SECTION 01 7700 - CLOSEOUT
A complete closeout package is often the only thing standing between a contractor and their payday once the work is complete. A finding by KPMG, Five Pillars of Major Project Success, reported that 31% of projects in the last three years were completed within 10% of the budget, while 25% completed within 10% of their original deadlines. This means that over 70% of projects did not meet their expected budget or deadline.
STONEMARK Construction Management concluded in an article on closeouts: “Thorough documentation protects against potential risks from future disputes on scope, contracts, warranties, or expectations. It verifies that all project requirements have been fulfilled and establishes future accountability for maintenance and warranties. Complete and well-organized documentation underscores the project team’s credibility.”
Being paid on time and elevating your company’s credibility are good incentives to start the closeout process as early as possible.
A closeout package should begin with your Submittal Package. One Spec-ID customer suggested, “Our product closeout package should be created at the same time as our submittal package on small jobs.” This is ambitious but directionally correct.
Contract documents contain multiple critical pieces of information to create a submittal package. Spec-ID reviewed over 300 flooring finish schedules and found a 30%- 60% error rate on every project. For estimators that manually tried to validate flooring finish schedules, we found that 10% of the product errors remained at the time of bid. These errors were discovered, unfortunately, after the projects were awarded.
And then there are intentional changes (Change Orders) to a project. Levelset wrote in part, “When change orders are requested, get them in writing! If there are delays or cost overruns, make a note of them. Seriously – any detail that might eventually affect payment or could cause a dispute should be documented.” Every product change order, especially those impacted by product errors in the original documents, should initiate a new submittal package that includes flooring samples, product labels, and technical documents. Therefore, when you keep accurate records of all submittals, you will improve your ability to accurately and efficiently generate your closeout package.
Flooring contractors are typically one of the last trades on the project and that compresses your timeline to submit a closeout package. So you become a highly trusted professional when you help a GC close out their project on time. At high trust contracting companies, 4 out of 5 projects are for repeat customers, potentially increasing gross margins by 2-7%. [Autodesk + FMI]
Bottom Line: When your company is chasing details because of errors and rework, it impacts your entire team and reduces their ability to pursue additional work or multiple projects. For negotiated or bid work, establish a process that begins with accurate product information. Throughout the project, submit all required samples and documents for change orders, “to-be-determined” (TBD) products, as well as Safety Data Sheets documents. Each submittal package should be identified, date-stamped, and archived. Following this process will ensure your closeout package is current, on time, and on budget. Submittal and Closeout packages that arrive complete and on time give you leverage over your competition and provide additional leverage to expect final payment without delays.
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Spec-ID hosts the industry’s largest flooring product library, technical documents, and images. Each project has unlimited, automated Submittal packages and Closeout packages. With unlimited users we allow your team to track every product change with accuracy and efficiency.
Estimator Assistant™, a leading-edge tool that virtually eliminates manual errors associated with product validation even before you measure the job. Your complete Spec-ID finish schedule can be uploaded into well-known measuring software. Once a project is awarded it only requires one “click” to be converted to Project Management Assistant™, eliminating re-work while automating sample orders, product labels, and over 23 technical, project, and sales packages.
Spec-ID’s Product Submittal and Closeout Packages are automated, intuitive, streamlined, and completely branded to meet your exacting standards - consistently and quickly.
“I have to tell you I’m not a fan of change “stuck in my old way”! What an absolutely fantastic product you have for our industry. What used to take me 2 days of torture now takes 20 min and its done!
I did closeout’s this morning for a big college project and it was done in 15 min.”
Jason West
Pro Carpet Inc.
