Independent sourcing service for alternative buildings. CivicGate Sourcing does not claim authorized dealer status.

CivicGate Sourcing: Scope and Document Review for Building Alternatives

CivicGate Sourcing prepares a side-by-side request so factories price the same building problem. The work is document alignment and supplier questions. It is not a design stamp and it does not state that any package meets a local code.

Send Project Requirements

Six items on the request

  1. Use and occupancy
  2. Footprint, eave height, bay spacing
  3. Wind, snow, seismic and floor loads
  4. Authority having jurisdiction
  5. Quantity and destination
  6. Shell, delivered, installed or turnkey

Shell package against a wider scope

Use this table to see why two attractive totals can still be incomparable. CivicGate Sourcing asks each factory to mark every row as included, excluded, optional or not yet confirmed.

Line Shell or kit Turnkey request
Primary frame and secondary framing Usually in the package. Confirm rigid frame or cold-formed steel, purlin and girt. Same members, plus coordination with other trades.
Enclosure Often an add-on. State insulated metal panel, thermal transmittance and fire-resistance rating if the use needs one. Included only if the request says so. Confirm doors, windows and trim.
Foundation interface Anchor layout may be supplied. The slab and piers often stay with the buyer. Still confirm who designs and who builds the foundation.
Delivery and set Freight may be extra. Crane lift plan and unloading need an owner. Installation crew may be quoted. Site access and utilities may remain excluded.
Engineering file Ask which calculations apply to this geometry and this jurisdiction. Same question. A broader price does not replace the file.

What the desk actually does

  • Normalize the request

    Rewrite brand-led notes into use, module dimensions or building footprint, design live load, design dead load, wind speed and ground snow load. A sample figure such as 20 psf snow is recorded only when the buyer or the local criterion supplies it.

  • Invite comparable quotations

    Send the same brief to more than one factory. Each reply must name the manufacturer of the proposed system. CivicGate Sourcing does not claim those plants as its own and does not publish a ranking.

  • Split the money lines

    Frame, freight, tax, anchor package and erection stay on separate rows. A per-building budget and a whole-order budget are different bases. Currency is whatever the buyer states, often USD for a US destination.

  • Collect documents for the quoted system

    Typical requests include drawings, material specs, weld information relevant to AWS D1.1 where that code applies, and a statement of which AISC 360 or ASCE 7 edition was used. IAS AC472 or ISO 9001, if mentioned by a supplier, is checked against that supplier and that plant, not copied onto this website.

  • Hand the decision back

    Open items are listed with an owner. The buyer and the licensed professionals on the project accept or reject an alternative. This service coordinates questions; it does not sign the permit.

Read the inquiry options before you fill the form, so the product label matches the use.

Questions that change the quotation

Can a frame price be compared with an installed price?

No. Mark the missing scope first. A shell that excludes the slab, the crane and the panels is not the same purchase as a building set on site.

Who confirms the code path?

The authority having jurisdiction and the project’s design professionals. IBC and IRC editions, and any local amendment, have to be named. This desk will not tell you the project is approved.

What if the site cannot take a wide load?

Record the transport envelope and the crane path. A volumetric module that will not clear the route is the wrong alternative even if the floor plan looks right. Panelized pieces may travel more easily and then need more site assembly.

Do you need a budget to start?

No. If you have a range, say the currency and whether it is per building or for the whole order. If you do not, leave it open. A supplier preference of premium, mid-range, budget or undecided is your note, not a score we have audited.

Are residential searches handled here?

Occupied buildings pull in different fire, energy and egress questions than an unoccupied shed. Put that use on the industries worksheet so the factories see it before they price a shell.

What does the reply contain?

A matrix of included and excluded lines, the named deviations, and the documents still missing. It does not contain a claim that one factory is cheaper by a stated percent.

Ask for quotations on one scope

Send the six checklist items. CivicGate Sourcing will use them to request factory quotations for alternative buildings.

Request Factory Quotes Compare Alternative Options