Placing bid for multi building inspection

I have the opportunity to place a bid with a state department to inspect multiple buildings for the local 4-H program. Where the heck to start… They are mostly interested in finding potential safety concerns to the 4-H members. I requested a list of the buildings so I can do a quick walk around and I have contacted my insurance carrier to ensure coverage.

Looking for ideas on how someone might put together a professional looking bid for this type of inspection request.

This is the list of building to inspect

“2 bathrooms
vanzee building
rabbit barn
cat barn
beef barn
sheep barn
goat barn
dog barn
horse barn x 2
4h office
swine barn
ffa barn?
llama/minihorses/horse barn
L barn
backler barn
E barn
poultry barn
potentially a 4H kitchen?
so… 17 barns that include 2 restrooms. I am not 100% positive on this list of barns.
I hope this is helpful information,
Thank you”

That is basically the information I have so far, not sure how to procede.

Thank you in advance for any help.
-Kyle

Kyle;

It depends on whats in the barn. I think the type of barns your inspecting probably have minimal electric and no plumbing.

I would think they are looking for a general condition of the structure’s. I would check if they have electric fencing and if they want those to be inspected.

Hard to price that out but I would think somewhere around 100/barn or 1700.00, include the bathrooms.

As far as a quote you can use the NACHI com agreement, just list what your inspecting in each barn.

IE. Scope of Work: Each barn to include roof, siding, windows, doors, foundation, structure, electrical, Also included is two bathrooms located at XXX, ETC.

Good luck, sound like a nice job.

Will there be sheep in the sheep barn?
I’m willing to travel if you need help.
I’ll bring my own boots.

Agree with Pete though I doubt there is electric fencing.

I would be prudent to go look around to see what your bidding on first.

Without knowing the size of these structures $100 each might be very low. I just did a commercial inspection with multiple buildings. Some were no more than pre built wood storage buildings and I was more than double that price.

Kyle,
I looked at your location. You are in the Tacoma area. It looks like there is the state fair grounds with all the buildings you mentioned.

Some of the buildings look to be large and with roof top HVAC equipment. Be very careful how you price this.

I agree 100%. Just giving examples to help him. Unless he comes back and gives us more info we’re doing just that…Guessing

The same guy has contacted numerous inspectors in this area for inspecting these buildings at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds. Very little information was given on what they want inspected. Unless someone is familiar with livestock buildings, they should not consider performing this type of inspection. There can be many unique items that “city folk” may never have seen. It is not a “home inspection”, it is a commercial inspection. Are roof inspections part of the deal? Got a bucket truck? It may very well take that to access some of the structures. This is the type of inspection that takes a walk through as well as specific directions from the client prior to attempting a bid. I didn’t want to drive the 70 miles one way without clear direction on what needed to be inspected. Good luck.

content://media/external/file/92370

non-sequitur. try again.

Hope the OP has good farming experience in building and function. :wink:

The “Van Zee” building is 6900 sq ft and used as the food court during the fair. It is used for swap meets, trade shows and animal training. Electrical is 60 (120v) and 13 (240v) receptacles, propane hook ups, 4 large roll up doors, one regular door, irrigation room, and possibly 3 phase power.

The other buildings all appear to be more animal oriented. That could present very interesting inspection issues.

I wonder how many of the receptacles throughout the area are GFCI protected. Are barns considered damp locations? Like when they hose down the runways and barns for cleanliness? This will definitely take a specialized agreement and clearly written scope of inspection.

I have been trying to upload some photos I took on my tablet during a brief walk through with no success. One of the barns I measured was 45 by 150 feet with rot and WDO damage readily visible. This was about the average size of the barns. The Van Zee building would be the most complex by far and has a much higher roof than the other buildings. I did not see any electric fencing.

When inspecting the barns, it’s PRUDENT to know what type of animal is in each barn. Different animals are attracted to chewing on different things. Different animals use their enclosures for different things as well. MOST animals will scratch on the whole structure, make sure there’s nothing protruding ANYWHERE in the enclosures. Even the slightest, trust me, we ignored a nail head in a stall at a World Show in Tulsa OK one time, it wasn’t even sticking out enough to put my fingernail under, and our horse got his halter stuck on it, tried to break his own neck. Luckily we were right there and could calm him down enough to make it only a pulled neck muscle. Still had to pull out of the competition, and that nail basically cost us the $300 stall fee for the week, the $150 per class entry fee for the week (we had him in 5 classes), and a $350 vet exam.