Why These Questions Matter

A structural steel quotation cannot be judged by price per ton alone. Two offers may appear comparable while covering different drawing responsibilities, steel grades, welding procedures, inspection levels, coating systems, packaging methods, and delivery points. Those differences can change the final cost, production schedule, and acceptance risk.

Before placing an order, the buyer and fabricator should convert the inquiry into a clear technical and commercial basis. The following ten questions help procurement teams compare quotations on the same scope and give the selected fabricator enough information to plan material purchasing, shop production, quality control, and shipment.

Order Information at a Glance

1 What Is Included in the Fabricators Scope

Start by defining exactly what the fabricator will supply. The scope may cover drawing review, connection design, shop detailing, material procurement, cutting, assembly, welding, trial assembly, surface treatment, bolts, export packing, inland transport, customs documents, ocean freight, unloading, and site erection. A low quotation may exclude several of these items.

Ask whether the fabricator has completed projects with similar member sizes, steel grades, tolerances, welding complexity, and destination requirements. Confirm available production capacity, critical equipment, qualified personnel, subcontracted work, and the person responsible for technical and commercial communication.

The quotation should contain separate Included Scope, Excluded Scope, and Assumptions sections. This makes comparisons easier and reduces later disputes over services or materials that were never priced.

2 Are the Drawings and BOM Complete and Controlled

Provide the latest architectural drawings, structural drawings, connection details, specifications, design notes, and loading information. If issued-for-construction drawings are unavailable, state whether the price is a budget estimate or a firm quotation. The fabricator should identify missing dimensions, unclear connections, conflicting notes, and transport limitations before confirming the price.

A bill of materials or BOM should list each member or assembly, section or plate size, material grade, length, quantity, unit weight, total weight, and relevant drawing mark. It should also identify connection plates, stiffeners, base plates, bolts, anchors, and other loose items. Ask who will prepare and approve the shop drawings and BOM, whether Tekla or another model is required, and how revisions will be recorded.

No material should be purchased or released for fabrication from an uncontrolled drawing. Agree on the drawing register, revision number, approval status, and change-order procedure. If an approved revision changes quantities or fabrication complexity, the contract should explain how price and schedule adjustments will be handled.

3 Which Material Grades and Standards Apply

State the required material standard and grade for every main component. Typical examples include Q235 and Q355 under Chinese standards, S275 and S355 under EN standards, and ASTM A36, A572 Grade 50, or A992 under ASTM standards. Plates, rolled sections, hollow sections, bolts, welding consumables, and anchors may follow different standards.

Ask whether equivalent Chinese materials are acceptable and require written approval before substitution. Confirm any needs for low-temperature impact testing, through-thickness properties, minimum yield strength by thickness, traceability, mill restrictions, or country-of-origin documents.

The purchase specification should also state the required material certificates, such as EN 10204 Type 3.1 certificates or the project-specified equivalent. Heat numbers and member marks should remain traceable through cutting, assembly, inspection, and final documentation.

4 How Will Quantity or Tonnage Be Measured

Define the commercial quantity before comparing unit prices. Steel may be priced by piece, by theoretical weight from approved shop drawings, by BOM weight, or by actual weighbridge weight. Each method can produce a different contract amount.

Clarify whether the quoted tonnage includes connection plates, stiffeners, base plates, bolts, anchors, purlins, bracing, embedded items, weld metal, coating weight, or fabrication loss. Loose accessories should appear as separate quantities when they are not part of the structural steel tonnage.

For a weight-based contract, include a calculation rule in the purchase order. A practical basis is theoretical steel weight calculated from the approved shop drawings and agreed density tables. The final approved BOM can then serve as the quantity baseline for production, packing lists, progress measurement, and variation control.

5 Which Welding Standard and Qualification Documents Are Required

The welding code affects joint preparation, consumables, preheat, workmanship, inspection, repair, and documentation. Confirm whether the project follows AWS D1.1, EN 1090 with the relevant execution class, ISO 3834, a GB standard, or a project-specific specification. Do not assume that a quotation based on one code is equivalent to another.

Ask the fabricator to identify the required Welding Procedure Specifications, Procedure Qualification Records, and welder qualification records. The documents should match the base metals, thickness ranges, processes, positions, and joint types used on the project.

Also confirm weld categories, acceptance criteria, consumable control, preheat and interpass temperature requirements, distortion control, weld identification, repair procedures, and document submission. Complex heavy members may require a trial assembly or sequence plan to control fit-up and deformation.

6 What Inspection and Testing Will Be Performed

Request an Inspection and Test Plan that covers incoming material, cutting, fit-up, welding, dimensional checks, trial assembly when required, surface preparation, coating, marking, packing, and container loading. The plan should identify review points, witness points, hold points, acceptance criteria, responsible parties, and the records produced at each stage.

Specify the method and percentage of nondestructive testing. Depending on the weld type and project requirements, testing may include visual testing, ultrasonic testing, magnetic particle testing, penetrant testing, or radiographic testing. The order should state which welds are examined, the applicable acceptance standard, who pays for third-party inspection, and how repairs and retesting are handled.

Confirm whether the client or an agency such as SGS, BV, TÜV, Intertek, or a nominated local inspector must attend. Inspection notice periods and approval time should be built into the schedule. Agree on the final quality dossier, including material certificates, welding records, NDT reports, dimensional reports, coating reports, nonconformance records, and packing evidence.

7 What Coating System Is Required

A statement such as painted steel is not sufficient. The coating specification should identify the corrosivity environment, required surface preparation, coating products, number of coats, color, and total dry film thickness. For blasted steel, specify whether the preparation grade is Sa 2.5, Sa 3, or another project requirement.

Confirm the primer, intermediate coat, and finish coat, together with the target DFT for each layer and the total system. Typical project systems may use zinc-rich primer, epoxy intermediate coating, and polyurethane finish. Other projects may require inorganic zinc, hot-dip galvanizing, duplex protection, or a compatible fire-protection system.

Ask about stripe coating, inaccessible surfaces, bolt connection areas, galvanized repair, touch-up materials, holiday testing where applicable, DFT inspection, adhesion testing, salt contamination limits, and storage protection. The project should also state whether fireproofing is factory-applied or site-applied and what fire-resistance rating and certification are required.

8 Where Is the Delivery Location and Who Controls the Logistics

Give the exact delivery point, not only the destination country. The quotation basis should name the Chinese loading port, destination port, warehouse, or project site and state the applicable Incoterm, such as EXW, FOB, CFR, CIF, or DAP. The selected Incoterm must be paired with a named place and edition in the purchase order.

Confirm who is responsible for export clearance, ocean freight, insurance, import clearance, duties, port charges, demurrage, inland transport, unloading, and site storage. If delivery is to the project site, provide road access limits, turning constraints, working hours, unloading equipment, and maximum permitted member dimensions and weights.

Logistics should be considered during detailing. A member that can be fabricated may still be too long, wide, high, or heavy for a standard container or local road. The fabricator should coordinate fabrication splits, lifting points, connection details, containerization, and erection sequence before shop drawings are approved.

9 How Will the Steel Be Packed and Loaded

Export packing must protect the steel during handling, ocean transport, port storage, and inland delivery. Ask whether members will be bundled, placed on steel skids, separated with dunnage, wrapped, boxed, or shipped as breakbulk cargo. Small plates, bolts, anchors, and tools should be packed by erection sequence and protected from loss or moisture.

Every package should carry durable marks that match the shop drawings, BOM, packing list, and erection marks. Confirm whether bilingual labels, shipping marks, color coding, barcodes, fumigated timber, desiccants, rust prevention, edge protection, or special lifting instructions are required.

Before production release, agree on the container type and loading limitations. Standard dry containers, open-top containers, flat racks, and breakbulk shipments have different dimensional and securing requirements. Request a preliminary loading plan, container quantity estimate, package list, gross and net weights, center-of-gravity information where necessary, and photographic loading records.

10 Is the Project Lead Time Realistic and Measurable

A reliable delivery date should be based on a schedule, not a single number. Ask the fabricator to separate time for technical clarification, shop drawing preparation, client approval, material procurement, cutting and assembly, welding, NDT, trial assembly, coating, final inspection, packing, inland transport, export clearance, and shipment.

The purchase order should define the event that starts the lead time. A common basis is receipt of the agreed advance payment, approved drawings, and closure of all technical and commercial clarifications. It should also explain how approval delays, buyer changes, additional inspection, material substitutions, port congestion, or force majeure affect the delivery date.

Use measurable milestones, such as drawing submission, drawing approval, material arrival, fabrication completion, coating completion, inspection release, and readiness for shipment. Ask for regular progress reports and an escalation process for issues that threaten the critical path. A realistic program is more valuable than an aggressive promise that ignores approvals and logistics.

Documents to Include With the Purchase Order

A complete order package should include the following controlled documents:

· Latest approved drawings, specifications, drawing register, and revision status

· Approved BOM with member marks, material grades, quantities, and weights

· Technical scope, commercial scope, exclusions, and agreed assumptions

· Material specification and certificate requirements

· Welding code, WPS and PQR requirements, and welder qualification requirements

· Inspection and Test Plan with NDT methods, percentages, and third-party hold points

· Coating or galvanizing specification with surface preparation and DFT requirements

· Named delivery location, Incoterm, logistics responsibilities, and unloading limits

· Packing specification, shipping marks, container plan, and document list

· Baseline schedule, milestone dates, reporting frequency, and change-control procedure

How ZSJH Steel Supports Overseas Orders

ZSJH Steel supports project-specific structural steel fabrication from drawing review and material preparation through cutting, assembly, welding, inspection, surface treatment, marking, and export packing. Before quotation, our team reviews the technical scope and identifies information that may affect price, production, quality acceptance, or shipment.

For an efficient quotation, send your latest drawings and BOM together with the required material grades, quantity or tonnage, welding standard, inspection requirements, coating system, delivery location, packing and container requirements, and target project schedule. We will review the package and respond with technical clarifications, scope assumptions, and a quotation basis for your project.

Request a Project Review

Planning a structural steel order? Send your RFQ package to ZSJH Steel for a technical and commercial review. Visit www.zsjhsteel.com to contact our team.