It looks free because nobody invoices you for it.
Most fit-out firms of 5 to 40 people put their O&M manuals together themselves. Sometimes that's the right call. But it does cost you, and the cost is hidden in your project manager's time and in the last weeks of the job. This article sets out where that cost sits, gives you a worksheet to put a figure on it, and is honest about when doing it yourself makes sense.
Where the cost sits
The first cost is your PM's time. The manual needs the most input at the end of the job, which is exactly when your site team is busiest. Whatever time goes on the manual comes out of snagging, closing out the job and getting going on the next one.
The second is office time. Someone has to chase suppliers and subcontractors for data sheets, warranties and certificates, often weeks after they've left site.
The third is rework. Each time a manual comes back with comments, somebody has to go through it again. If the client's template wasn't followed, that can mean reformatting the whole thing.
The last is money waiting. Clients do hold back sign-off when manuals are incomplete, and sign-off is what releases the first half of your retention.
What an in-house manual involves
It helps to see the job written down. A job advert for a full-time O&M coordinator in central London, posted in January 2026, listed the duties as:
- setting up the project O&M folders and templates
- issuing templates to subcontractors with return dates, and logging what comes back
- chasing subcontractors for their O&M information
- collating it and issuing the manual for comment
- chasing comments and getting them into the manual
- requesting final information, and chasing anything still outstanding to meet handover
That's the same job on your projects. It's just done by someone who also has other work to do.
Work it out for your last job
Fill this in for the last manual you did in-house.
| What it cost | Your figure |
|---|---|
| Hours your PM spent on the manual | |
| What an hour of your PM costs the business | |
| Hours the office spent chasing information | |
| What an hour of office time costs | |
| Times the manual was sent back | |
| Days between finishing the works and sign-off | |
| Retention released at sign-off |
PM hours times PM cost, plus office hours times office cost, gives you what the manual cost before any delay. The last three rows show what the delay might have cost on top.
What the alternatives cost
You can hire someone. The advert above offered £40,000 a year. That makes sense with dozens of projects a year. With ten, it's hard to justify.
You can hand it over. My O&M manuals start from £600 for a £250k project.
When doing it yourself makes sense
Doing it in-house can be the right answer if:
- you have someone technical with time at the end of jobs
- you already have a format a client has accepted
- the job is simple, with only a few packages
If that's you, What goes in an O&M manual? has a checklist you can work from, and The paperwork that holds up practical completion sets out the order to collect it in.
What you get if you hand it over
We compile a Digital O&M & H&S File, from information you supply us, with your Company branding. You will receive a complete Digital O&M Package that complies with the BSA Golden Thread, in accordance with ISO9001, Section 7.5.2.
Request a call or email david@habgoodmanualsolutions.co.uk.
Related service: O&M manuals
