Quick summary: common site delay costs

Summary table (shown as a list because the blog body does not support table blocks yet):

  • Labour on standby: Often missed when crews are grouped too vaguely. Record: role, quantity, time affected, rate, reason delayed.
  • Idle plant: Equipment stays on site but is not tracked. Record: plant type, downtime, rate, operator impact.
  • Supervision time: Treated as overhead only. Record: time spent managing the delay, notes, instructions.
  • Materials affected by delay: Storage, spoilage, rehandling, or wastage overlooked. Record: material type, quantity, issue, evidence.
  • Remobilisation: Restart costs not linked back to the delay. Record: return visits, setup time, access, crew and plant impact.
  • Subcontractor charges: Downstream costs arrive later. Record: supplier records, invoices, dayworks, correspondence.
  • Evidence and admin time: Record gathering takes real project time. Record: photos, dockets, summaries, review time, document control.

1. Labour on standby

Labour standby cost is the cost of workers being held on site while they cannot carry out planned work.

This is one of the most visible delay costs, but it is still often recorded poorly. A note saying “crew delayed” is not enough. The record should show who was affected, how long they were affected, what work they were meant to do, and why they could not proceed.

Record:

  • labour role or trade
  • number of workers affected
  • start and finish time
  • hourly rate, day rate, or agreed standby rate
  • planned activity
  • reason work could not proceed
  • whether workers were fully idle, partially productive, or reassigned

Example:

Four formworkers were held on standby from 7:00am to 10:30am because access to the footing area was blocked. The crew could not start planned formwork installation and was not reassigned during that period.

If you need to estimate the impact, use the Labour Standby Cost Calculator.

2. Idle plant

Idle plant cost is the cost of equipment sitting unused because the delayed activity cannot proceed.

This gets missed because plant may still be on site and available, even though it is not productive. For hired equipment, the cost may continue regardless of whether the plant is working. For owned plant, there can still be internal cost, operator cost, fuel, transport, or lost productivity to consider.

Record:

  • plant or equipment type
  • quantity
  • asset ID or description
  • start and finish time
  • hire rate or internal rate
  • operator impact
  • reason the plant was idle
  • whether it could be reassigned

Example:

One 14T excavator and operator were idle from 8:15am to 12:00pm because excavation approval had not been received. The excavator remained on site and could not be moved to another work area.

If you need to estimate the impact, use the Plant Downtime Cost Calculator.

3. Supervision time

Supervision time is often missed because it feels like normal project overhead.

When a delay happens, supervisors, foremen, engineers, and project managers can spend time coordinating changes, chasing approvals, updating records, managing crews, and explaining the impact. That time may not always be recoverable, but it should still be recorded if it is part of the delay impact.

Record:

  • who was involved
  • time spent managing the delay
  • instructions requested or received
  • coordination meetings
  • resequencing decisions
  • daily notes
  • affected work areas

Example:

Site supervisor spent 1.5 hours coordinating access changes, updating the affected crew, taking photos, and recording the delay after access to Zone 2 was blocked.

Do not assume supervision time will be accepted as a cost. Just make sure the record exists so it can be reviewed properly.

4. Materials affected by the delay

Material costs can be missed when a delay causes storage issues, rehandling, spoilage, damage, or wasted delivery time.

Not every delay affects materials. But when it does, the impact should be captured clearly. This is especially important for concrete, asphalt, spoil, prefabricated items, temporary works, weather-sensitive materials, or deliveries that arrive before the site is ready.

Record:

  • material type
  • quantity affected
  • delivery time
  • storage or handling issue
  • wastage, spoilage, or damage
  • rehandling required
  • photos and delivery dockets
  • supplier communication

Example:

Reinforcement delivery arrived at 9:00am but could not be unloaded in the planned laydown area due to blocked access. Materials were temporarily stored in an alternate location and rehandled later in the day.

The cost may be small, but the record prevents the impact from disappearing completely.

5. Remobilisation

Remobilisation cost is the cost of returning labour, plant, or subcontractors to complete work that could not proceed as planned.

This cost is often missed because it happens after the original delay event. The crew may leave, another activity may take priority, or the work may need to be rescheduled. When the team returns, the extra setup time can get treated as normal work instead of being connected back to the delay.

Record:

  • why the team had to leave or stop
  • when the team returned
  • labour involved
  • plant involved
  • setup time
  • travel or access impact
  • lost productivity
  • link to the original delay record

Example:

Pipe crew returned on 16 June to complete trenching delayed on 14 June. Remobilisation required one supervisor, three workers, and one excavator to set up again before work could continue.

The important point is the link. Remobilisation should be connected to the delay event that caused it.

6. Subcontractor or supplier charges

Subcontractor and supplier charges can appear later, after the site team has moved on from the delay.

These might include charges from specialist subcontractors, delivery companies, concrete suppliers, crane providers, traffic control, pump suppliers, or hired equipment providers. If the site record does not explain why the charge happened, it can be difficult to connect the invoice back to the delay.

Record:

  • supplier or subcontractor name
  • reason for the charge
  • date and time affected
  • related delay event
  • invoice or docket reference
  • correspondence
  • site instruction or approval, if available

Example:

Concrete supplier charged waiting time after pour was delayed due to late inspection approval. Delivery docket and supplier email attached to delay record.

Supplier costs should not sit in isolation. They should be attached to the delay record that caused them.

7. Evidence and admin time

Evidence and admin time is the time spent gathering photos, writing notes, preparing dockets, checking records, and explaining the delay.

This is rarely recorded well. It is also one of the reasons delay documentation becomes weak. If nobody is given time to capture evidence properly, the record often ends up vague, late, or incomplete.

Record:

  • photos and videos captured
  • dockets prepared
  • delay summaries written
  • emails or instructions gathered
  • commercial review time
  • document control time
  • person responsible for the record

This does not mean every minute of admin becomes a claimable cost. It means the project has a clearer understanding of the real effort required to support the delay record.

For a broader structure, read: 5 Construction Delay Records Every Subcontractor Should Keep.

Common mistakes when pricing delay costs

The most common mistake is only recording the cost that is easiest to see.

Other common mistakes include:

  • recording “crew delayed” without roles or quantities
  • forgetting idle plant
  • missing start and finish times
  • failing to separate labour, plant, and materials
  • not linking supplier costs to the delay event
  • ignoring remobilisation
  • not attaching photos, dockets, or instructions
  • leaving cost records disconnected from dayworks records
  • recreating costs from memory days or weeks later

A useful delay cost record does not need to be complicated. It needs to be clear enough for someone else to understand the cause, duration, affected resources, and evidence.

Site delay cost checklist

Before you close a delay cost record, check whether it includes:

  • delay cause
  • date and start/finish times
  • site location or work front
  • affected work activity
  • labour on standby (roles, quantities, rates)
  • idle plant (type, downtime, rate)
  • supervision time notes
  • materials affected (if any)
  • remobilisation linked to the original delay
  • subcontractor or supplier charges with references
  • photos, dockets, emails, or instructions
  • link to a dayworks or cost record where applicable
  • person responsible for the record

If several of these are missing, the record may still be useful internally, but it will be weaker for commercial review.

How DelaySolve helps keep delay costs connected

DelaySolve helps subcontractors log delays, cost labour and plant impact, attach evidence, and keep a structured delay record across live projects.

Instead of keeping labour notes, plant costs, supplier invoices, and dayworks dockets in separate places, DelaySolve is designed to keep the cost record connected to the delay event.

That matters because the commercial value of a delay cost record depends on the full picture: what happened, what it affected, what it cost, and what evidence supports it.

You can also use the free tools to support specific parts of the workflow:

FAQs

What is a site delay cost?

A site delay cost is the financial impact of a delay on labour, plant, materials, supervision, remobilisation, subcontractor charges, and the time spent gathering evidence. A useful record explains what was delayed, how long it lasted, which resources were affected, and what supports the cost.

What costs are commonly missed when pricing a site delay?

Subcontractors often miss idle plant, supervision time, materials affected by the delay, remobilisation, downstream subcontractor charges, and the admin time spent preparing evidence. Labour standby is often recorded, but without enough detail on roles, quantities, or time.

What is the difference between delay costs and a dayworks docket?

A delay cost record explains the site impact of the delay across labour, plant, materials, and related costs. A dayworks docket records labour, plant, materials, notes, and costs that may need to be submitted or reviewed. The strongest records link the dayworks docket back to the delay that caused it.

How do you calculate labour standby and idle plant costs?

Record the role or plant type, quantity, start and finish time, rate if known, and reason work could not proceed. You can estimate impact using the Labour Standby Cost Calculator and Plant Downtime Cost Calculator, but the field record should still show the underlying facts.

When should you start recording site delay costs?

Start as soon as the delay is identified. The earlier the record is started, the easier it is to capture accurate times, affected resources, photos, instructions, and supplier charges before details are reconstructed from memory.