Submittals and substitutions: pricing what happens after award

Submittals are the product data, samples, drawings and closeout documents the architect reviews before you order or install — the spec's Part 1 lists them. Substitutions are requests to use a product other than the one specified; many projects only consider them before bids are due, through a formal prior-approval request. Both take office time, samples and schedule, so price them during bidding rather than discovering them after award.

By Michael Reddy, IntelBid

After this lesson you can

List the submittals a flooring spec requires and what each costs
Build submittal review time into material lead times
Use substitution requests at the right moment, or price the specified product

What do flooring specs usually ask for?

Submittal	What it is	Cost to you
Product data	Manufacturer data sheets for each product, adhesive and accessory	Office time
Samples	Physical samples of each color and product, sometimes in multiple sets	Sample costs, shipping, time
Shop drawings	Seaming diagrams for sheet goods or broadloom, pattern and layout drawings	Drafting or layout time
Test reports	Moisture and pH results, flammability or slip-resistance data	Testing cost if yours, office time
Qualification data	Installer certifications and experience	Office time; certification costs
Mockup	An installed sample area approved before the main install	Labor and material
Closeout submittals	Maintenance data, warranties, attic stock transmittals	Office time; attic stock

Why submittals affect price and schedule

You usually can't order until submittals are approved. Review and resubmittal time stacks on top of the manufacturer's lead time.
Rejected submittals cost twice. A resubmittal is another round of samples and another wait.
Long lead times meet late approvals. If carpet tile has a long lead time and approval arrives late, your install date slips — or you pay for faster freight.
Submittal procedures live in Division 01 (often 01 33 00): number of copies, electronic formats, review periods and whether the GC reviews before the architect.

Put submittal assumptions in your proposal

State that your schedule assumes submittal approval within a stated period, and that material lead times start at approval. It turns a late approval into a schedule conversation instead of your problem.

How do substitutions work?

A substitution is a request to use a product other than what's specified — to save cost, shorten a lead time, or use a product your crews install better. When and how you can ask is set by the specs, usually Section 01 25 00 (Substitution Procedures) and the instructions to bidders.

When	How it usually works	What to do
Before bids are due	A prior-approval request by a stated deadline; approved products are added by addendum so every bidder can use them	Submit early with data showing the product is equal; don't price it unless it's approved
After award	Often limited to products that are unavailable, discontinued or can't meet the schedule	Expect to justify the request and show no cost or schedule harm to the owner
“Or approved equal” specs	Equal products may be proposed, but the architect decides	Price the specified product unless approval is in writing

Never price an unapproved substitute as your base bid

If you price a cheaper product that isn't approved, you'll either install the specified product at your lower price or lose the argument. Offer the substitute as a voluntary alternate instead: “Deduct $X to substitute Product B for Product A, subject to approval.”

Budget the paperwork

On a small job, submittals may be an afternoon. On a large multi-product job with samples, mockups and seaming diagrams, they can be days of office time plus material. Either recover them in your overhead or, for heavy jobs, price them as part of the job — just don't leave them out.

What are submittals in construction?

Documents and samples a contractor provides for the architect's review before ordering or installing: product data, samples, shop drawings, test reports, qualifications, and closeout documents such as warranties and maintenance data.

What is a prior approval substitution request?

A request made before bids are due asking to use a product other than the one specified. Approved products are usually added by addendum so all bidders can price them.

Can I substitute flooring products after award?

Sometimes, but many specs limit post-award substitutions to unavailable or discontinued products or schedule problems, and require you to show the substitute is equal at no extra cost to the owner.

Key points

Submittals take time, samples and money — price them.
Material lead times start when submittals are approved, not when you win.
Offer unapproved substitutes as voluntary alternates, never as your base bid.

In IntelBid · Won project → correspondence

Submittals tracked on the job

Once a job is won, submittal correspondence in IntelBid is logged against the project under its own Submittal category, so the history of what was sent, returned and resubmitted stays with the job rather than scattered across inboxes.

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About the author. Michael Reddy builds IntelBid, bid management software for commercial flooring subcontractors. These lessons come from the bid desk: how the work is priced, won and paid for.