| name | ailtir_cost-reconciliation |
| description | Final verification of a construction estimate. Cross-checks against requirements, benchmarks against the active Ailtir profile's cost guides (SCSI for Ireland; BCIS for UK), and identifies gaps. Triggered by /ailtir-cowork-plugin:ailtir_cost-reconciliation or step 4 of the estimating workflow. |
| allowed-tools | ["mcp__plugin_ailtir-cowork-plugin_ailtir__plugin_report_usage"] |
Ailtir Cost Reconciliation
Usage Reporting
Before doing workflow-specific work, read the stable anonymous UUID from
~/Ailtir-Tendering/install_id. If the file is missing, create its parent
directory, generate a UUID v4, and write only that UUID to the file. Re-read the
file and call the plugin_report_usage tool from the bundled ailtir MCP server
with these arguments:
skill_name: ailtir_cost-reconciliationplugin_version: 2.15.4installation_id: the UUID read from ~/Ailtir-Tendering/install_id
If the identifier cannot be read or created, leave that failure visible and
continue without reporting. If reporting returns failed, leave the failure visible and continue the workflow.
You are the Commercial Director performing the final quality gate check on a priced estimate before it is submitted. Read Context/profile.json to load the correct benchmark reference in Step 3 and to know which profile-specific gaps to check in Step 1.
Step 1: Gap Analysis
Check the estimate against standard omissions:
- Are Preliminaries included? (Under
ireland-gc typically 8–15% of direct costs; under uk-gc typically 10–14% for standard projects, higher for complex/HRB.)
- Is the Performance Bond priced? (Mandatory on almost all PW-CF under
ireland-gc; typical on JCT/NEC4 public works under uk-gc.)
- Are cranage and heavy lifts covered?
- Is there an allowance for weather delays?
- Under
ireland-gc: are commissioning, BCAR compliance, and PSDP/PSCS coordination costs included?
- Under
uk-gc: are CDM 2015 duty-holder costs, Building Safety Act information-management overhead (HRB scope), and Carbon Reduction Plan reporting costs included where required?
Step 2: Double-Count Check
Look for overlaps between trade packages:
- Did the mechanical subbie include trenching, or is it in the groundworks package?
- Is scaffolding priced in the masonry package AND the general prelims?
Step 3: Benchmarking
Compare the total price against the profile-appropriate benchmarks (from rate-library).
- Under
ireland-gc: compare against SCSI / Buildcost €/m² benchmarks. Flag anomalies (e.g., a school priced at €3,000/m² when the DoE allowance is €1,753/m²).
- Under
uk-gc: compare against BCIS £/m² benchmarks, applying the BCIS regional cost index to the UK-average figure for the project location.
Flag any total that falls materially outside the applicable range as a HIGH RISK anomaly.
Step 4: Output Report
Generate a Reconciliation Report detailing:
- Gaps Found: Items missing.
- Overlaps: Potential double-counts.
- Benchmark Status: How the €/m² compares to the market.
- Draft Clarifications: A list of assumptions to include in the Form of Tender cover letter.
Anti-Patterns (What NOT to do)
- DO NOT just say "the math is correct". You must evaluate the commercial logic and completeness.
- DO NOT ignore the Preliminaries percentage. If it's below 6%, flag it immediately as an under-resourced site.
- [HUMAN INPUT REQUIRED] If the estimate relies heavily on unconfirmed subcontractor quotes, advise the user to confirm validity periods before submission.
Quality Checks
On Completion — Update Bid State
When this skill finishes for a specific bid, update the bid's state file so ailtir_conductor and ailtir_dashboard reflect the progress. Run the sibling ailtir_conductor skill's scripts/update_frontmatter.py helper with python3:
python3 <ailtir_conductor>/scripts/update_frontmatter.py \
--bid-path Bids/<BID> \
--complete <this skill's folder name> \
--result proceed
Substitute <BID> for the bid folder name (e.g. 2026-014-CorkLibrary) and <this skill's folder name> for the folder this SKILL.md lives in (e.g. ailtir_project-indexer). Use --result skipped and --reason "..." if the user asked to skip rather than complete.
If the target bid README has no YAML frontmatter yet, update_frontmatter.py will exit with code 3. In that case, run scripts/init_bid_frontmatter.py from the same sibling skill first, then retry the update.
This is the plugin's "Soul-Update Pattern": every bid-scoped skill leaves a trace in the bid README so the conductor never has to guess what has and hasn't been done.
On Completion — Recommend the Next Step
After the frontmatter has been updated, help the user by naming what comes next — do not make them re-invoke ailtir_conductor just to see it.
Read references/phase-map.md from the sibling ailtir_conductor skill's directory. Find the section for the bid's current phase (from the frontmatter you just updated). The phase map lists the canonical skill sequence for that phase — identify the earliest skill in that list not yet present in completed[].
Then print exactly this block at the very end of your response:
Next up on {bid_id} ({phase} phase):
→ /ailtir-cowork-plugin:{next_skill} — {one-line rationale from the phase map}
Or run /ailtir-cowork-plugin:ailtir_conductor for a full cross-bid view.
Special cases:
- If
blockers[] is non-empty, use the blocker's resolution skill from the phase map's blocker-overrides table instead (e.g. ailtir_rfi-generator for type: rfi) and lead with "Blocked — resolve first:".
- If every skill in the current phase's sequence is now completed, name the first skill of the next phase and say "Phase complete — moving to {next_phase}:".
- If the bid has reached
closed or delivery with no obvious next step, print "No canonical next step — run /ailtir-cowork-plugin:ailtir_conductor to see the full pipeline." instead of a specific recommendation.
Occasional Feedback
After this workflow completes successfully, follow
references/occasional-feedback.md from the sibling ailtir_feedback skill.
Do not schedule or invite feedback after a cancelled or failed workflow.
