In this guide 6 sections
A standard kit suits rooftop and small ground jobs where purlins, rails and clamps repeat. A project BOM suits large ground-mount sites where tilt, pile length and terrain change by row. Most fabricators run both, so the software must price kits fast and hold custom BOMs per project.
Where a fixed kit works well
A kit is a numbered set of rails, mid clamps, end clamps, hooks, base plates and fasteners for a stated roof type and module size. The quote is a lookup. You count modules and multiply.
Steel planning is easy because the kit repeats, so you can cut and galvanise stock ahead of orders. Dispatch is a packing list that never changes. Simple.
The weak point is the odd roof. A kit does not bend to a sloping sheet roof with a non-standard purlin gap. Offer a short list of tested roof types and say no to the rest, or price them as projects. Sales staff who stretch a kit to fit usually pay for it on site with extra cutting.
- Quote from module count and roof type
- Stock cut and galvanised ahead of orders
- One packing list per kit code
- Price list kept in one place
Where a project BOM earns its effort
A ground-mount site has rows on varying slopes, piles of different lengths, rafters cut to the site survey and a few special brackets near a transformer pad. No catalogue covers that, so you build the bill of materials from the layout drawing. Soil matters too. A pile test result can change the section or the embedment length after the order is signed.
The work is heavier, and the margin tends to sit here too. Every member has a section, a length, a quantity and a coating call-out. A change of tilt angle alters half the lines.
Revisions are the trouble. A customer moves a row, and the drawing, the BOM and the cutting list must all move together. Keep the old revision visible beside the new one. When the customer asks why steel tonnage rose, the answer sits in the difference, and you can show it in a minute.
How each choice changes steel and galvanising
Kits let you buy sections in bulk and batch the zinc dip. Project work needs steel per job, with offcut planning and a galvanising slot booked against the dispatch date. A late slot at the galvaniser delays the site, not just your shop.
Track the weight sent for coating, the weight returned and the pieces rejected for coating defects. Those three numbers show whether a quote held.
Mixed shops should keep kit stock and project steel in separate stores. Otherwise the cutting team will quietly use one for the other. Check galvanised thickness against the specification on delivery from the dip, not at the site gate, because rework is cheaper before the load is built.
- Section, grade and length per BOM line
- Coating specification per member
- Weight sent and weight returned
- Rejected pieces and rework route
What the quote and dispatch need
Kit quotes need a rate card. Project quotes need a costed BOM, a freight estimate and a clear note on what the customer supplies, such as piles or modules. Mixing the two in one Excel file is how wrong rates reach customers.
A kit ships complete. A project ships in lots matched to the site plan, so each lot needs its own packing list and a running balance of what is still to go. Ask the software to show both routes side by side for one enquiry. A buyer comparing a kit price with a custom structure quote deserves to see what drives the difference.
What the software must carry
It needs a kit master with fixed BOMs and a project BOM builder that copies a kit as a starting point. Both should flow into the same cutting list, galvanising schedule and packing list. Look for a cutting list that sorts by section and length, so the saw operator nests offcuts without a second sheet.
Run one real project and one real kit order through the software. If the shop floor still retypes lengths from a printout, the BOM feeds nothing. Fix that first. Write down who edits kit masters. If every engineer can change a rail length, the next kit order carries a silent error.
Kit versus BOM worksheet
Fill this in from the last twenty orders. Columns: order, kit or project, quote hours, steel tonnage, galvanising delay in days, dispatch lots and revisions after quote. Totals at the foot show which route costs more effort per tonne and which one you should price differently.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Can one product code cover both kits and projects?
Better not. Keep kit codes fixed and give each project BOM its own revision number, so a change never alters a kit by accident.
Should we galvanise before or after cutting?
Hot dip after fabrication is common for structures, but it depends on member size and the zinc bath. Ask your galvaniser and record the rule per member.
How do we stop quote mistakes on project jobs?
Cost from the BOM lines, not from a rule of thumb per kilowatt. Review every revision against the earlier quote.
Is a kit cheaper to produce?
Usually it is easier to plan, since steel and packing repeat. Whether it earns more depends on your own order mix and rates.