Subcontract and Specials Markup

When your project includes subcontractor quotations or specialist work (such as fire alarm, data cabling, or CCTV), these items appear on the summary table under the Subcon & Specials line. Markup for these items is handled differently from standard materials because each quotation may need a different percentage.

Why the on-cost box is locked

On the main summary table, you will notice that you cannot type directly into the On Cost % cell for the Subcon & Specials row. This is by design -- because you may have several different subcontractor quotations, each requiring a different markup percentage, the software prevents you from entering a single blanket value on this row.

Instead, you must mark up each quotation individually using the Breakdowns tab.

Marking up subcontractor quotations

1. 1

   On the summary table, click the Breakdowns tab along the top of the screen.

2. 2

   Select Sub Contract & Specials from the sub-tabs. You will see a list of all subcontractor and specialist quotations entered during takeoff.

3. 3

   Enter your desired markup percentage in the On Cost % column for each quotation. For example, you might apply 5% to a large mechanical subcontract but 10% to a smaller specialist quotation.

4. 4

   Return to the Summary Table tab. The Subcon & Specials row now shows a weighted average of all the individual percentages you entered. For example, if you applied 5% to an 18,000 quotation and 10% to a 6,000 quotation, the average shown would be approximately 6.25%.

Adding subcontractor quotations

If you need to add a subcontractor or specialist quotation that was not entered during takeoff, you can do so from the takeoff screen.

1. 1

   Go back to the Takeoff screen (stage 2).

2. 2

   Click the Subcon & Specials button on the left-hand toolbar. A list of specialist categories appears.

3. 3

   Select the appropriate category (e.g. Fire Alarm, CCTV, Data Cabling). If the category you need does not exist, click Add New at the bottom of the list to create a custom category.

4. 4

   Enter the quotation details:

   • Description -- a brief description (e.g. "Fire alarm quotation").
   • Quantity -- typically 1 for a lump sum quotation.
   • Hours -- any supervision hours you need to allow.
   • Amount -- the total value of the quotation.
5. 5

   Click Confirm. The quotation is now part of your project and will appear on the Breakdowns tab when you return to the summary table.

Presetting default subcontract markup

If you typically apply the same markup to subcontractor work, you can preset it so it is filled in automatically on new projects.

1. 1

   From the home screen, go to Tools > Miscellaneous File.

2. 2

   Locate the subcontract markup percentage field and enter your standard value (e.g. 5 for 5%).

3. 3

   Press Exit to save. New projects will have this percentage pre-filled for all subcontract quotations.

How subcontract markup flows through the summary

The subcontract and specials markup follows the same cost-to-sell path as other categories:

1. The net cost of each quotation is totalled on the Subcon & Specials row.
2. Your individual on-cost percentages are applied, and the weighted average is shown.
3. The marked-up total feeds into the overall project subtotal.
4. General overhead and profit (if used) are then applied on top of this subtotal, just like any other category.

Next steps

• Material on-cost percentages -- apply different on-cost percentages to material categories.
• Section markup -- apply different markup to each section of your project.
• Cost code markup -- group and mark up materials by your own cost code categories.