Regarding the issue of transporting materials back and forth

The materials for the project are the responsibility of Party A. Our process involves calculating the quantity of materials needed based on the drawings and then placing orders for them. Generally, some extra materials will arrive at the site, which are collected by Party B. Once the project is completed, any excess materials are inspected and recorded, after which Party B is responsible for delivering them to the designated location; the costs associated with transporting these materials are also borne by Party B. I’m not sure if what the poster is referring to is the high cost – it can be done in a few hours by a few workers with one truck.

The quota specifications only include the cost of secondary transportation over a distance of 2.5 KM from Party A’s warehouse to Party B’s site. The cost of transporting items from the construction site to Party A’s warehouse is not included in the cost of secondary transportation and should be borne by Party A. However, the return of the materials is usually done by Party B, and no payment is given for it. First, Party A compensates in other ways (as this expense is not included in Party A’s construction costs) ； Second, the costs are generally not high, and they are absorbed internally by Party B (who usually don’t even dare to ask for payment!).

The costs shall be borne by the owner. If the quantity is small, then don’t spend that money. If the quantity is large, on-site visas are required based on the actual costs incurred (labor, materials, and equipment). However, I have also encountered unreasonable property owners who believe that Party B should bear the responsibility. The reason is: after the completion of the project, Party B should ensure that \"the work is done, all materials are used up, and the site is cleaned up\"” ； Also, Party B has already charged a fee for civilized construction in advance and made corresponding commitments regarding the construction site, which is part of those commitments.

Reply to 3# WiseOne: My understanding of “secondary reverse freight charges” differs from yours. I’d like to discuss this with you. “\"Secondary transportation\" refers, in my opinion, to the movement of materials within the construction site. For example, the cost of transporting materials from the construction site warehouse to various specific construction locations or floors. What you refer to as transferring from Party A’s warehouse to Party B’s warehouse at the construction site should be called “first transfer”. “The cost of one round-trip shipment should be specified in the contract. Here, if the materials are provided by the owner, a procurement fee is generally charged to the owner at 1~1.5% of the total cost of the materials.

There are so many various types of costs: \"one-time transportation costs,\" \"secondary transportation costs,\" \"material storage fees,\" \"fees for proper construction practices,\" and so on. All of these costs are zero for us; we’ve never considered them at all, nor have the construction companies ever asked to have them covered. Ah! A typical example of non-standard practices. Of course, the situations and approaches are usually as described by Brother 2F

This post was last edited by Zhizhi Ming on 2010-6-26 at 23:31. On the 5th floor, two questions were actually asked in the 1st floor post: Who shall bear the cost of transporting the remaining materials provided by Party A after the construction is completed from the site to Party A’s warehouse? What is the range for secondary reverse shipping fees? Regarding the first question, after discussion we reached a consensus that it is usually returned by Party B, with Party B bearing the costs (generally involving minor expenses). The second question is regarding the scope of \"secondary transfer costs\". The term \"secondary transfer\" generally refers to the situation where, due to issues at the construction site itself (such as the absence of a storage area), Party A transports the equipment or materials it has procured to a location outside the construction site for temporary storage; or when the materials organized by Party B cannot be delivered to the site due to lack of storage space. When they are needed for the project, these materials are then transported from the temporary storage location to the construction site – this is what is meant by secondary transfer. A secondary reverse freight fee can be used to process budget visas for work outside the project. Of course, if secondary handling is already included in the contract, the cost will not be calculated again. As for the materials and equipment at Party B’s construction site, they are under Party B’s internal management; therefore, no issue of additional handling fees arises, regardless of the number of times they are moved.

Reply to 7# Zhi Zhe Ming: After checking relevant information and consulting experts, it is as Zhi Zhe Ming on floor 7 said. Secondary handling refers to the costs associated with secondary transportation that arise due to special circumstances such as limited space at the construction site. The cost of transporting from the contractor’s warehouse to the various construction sites is already included in the quota, and no additional fee will be charged. The 1–1.5% material procurement fee that our company used to charge was part of the fee collected from suppliers for procurement purposes; this was because the suppliers were unable or unwilling to deliver goods to our warehouse on site, so we arranged the delivery on their behalf and the suppliers compensated us for those costs. Thank you to the wise person on floor 7, Ming, for the correction; it was extremely helpful! I also thank this forum for helping me understand this issue.

This issue of secondary transportation occurs in every project, and it needs to be determined based on the specific circumstances

Secondary handling refers to the costs associated with secondary transportation that arise due to special circumstances such as limited space at the construction site. The cost of transporting from the contractor’s warehouse to the various construction sites is already included in the quota

There is another approach: the materials are provided by Party A, and the cost of these materials is deducted from Party B’s payment for the work. After the project is completed, the budgeting department reviews the situation and determines the quantity and cost of the materials used. If Party B does not return the remaining materials, Party A will deduct that amount from the payment due to Party B, which is equivalent to Party B having to pay for those materials themselves. Generally, Party A delivers the materials to the construction site, while Party B takes the remaining materials back to the warehouse, where they are signed for by the warehouse staff; otherwise, the finance department will not process the payment for the work.