A take-off from a tender pack is the right starting point when you have a designer involved, the drawings are coordinated and the specification is reasonably complete. We can review the pack, raise design queries, send out sub-contractor packages and produce a clear, broken-down take-off you and your contractor can work from.

A take-off from a site visit is the right approach for smaller jobs where there is no designer on the team — permitted developments, kitchens, bathrooms, refurbishment-only work. We meet the client, draw down a specification on the spot and price what we can see.

The biggest mistake we see in Devon is using one method when the project really needs the other. The right answer for an extension in Yelverton is rarely the right answer for a barn in Lifton.