technical coordination.
Zhonghengfeng’s overseas service scope covers engineering coordination, detailing, factory fabrication, export delivery, and remote or on-site installation technical guidance. Overseas EPC and installation contracting are not included. The quotation should identify the services and deliverables agreed for the individual project.