Construction
Refurbishment and renovation
Small jobs, many at once, and clients living on site.
Refurbishment combines the worst of two worlds: construction documentation plus a client who is a private individual or a residents' association, who neither knows the sector nor has any reason to. And often with a grant involved that has to be justified months later.
The four fronts
| Front | What moves | Module |
|---|---|---|
| Trades coming and going | Their documentation, each with their own | Trackline |
| The client or association | Quote, acceptance, sign-offs | Consigne |
| The building's condition | Before, during and after | SmartCheck |
| The grant, if any | Dated execution evidence | SmartCheck during the works |
Important
Prior condition prevents the most arguments and is the most forgotten. Refurbishment works on something that already existed and almost always had defects: without dated before photos, any pre-existing crack ends up being yours.
A private client changes the rules
They do not read technical documentation, cannot tell one trade from another, and will remember what they were told verbally. That is why a signed quote with the scope inside is worth more here than on any other kind of works: it is the only thing fixing what was included and what was not.
Watch out
In residents' associations, whoever signs must be able to sign for the association. An agreement with the chair without a members' resolution is exactly what gets disputed when the levy arrives.
Worth knowing
If you run several refurbishments at once, building them as one process makes the fifth cost a fraction of the first. The scope changes; the list of trades and documents, little.
›What about small one-day jobs?
A signed quote and sign-off still pay off; the rest is overhead.
›How do I justify a grant?
By certifying evidence during the works, not gathering it at the end.
›Does it help with communications to the association?
Important communications are worth certifying on the day they are made.
A real case
The situation
A refurbishment firm disputes with a client whether a crack was caused by the works.
What you do
- Retrieves the certified photos of the prior condition
What you get
The crack was already there, the argument ends in an afternoon, and the repair does not come out of their pocket.
The situation
Something unforeseen appears on opening a wall.
What you do
- Records the finding with a photo at the moment
What you get
The extra cost is justified by what was seen.
The situation
The client says it was already like that.
What you do
- Captures the condition before starting
What you get
What was found is distinguished from what was done.
The situation
Changes are agreed verbally during the works.
What you do
- Puts each change on record in writing
What you get
The final invoice surprises nobody.
The situation
Work happens in an occupied home.
What you do
- Records the condition of what is not being touched
What you get
Other people's damage is not inherited.
The situation
At the end there is a dispute about what is outstanding.
What you do
- Runs the snagging list with status
What you get
Close-out advances on data.
This article answers
- refurbishment documentation
- works in residential buildings documentation
- renovation grant justification
- trades documentation on a refurbishment