A yard quotation is a description of scope that happens to have numbers attached. Read the scope first. If the description of the work is vague, the price is meaningless regardless of how precise it looks — and on timber hulls, vague scope is where every cost overrun begins.
The four kinds of line you will see
| Line type | What it means | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Firm item | Defined work, defined price. Haul and relaunch, anode renewal, a specified number of antifoul coats. | That the definition is complete — coats, area, preparation standard. |
| Provisional sum | An allowance for expected but undefined work, e.g. plank renewal. | What basis the allowance uses, and what happens when it is exceeded. |
| Rate item | Priced per unit — per plank, per metre of seam, per man-day. | What a “unit” includes: fitting only, or fitting plus fairing plus fastening? |
| Exclusion | Work explicitly not covered. | Read these hardest. Exclusions are where the real scope boundary sits. |
Haul and hard-standing
Haul, relaunch and time on the hard are usually the most straightforward lines in the document. What deserves attention is how time on the hard is charged and what happens if the programme extends. A quotation that includes a fixed number of days on the hard, with a daily rate after that, is transparent. One that is silent on the point will produce an argument in week six. Because a foreshore haul is tide-bound, ask also what happens if a window is missed for weather.
The inspection line is the most important one
On any hull where structure is in question, there should be a distinct line for opening and inspection — removing ceiling, cleaning bilges, sounding, drawing fastening samples — priced as work in its own right. This is the line that owners most often try to remove, on the reasonable-sounding basis that they are already paying for a survey. It is exactly the wrong economy: without it, everything downstream is priced on assumption.
The tell of an honest quotation
It says clearly which prices are firm and which cannot be firm yet, and it explains the mechanism for converting the second kind into the first. A document where every line looks equally certain is a document that has hidden its uncertainty rather than removed it.
Plank, frame and fastening lines
These are where the money is on a real repair, and where definitions matter most. “Replace plank” can mean anything from fitting a rough board to fitting, fairing, fastening, seam-preparing and priming a plank that matches its neighbours in species and grain. Ask what is included. Ask whether the price assumes stock on hand or stock to be sourced. Ask how a plank is measured — per plank, per metre, or per plank run.
The same applies to fastenings. Renewal by zone and renewal by individual failure are different jobs with different prices and very different outcomes, as set out in the article on fastenings and why timber hulls fail at the joints.
Caulking and seams
Seam work is normally quoted per metre, and the variable that matters is what condition the plank edges are in. Caulking sound edges is one job. Repairing worn or over-caulked edges before they can hold new material is another, considerably larger one. A quotation that prices seam metres without stating an assumption about edge condition is carrying a risk nobody has named. The distinction is explained further under hull repair and caulking.
Coatings
Check the number of coats, the preparation standard, the products, and whether the price assumes the existing coating can be overcoated or must be removed. Removal back to bare timber is a large job that occasionally becomes necessary and should never be an unstated assumption in either direction.
Where scope drift actually hides
- Undefined units“Per plank” without stating what a plank job includes.
- Silent accessWork priced without pricing the removal and reinstatement needed to reach it.
- Assumed conditionPrices that only hold if what is underneath turns out to be sound.
- Missing reinstatementCeiling, sole and joinery taken out for access, with nobody having priced putting it back.
- Open-ended time on the hardNo stated allowance, no stated overrun rate.
Currency, payment and change
Quotations from this desk are issued in USD, following a written scope and an inspection. Payment is structured against milestones rather than dates, so a stage is paid when it is complete and inspectable. Variations follow a written change-order route — description, photograph, price, approval — with small items batched weekly. That mechanism is not administrative decoration; it is the only thing that keeps a scope honest once a hull is open. The full approach is described under refit and restoration.