Pricing and Estimating for Northern Work: Don’t Lose the Job on Freight, Delays, and Season Windows

In Northern work, the job rarely fails because your labour rate is off by 5%. It fails because freight doubles, the sealift cutoff gets missed, the crew can’t find housing, or weather downtime turns a five-day task into twelve. If you don’t price those realities, you end up financing the project.

This page is a practical estimating workflow for Northern conditions. It’s designed to help you price jobs without getting destroyed by freight, delays, and seasonal windows. It includes a quote template and a clause library you can adapt to your contracts and proposals.

What this page covers

• A Northern estimating workflow (what to price and in what order)
• Decision points: fixed-price vs T&M; escalation; mobilization/de-mob; standby/weather downtime
• How to build freight and logistics into the estimate (without guessing)
• Common pricing traps that show up only in remote delivery
• A copy/paste quote template and clause library

Quick decision path

• If your scope is well-defined and inputs are stable: fixed-price can work, but only if you separate freight, standby, and change triggers in writing.
• If freight, access, or scope is uncertain: consider T&M with a not-to-exceed cap and clear standby/change rules.
• If you depend on seasonal access: price “season risk” explicitly (cutoff dates, remobilization costs, resequencing).
• If the buyer controls site readiness or access: include standby/day-rate language and a site readiness checklist.
• If supplier pricing is volatile: include a material/freight escalation clause or time-limit your quote.
• If you’re bidding competitively: don’t hide risk in your base price. Call it out and price it transparently (alternates/options). Buyers can accept alternates; you can’t accept bankruptcy.

What you need ready

• Freight quotes: mode options (air/road/sealift), transit time, cutoffs, insurance
• Lead times: supplier confirmations and backorder risk
• Accommodation plan: rates, availability, cancellation terms
• Equipment availability: rental commitments, transport method, downtime assumptions
• Work window: access dates, daylight/weather constraints, client shutdown windows
• Contingency policy: what risks you include vs exclude and how you treat unknowns

Missing this = loss: pricing freight and standby on gut feel instead of confirmed quotes and written triggers.

Step-by-step: Estimating workflow for Northern jobs

Step 1: Define the job in “logistics units”

Before you price labour, define the job by what actually drives cost in the North:

• Where is the work (community + site location)?
• How do people get there (commercial flight, charter, winter road, boat)?
• How do materials/equipment get there (air cargo, truck, sealift)?
• What is the access window (seasonal road dates, sealift cutoff, ice conditions)?

Step 2: Build the estimate from the outside-in

• Mobilization/de-mob: travel days, freight handling days, equipment move days
• Execution: productive hours/days on-site
• Non-productive but real time: weather downtime, waiting on access, waiting on client readiness

In remote work, the “non-productive” line items decide whether you survive.

Step 3: Price freight like a scope item (not overhead)

Freight is not a rounding error. Treat it as a priced component with clear assumptions:

• Weights/dimensions and packaging assumptions
• Mode and routing assumptions (air vs truck vs sealift)
• Cutoff dates and lead times
• Insurance and loss/damage handling
• Storage/laydown costs in community (if required)

Step 4: Decide your commercial structure (fixed vs T&M)

Fixed-price (lump sum) is safer for the buyer
• Use fixed-price when scope is stable and site readiness is controllable.
• Protect yourself by separating freight and clarifying delay/change triggers.

T&M is safer for the contractor when reality is uncertain
• Use T&M when you can’t control access, readiness, or weather.
• Make it buyer-acceptable with a not-to-exceed cap, defined crew/equipment schedule, and approval gates.

Step 5: Price mobilization and demobilization explicitly

Many losses come from “free mobilization.” In the North, mobilization can be a material percentage of total cost. Price it explicitly and define what triggers remobilization (weather, access shutdown, missed sealift, client-caused delay).

Step 6: Include a downtime / standby policy

Weather downtime and client-caused delays are normal. Your quote should define:

• What counts as standby (no access, no power, site not ready, travel delay)
• Standby rate (daily or hourly) for labour and equipment
• How standby is authorized and documented

Step 7: Put season risk into writing

If you miss a window, you may need to remobilize next season. Price and document:

• Cutoff dates (ship-by and start-by)
• Demob/remob costs if delayed beyond window
• Storage and re-handling costs if freight arrives early/late

Common pitfalls

• Freight hidden in overhead — then freight spikes and you eat it
• No written standby rules — you wait for access and the buyer assumes it’s free
• Assuming housing will be available — if you can’t house crew, you can’t work
• Underestimating handoffs — cargo pickup, staging, and on-site handling add days
• No season window language — missing the window turns into unpaid remobilization
• Quotes valid “until whenever” — volatile inputs demand expiry dates

Next steps (do this this week)

• Build a standard Northern estimate checklist and use it on every quote
• Create a freight quote request template (weights, dimensions, dates)
• Add the clause library to your standard quote
• Track actuals: mobilization days, standby days, freight variances

Checklist: Northern estimate inputs (printable)

• Scope defined (deliverables, exclusions, responsibilities)
• Site info (location, access method, readiness needs)
• Work window (seasonal access, cutoffs, no-work periods)
• Crew plan (headcount, travel, rotations, per diems)
• Accommodation plan (rates, availability, cancellation)
• Equipment plan (availability, transport, fuel, maintenance)
• Freight plan (weights, mode, routing, insurance)
• Materials lead times (confirmed ship dates, alternates)
• Standby/downtime policy (triggers, rates, authorization)
• Contingency policy (included vs excluded risks)
• Commercial structure (fixed, T&M, NTE cap)
• Quote validity (expiry and escalation approach)

Quote template (copy/paste)

Quote #:
Date:
Customer:
Project / Site:

1) Scope of work

Included:
Excluded:
Customer responsibilities:

2) Schedule and access assumptions

Target work window:
Season constraints:
Ship-by cutoff:

3) Pricing summary

Mobilization & demobilization:
Labour (execution):
Equipment:
Materials:
Freight & logistics:
Accommodation / per diem:
Defined contingency:

Total (before tax):
GST/HST:
Total:

4) Commercial terms

Pricing type:
Payment terms:
Change orders:
Quote validity:

Clause library (freight, escalation, delay)

Freight allowance and proof
Freight mode change
Storage and re-handling
Material escalation
Quote validity
Standby definition
Standby rates
Season window and remobilization
Mobilization billing

Key tools & resources

Manitoulin Transport
Northwind Industries
Air North Cargo
BBE (Beaufort Delta region services)