What the factor covers
A coefficient is a numerical factor covering costs not included in price-book unit prices, such as general and administrative and other overhead, insurance and bonding. Contractors bid their coefficient or coefficients. It is separate from the quantity of work and the description of the selected task.[1][2]
Book unit prices include direct material, labor and equipment costs, but not indirect costs or profit. The job order calculation multiplies each selected item’s unit price by its quantity and the contractor’s coefficient. Add the resulting line amounts to obtain the total.
One corridor, separate pricing decisions
Illustrative example, not real pricing: a school district will replace damaged ceiling tiles and repaint a corridor during a holiday break. Suppose one selected painting line uses a unit price of $100, a quantity of 10 book units and an applicable coefficient of 1.20. These are invented inputs solely to show the arithmetic, not actual book prices or bid recommendations.
The measured work and selected entry establish the quantity; the solicitation’s hours category establishes which factor to use. Keep those decisions separate. A change in the painted area affects the quantity, while a change in proposed working hours may require a different category review.
| Input or step | Illustrative value |
|---|---|
| Unit price | $100 |
| Quantity | 10 book units |
| Applicable coefficient | 1.20 |
| Unit price × quantity | $100 × 10 = $1,000 |
| Line amount after coefficient | $1,000 × 1.20 = $1,200 |
Normal and other than normal working hours
Solicitations may use multiple coefficients, including categories for normal working hours and other than normal working hours. Work outside normal hours is generally expected to carry a higher coefficient. Those categories must be matched to the proposed work conditions.[1][3]
Do not classify the corridor job from the words “holiday break.” Record the proposed dates and work hours, then compare them with the solicitation’s definitions. A school being unoccupied tells you about access; it does not, by itself, identify the applicable pricing category.
Show the category name and actual applicable factor beside the priced entry. If the school changes the available hours, identify the affected work and review the category before revising the proposal. Do not replace a factor silently while leaving an outdated schedule in the scope.
- Find every requested coefficient category and its definition.
- Compare the proposed corridor work hours with those definitions.
- Record the factor and category used for each affected calculation.
- Resolve uncertain access or hours before finalizing the proposal.
- Recheck the category when a scope or schedule revision changes the conditions.
Separate a quantity revision from a factor revision
In the hypothetical painting line, the $1,200 amount is the result of all three inputs. It does not prove that the task selection, measured quantity or category is correct. Verify each input independently before accepting the calculated amount.
If the owner adds adjoining surfaces, update the written painting limits and supporting takeoff. Recalculate the line with the revised quantity and the applicable factor. Preserve the change record so the reviewer can see that more work, rather than an unexplained rate change, produced the difference.
If the proposed hours change instead, compare the revised hours with the category definition and use the factor required for those conditions. Keep the quantity unchanged unless the physical scope also changes. A review should be able to distinguish the schedule decision from the measurement decision.
Non-prepriced work is a separate category
Non-prepriced items are work not in the book and generally carry a coefficient above 1.00. Identify these tasks separately from book selections and from working-hours categories. Do not assume a missing task can be priced with whichever factor was used on a nearby entry.[3]
Describe the work, retain the supporting information required by the pricing instructions and state the proposed pricing basis explicitly. For the corridor, first confirm whether an associated task is covered by a selected entry. If it is not represented in the book, document that finding instead of substituting an approximate entry.
Check the proposal and carry it into the order
For each corridor entry, the reviewer should find the actual book reference, unit price, quantity support, category, coefficient and calculated amount. Resolve missing information against that specific input. “Please explain the factor used for these hours” is more actionable than “the total looks high.”
The contractor should identify any revised input and return a proposal matching the current scope. Before issuance, confirm that the approved work window and priced category agree. Keep the final pricing and scope in the issued job package so later decisions can be compared with what was ordered.
Programs vary; check your solicitation and contract for requirements and authority to proceed.