Reading a Container House Quotation: What Each Line Actually Covers

The most useful thing a buyer can learn about container house pricing is that there is no market price for "a 20ft container house". There is a price for a specified unit, delivered on stated terms. Once the specification is fixed, quotations converge; while it is vague, they diverge wildly and the cheapest one is usually the one with the most scope removed.

The five blocks

The five specification items that move the number most

1. Panel core and thickness. PU at 75 mm is a different product from EPS at 50 mm and the difference is visible in both price and performance.
2. Steel section and gauge. A 100×100×3 mm frame and a 150×150×4 mm frame carry different loads and cost different money. Ask for the section drawing.
3. Bathroom scope. A pre-assembled wet pod with shower, WC, basin, waterproofing and ventilation is a major line item. Removing it is the most common way to make a quotation look cheaper.
4. Windows and glazing. Aluminium with double glazing, or single glazing in a PVC frame — large spreads on every unit.
5. Electrical specification. Destination-standard devices with certification cost more than generic fittings, and are the difference between passing inspection and not.

Costs that are not in the unit price

• Freight — per container, and it moves weekly. A quotation with no freight basis expiry is not a commitment.
• Duty and taxes at destination, calculated on CIF value in most markets.
• Port charges, clearance, demurrage if documents are late.
• Foundation and site works — footings, slab or screw piles, plus drainage and trenching.
• Installation labour and lifting plant, unless explicitly included.
• Local compliance — electrical inspection, permits, and in some markets a conformity assessment.

A quotation that does not state which of these are included is not comparable to one that does. Ask for a scope matrix with "included / excluded / by buyer" against every line.

How to compare three quotes properly

Put the three quotations side by side against one specification you wrote. For every line, mark whether the supplier included it, excluded it, or priced it as an option. Then total the three columns on an equal basis. This takes an afternoon and routinely changes the ranking of the offers, because the cheapest headline figure usually has two or three of the larger blocks sitting in the "excluded" column.

What we will not do

Publish a price list. Unit price depends on specification, quantity, port and the freight market on the day, so a price on a website is either stale or wrong. Send the specification and the destination, and the answer will be a real number for a real scope.