PC price?

[amwc]

Just had a quote for some building work and each list price says PC price -
Just wondering what PC price meant?
and what are the dangers of accepting a PC price?
Cheers

 

[^woody^]

PC is Prime cost, and is used to identify a fixed sum for an item (eg a bathroom suite) or item of work built up from labour and materials (batroom suite supplied and fitted)

It depends on the context the tenderer is using it it.

Normally its an item fixed in price by the client or from a nominated supplier or contractor, and should therefore be the same figure in each tender.

Its different to provisional sum which is an allowance made in the price for an item or item of work which is really an estimate and will vary.

It sounds like whoever has prepared that quote is not using PC in the correct way

The prime cost can vary if the actual cost differs

 

[Richard C]

In all the years I've worked with both mechanical handling & building contracts, PC price or PC sum has always meant Provisional Contract price/sum!

A Provisional Contract price is sometimes unavoidable where the requirements/cost for some items or aspects of the work cannot be acurately estimated or known at the time of quoting. I would not expect or accept a contract based on the whole quote/tender being provisional; in my view signing such a contract would leave you wide open to the price escalating to whatever the builder fancies charging you & then the arguments will start!

 

[^woody^]

Under all the standard forms (JCT) and SMM7 there are prime cost items and provisional sums and they have distinct contractural and quantity surveying meanings.

 

[Richard C]

Most of the contracts were running in house T’s & C’s (Post Office); I have used standard terms FIDIC & JCT (don’t like it for anything other than building work though) on a few contracts, 2 of them with Mac’s & Wimpey but have not used SMM7.

I don’t dispute your right but I’ve never been brought to book over the definition of the term PC sum which we were almost certainly using before JCT even came into being; builders always have to be awkward!

 

[Shytalkz]

I'm with Woody on this one: equals prime cost = fixed sum for a specific item in the spec/tender dox; provisonal is not fixed, can vary.

 

[Richard C]

Points taken, you live & learn; building contracts were never my main concern but I’m a little surprised to hear a definition been used in the mechanical handling industry for donkeys appears to be the complete opposite of how builders & QS use it.

Back to the OP’s question; as the 2 definitions would appear to mean completely the opposite, I would suggest you ask the company to clarify exactly what is their definition of a PC price just to avoid the likelihood of any nasty surprises! I would be very interested to hear what they say so do post back.