How to Quote and Run a Commercial Floor Screeding Contract

What you will learn

• How to read architect's drawings and calculate a commercial m² take-off with accurate depth and zone allowances for each screed type.
• How screed type, depth, site access, and programme requirements all affect your price per square metre on a commercial contract.
• Why drying time is the biggest programme risk in screeding and how to communicate it clearly in your quote before work begins.
• What to check and record before starting a pour to protect your position against substrate defect disputes with the main contractor.
• How to invoice a screeding contract on completion and capture variation instructions before additional work is carried out.

Floor screeding is one of the most time-critical trades on any commercial build. The screed goes in after the structural slab is ready and the underfloor heating pipes are laid - but before any floor finish can be installed. Get the timing wrong, the thickness wrong, or the drying time wrong, and you delay every trade that follows. For screeding contractors, that position in the programme creates both opportunity and significant operational risk. This guide covers how to price a commercial screeding contract accurately, plan your works on site, and manage handover to following trades without becoming the cause of programme overrun.

Step 1: Reading the Drawings and Building Your Take-Off

Commercial floor screeding is priced primarily on square metreage, screed type, and depth. Before you can quote anything, you need accurate measurements from the architect's or structural engineer's drawings. This sounds straightforward, but commercial projects involve multiple floor zones - different depths, different screed specifications, and sometimes different screed types across the same slab.

Start with the floor plans and identify each zone. Common zones include areas with underfloor heating (which require a thinner liquid screed to encapsulate pipes), areas requiring a bonded screed over existing concrete, and areas with higher load requirements such as plant rooms or loading bays. Each zone may carry a different specification and a different price per m².

Take off the net floor area for each zone, then apply a waste factor. On a straightforward open-plan office or warehouse floor, 3-5% is standard. On a project with lots of columns, partition walls, and service penetrations, use 7-10%. If the drawings are incomplete or the substrate condition is unknown, note this explicitly in your quote and include a provisional item.

Check the floor build-up schedule if one exists. This tells you the nominal screed thickness - typically 50mm to 75mm for a sand and cement screed, or 40mm to 50mm for liquid screed over underfloor heating. Every extra 10mm of depth adds material cost, so do not assume a standard thickness without confirming it in the spec. On commercial projects, a 65mm bonded screed on a 2,000m² floor uses significantly more material than a 50mm unbonded, and the difference should be captured accurately in your tender.

Step 2: Pricing the Work

With your take-off complete, you can build your price. Commercial screeding quotes are typically structured around three cost elements: materials (the screed mix), labour (your crew and pump), and preliminaries (access, waiting time, and any site-specific requirements).

Screed type and material cost. Liquid screed (also called flowing or anhydrite screed) is the preferred product on commercial projects where underfloor heating is present or where a rapid programme is essential. In 2026, liquid screed costs £16 to £25 per m² for a standard 50mm depth on a typical commercial project. On large-scale pours exceeding 1,000m², economies of scale can reduce the rate to around £10 to £12 per m². Traditional sand and cement screeds are lower in material cost but more labour-intensive to lay and finish. Labour rates for sand and cement screeding run at approximately £10 to £12 per m² in most UK regions, with London and the South East typically 25-35% higher.

Depth adjustment. Liquid screed is sold by the cubic metre, so every additional 5mm of depth adds directly to your material cost. Build a simple calculation into your pricing model: nominal area x depth in metres x material cost per m³. Cross-check this against your m² rate to make sure the numbers stack.

Pump and plant. For liquid screeds, a pump is non-negotiable. Most specialist subcontractors include pump hire within their m² rate, but if you are pricing a large-volume pour across multiple floors or buildings, confirm whether hose run charges apply for long pump distances or elevated floors.

Access and site conditions. A commercial site with open slab access is straightforward to mobilise. A phased commercial fit-out where the screeding contractor is working around other trades, moving kit through a narrow stairwell, or working in a live building is not. Always visit the site before submitting a formal tender, or qualify your price with assumptions about access.

Minimum charges. For smaller commercial packages where the total area falls below 100m², most screeding contractors apply a minimum call-out charge covering the cost of transport, pump setup, and a minimum crew day. Make sure this is clearly stated in your quote.

Step 3: Submitting Your Quote and Getting It Accepted

A screeding quote for a commercial project should include more than a price. It should define exactly what you are pricing and what you are not, because disputes on screeding contracts almost always come down to scope boundaries.

Your quote document should confirm:

• The screed type, specification, and nominal depth for each zone
• The total m² for each zone and any provisional areas
• Whether preparation work (priming, DPM, insulation board) is included or excluded
• Your programme requirements, including when the substrate needs to be ready and clear
• The expected drying time before the floor finish contractor can proceed
• Any site-specific access assumptions
• Your payment terms, including any deposit requirement

The drying time clause is particularly important. Standard sand and cement screed dries at approximately 1mm per day up to 50mm depth, and 0.5mm per day beyond that. A 65mm traditional screed takes around 80 days to reach full moisture equilibrium at 20°C. On a commercial project, this is rarely acceptable, which is why liquid screeds with faster drying profiles are common. Set the expectation in writing at the quoting stage so the main contractor understands the programme implications before you are on site.

If you are pricing against a main contractor's programme that does not allow enough drying time, say so in your quote. This is not obstructiveness - it is protecting the main contractor from a mistake that will cause problems later.

Step 4: Preparing the Substrate and Mobilising for Pour Day

Once the contract is awarded, your next job is to make sure the site will be ready when you arrive. Screeding contractors lose time - and money - when they mobilise to a site and find the substrate is not ready. Common problems include wet concrete that has not cured sufficiently, underfloor heating pipes that have not been pressure tested, penetrations and edges not formed correctly, and other trades still working in the pour zone.

Agree a written pre-pour checklist with the main contractor or site manager. At minimum, this should confirm:

1. Check the structural slab has cured for at least 28 days for a bonded or unbonded screed, or confirm the slab moisture content is within spec for the selected screed system.
2. Confirm underfloor heating pressure test results if applicable - the system should be at working pressure during the pour.
3. Verify that all service penetrations, column bases, and upstand details are formed and that edge insulation strips are in place.
4. Confirm the pour zone is clear of other trades and that access for the pump vehicle is available.
5. Walk the floor and note any areas of standing water, debris, or contamination that could affect adhesion. Log these before you start.

If there are deficiencies at this stage, issue a written instruction to the main contractor before your crew starts work. This protects you if the screed is later found to have adhesion problems or surface defects caused by substrate issues you did not create.

Step 5: Managing Drying Time and Handover to Following Trades

The period between pour completion and floor covering installation is where most commercial screeding disputes originate. The flooring contractor wants to start. The main contractor is under programme pressure. The screed is not dry enough. And suddenly the screeding subcontractor is being blamed for a programme slip that was built into the physics of the product from day one.

Manage this proactively. After the pour, issue a written record confirming the pour date, the screed type and depth, and the expected drying timeline. For commercial projects using standard products, share the supplier's technical data sheet with the main contractor and floor covering installer so everyone understands the drying profile.

Where programme pressure is severe, arrange for a calibrated moisture test before the floor finish contractor starts. The most widely used method on commercial projects in the UK is the hygrometer test, which measures relative humidity in the screed. Most floor covering adhesive manufacturers specify a maximum reading - typically 75% RH for carpet and vinyl. Do not allow the floor covering to go down without this test being carried out and recorded in writing.

If drying time is genuinely the critical path constraint on the project, consider discussing the fast-drying screed option at this stage even if the original spec was standard. A revisited specification mid-contract requires a variation order, but it may save the overall programme more than it costs.

Step 6: Invoicing and Closing the Contract

Screeding contracts are typically invoiced in one of two ways: a single invoice on completion for smaller packages, or stage invoicing against agreed milestones on larger or phased projects.

For a single-pour commercial package, invoice promptly on completion of the pour and issue a completion notice confirming the pour date and anticipated drying time. Do not delay your invoice waiting for the floor covering contractor to start - your works are complete when the screed is laid and the surface has been checked.

For multi-phase projects, agree invoice milestones in your contract before you start. Typical milestones for a phased commercial programme include:

• Mobilisation payment (10-15% of contract sum, payable on written instruction to proceed)
• Completion of Phase 1 pour areas
• Completion of Phase 2 and remaining pour areas
• Final account on issue of practical completion for your package

Keep a contemporaneous record of pour dates, areas completed, and any variations instructed during the works. If the main contractor instructs additional screed in areas not covered by your original quote - such as a new partition layout, a revised floor build-up, or additional access areas - issue a variation notice immediately with a price before you carry out the additional work. Screeding is a relatively fast operation, and it is easy to pour an extra 50m² without anyone noticing a formal instruction was never raised. Those 50m² can become a disputed item when it comes to final account if you have no written record.

Managing the Business Side with Software

Running a commercial screeding business means managing multiple enquiries, active jobs, and a small fleet of plant at the same time. A systematic approach to quoting - with a standard take-off template, a clear screed-type pricing matrix, and a quote document that sets out drying time expectations in plain terms - is the difference between a business that wins the right work at the right margin and one that prices accurately but then loses money through poor programme management and late invoicing.

Zigaflow gives screeding contractors a single place to handle the full cycle: convert enquiries into quotes with consistent m² pricing and specification notes, turn accepted quotes into jobs with purchase orders for screed supply, and issue invoices on completion without chasing paperwork. The time between pour day and invoice going out should be hours, not weeks. For screeding contractors running four to eight jobs simultaneously across different sites, that discipline adds up quickly.

Sources

• Liquid Screed Cost UK | 2026 Price Guide per m2Midland Screed Floor · accessed 2026-07-28
• Nationwide Floor Screeding ContractorsInterior Screed Group Ltd · accessed 2026-07-28
• Screed Floor Cost Guide 2026: How Much to Screed a Floor?MyJobQuote · accessed 2026-07-28
• Commercial Floor Screeding and Floor Screeding CommercialJCW Floor Screeding · accessed 2026-07-28

See it in Zigaflow