A fabrication contract checklist covers the items you confirm in writing before appointing a steel fabricator. Verify 18 points across four areas: certification, commercial terms, programme, and technical scope. These cover EN 1090 execution class, pricing model, delivery dates, and material traceability. Confirming each protects your budget, programme, and structural compliance.

Contract wording decides who carries the risk when a project slips. Get it wrong, and delays or defects become your problem, not the fabricator's. The 2025 Arcadis Global Construction Disputes Report ranks poor contract administration and poorly drafted claims among the top dispute causes. This checklist gives you all 18 checks, grouped so you can review any contract fast.

What should you check before signing a fabrication contract?

Before signing, confirm 18 points across four areas: certification, commercial terms, programme, and technical scope. Certification covers the standards a fabricator must meet. Commercial terms cover price and risk. Programme covers delivery dates. Technical scope covers how the steel is built and protected. Confirm each point in writing.

Here is the full fabrication contract checklist.

1. EN 1090 execution class matches your project.
2. ISO 3834 welding quality level is certified.
3. CE or UKCA marking and Factory Production Control are in place.
4. Certificates are current and cover the right facility.
5. Scope and battery limits are fully defined.
6. Pricing model is clear: fixed-price, cost-plus, or re-measurable.
7. Payment schedule and retention terms are set.
8. Insurance cover and liability caps are stated.
9. Delivery dates and programme are agreed.
10. Liquidated damages for late delivery are defined.
11. Design responsibility is assigned in writing.
12. Material specification and traceability under EN 10204 are required.
13. Welding procedures and welder qualifications are specified.
14. Inspection and test plan, including NDT, is agreed.
15. Coating and corrosion protection specification is included.
16. Variations and change control process is documented.
17. Defects liability period and warranties are stated.
18. Termination, governing law, and dispute resolution are set.

Each group below explains what to look for and why it matters.

What certifications should a steel fabricator have?

Steel fabricators should hold three certifications. EN 1090 certification confirms structural steel is built to the correct execution class. ISO 3834 certification confirms welding quality is controlled. CE or UKCA marking confirms the product meets the rules for the market. Check each certificate is current before you sign.

What is EN 1090 execution class, and which do you need?

EN 1090 is the European standard for the execution of steel and aluminium structures. The standard sets four execution classes, from EXC1 to EXC4. EXC1 is the lowest, and EXC4 is the highest. Your structural design fixes the class. Your fabricator must be certified to the class your project needs.

Your structural engineer sets the execution class from the risk if the structure fails.

Appointing a fabricator certified one class too low is a compliance failure. Confirm the class on the certificate, not just the logo.

What is ISO 3834-2?

ISO 3834 is the standard for quality requirements in the fusion welding of metals. The standard has three levels: Part 2 comprehensive, Part 3 standard, and Part 4 elementary. ISO 3834-2 is the top level. Certification proves the fabricator controls welding with qualified procedures and qualified welders.

Poor welding is a common cause of structural failure, so this certificate carries real weight. It shows an audited system stands behind the EN 1090 mark.

Do fabricators still need CE or UKCA marking?

Structural steelwork placed on the market needs a conformity marking. As of 2026, CE marking is accepted for construction products in Great Britain. The UK recognises CE marking indefinitely while a new UK construction products regime is developed. The marking sits on top of a Factory Production Control system, audited by an approved body.

Rules changed several times after Brexit, so check the current position before you rely on it. See the GOV.UK guidance on placing UKCA or CE marked products on the market for the latest wording.

How do you verify a fabricator's certification is genuine?

To verify a fabricator's certification, ask for the certificate itself, not a logo. Confirm the issuing body is accredited by a recognised authority. Check the execution class stated matches your project. Confirm the certificate is still valid and covers the facility doing your work. A lapsed or mismatched certificate fails the check.

Follow these five steps.

1. Ask for the certificate document, not just a logo on a website.
2. Confirm the issuing body is accredited, for example by UKAS in the UK.
3. Check the execution class on the certificate matches your project.
4. Confirm the certificate's expiry or surveillance date is current.
5. Confirm the certificate covers the site doing your work.

In practice, the most common gap is a certificate that names a different facility, or an execution class one level below what the project needs.

What commercial terms should you check?

Commercial checks decide who carries cost risk. Confirm the pricing model first: fixed-price, cost-plus, or re-measurable. Agree the payment schedule and the retention held back until completion. Check the fabricator's insurance cover and any cap on liability. Define the scope precisely so extras do not become disputes later.

Fixed-price vs cost-plus: which protects your budget?

Fixed-price and cost-plus contracts split cost risk in different ways. A fixed-price contract sets one price for a defined scope, so the fabricator carries overrun risk. A cost-plus contract pays actual cost plus a fee, so you carry that risk. Fixed-price gives budget certainty when the scope is clear.

Most fabrication contracts use a fixed price, which suits a well-defined scope. Cost-plus makes sense only when the design is still moving.

What payment terms and retention are standard?

Payment terms in a fabrication contract set when and how you pay. Most contracts use stage payments tied to milestones like design, fabrication, and delivery. Retention is a percentage held back until defects are cleared. In the UK, construction contracts must follow the payment rules in the Construction Act 1996.

Retention is usually a small percentage, released after the defects period ends. The 2025 Arcadis report notes adjudication is the most common way to settle disputes in the UK.

What insurance should a fabricator carry?

Insurance cover should match the work the fabricator does. Public liability covers injury or damage to third parties. Employer's liability covers their own staff. Professional indemnity covers design work, where the fabricator designs or details the steel. Check the cover levels and confirm the policy is current.

What should the scope and battery limits say?

Scope and battery limits define exactly what the fabricator will and will not do. List design, supply, fabrication, coating, delivery, and installation, and mark each as in or out. Clear battery limits stop gaps between contractors. Vague scope is a leading cause of variations and disputes.

What should you check on programme and delivery?

Programme checks protect your delivery date. Agree the fabrication and delivery dates in writing, with clear milestones. Set liquidated damages for late delivery, so the cost of delay is fixed in advance. Agree how variations are priced and authorised. A written change process stops informal extras inflating the final bill.

What are liquidated damages in a fabrication contract?

Liquidated damages are a fixed sum you can claim for each period of late delivery. The amount is set in the contract before work starts. It must be a genuine estimate of your likely loss. A figure set as a punishment is a penalty, and courts will not enforce a penalty.

Set the figure with your quantity surveyor or legal adviser, based on real delay costs.

How are variations priced and authorised?

Variations are changes to the agreed scope after signing. A good contract sets how each variation is instructed, priced, and approved. Insist on written instructions and agreed rates before any extra work begins. No fabricator should start a variation on a verbal request. This keeps the final cost predictable.

What technical checks matter before signing?

Technical checks confirm the steel will be built and protected correctly. Assign design responsibility in writing, so you know who designs and details the steel. Require material certificates that trace the steel to its source. Specify welding procedures, the inspection plan, and the coating system. Each detail belongs in the contract.

Who is responsible for the design?

Design responsibility sets who is liable for the steelwork design. It splits into three parts: the main design, the connection design, and the shop detailing. The contract should name who does each part. The party doing design work needs professional indemnity insurance. Unclear design responsibility creates gaps that surface as defects.

What material certificates should you request?

Material certificates prove the steel meets the specification. EN 10204 is the standard that defines certificate types. A 2.2 certificate is a test report on the grade, but not the exact batch. A 3.1 certificate is specific to the material supplied, and traceable to it. Structural work usually needs 3.1 certificates.

What about welding, inspection, and coatings?

Welding, inspection, and coating specifications control quality on site. The contract should require qualified welding procedures (WPS) and qualified welders (WPQR). An inspection and test plan (ITP) sets what is checked and when. Non-destructive testing (NDT) checks welds without damage. The coating specification should meet a recognised standard like ISO 12944.

Marine and industrial steel needs a robust coating specification, because corrosion is the long-term risk. Name the standard and the corrosivity category in the contract.

How to use this fabrication contract checklist

Use this fabrication contract checklist during your contract review, before signature. Work through the four groups in order, and mark each of the 18 points as confirmed or open. Raise every open point with the fabricator in writing. A point left open is a risk you keep. A point confirmed is a risk removed.

The bottom line

Signing a fabrication contract is a risk decision as much as a price decision. Work through all 18 checks, from execution class to dispute resolution, and confirm each in writing. The contract that names the certification, the price, the programme, and the quality plan is the one that protects your project.

About the author's company. European Active Projects Limited has delivered fixed-price marine and industrial fabrication since 2005, from ten UK and EU locations. Its Southampton facility is certified to EN 1090-2:2018 Execution Class 4 and BS EN ISO 3834-2:2005. To have your scope reviewed or to request a certified fixed-price proposal, contact the EAPL team.