Pricing & Proposals
Cost proposals priced to win and built to survive review.
Cost volumes, basis of estimate, and pricing models for FFP, cost-reimbursable, and T&M solicitations. Prepared by someone who spent 12 years auditing proposals from the government side.
- 12 years inside DCAA
- 100+ DoD contractors audited
- CPA led
- QuickBooks, Costpoint, SAP & NetSuite
- Remote, nationwide
The cost volume is an audit document
A cost proposal is not a sales document with numbers in it. Depending on dollar value and contract type it may be evaluated by the contracting officer, analyzed by the buying command, and audited by DCAA. If certified cost or pricing data is required under the Truth in Negotiations framework, you are certifying that the data is accurate, complete, and current, and that carries real consequence.
Having audited forward pricing proposals for over a decade, the pattern is consistent: proposals lose not because the price was wrong but because the estimate could not be traced. Rates that do not tie to the accounting system, labor categories that do not match the technical volume, escalation with no stated basis, and a basis of estimate that asserts rather than supports.
We build cost volumes that a reviewer can follow from the bottom-line number back to the source, because that is what makes a proposal defensible in negotiation and fast to evaluate.
What we support
Cost volume preparation
The full cost narrative and supporting schedules, structured to the solicitation instructions rather than to a generic template.
Basis of estimate
Documented estimating rationale for labor hours, mix, material, and subcontract cost that stands up to technical and cost evaluation.
Pricing models
Build-up models by contract type, with correct treatment of rates, escalation, fee, and ceiling, and enough flexibility to run pricing scenarios quickly.
Rate application
Applying your indirect rates correctly and consistently with your disclosed practices, which is one of the most common findings we see.
Certified cost or pricing data
Sweeps and disclosure support where certification is required, and the discipline around currency and completeness that comes with it.
Fact-finding and negotiation support
Responses to the government audit and fact-finding requests that follow, and support during negotiation.
How we work a proposal
Read the solicitation properly
Contract type, pricing instructions, the cost volume format required, and what the evaluation criteria actually reward.
Build the estimate
Labor mix and hours with the technical team, then material, subcontract, travel, and ODCs.
Apply rates and structure the price
Indirect rates, escalation, and fee, applied consistently with your accounting practice.
Document the basis
Every significant estimate gets a traceable rationale written at the time, not reconstructed at fact-finding.
Support the review
Data requests, fact-finding, and negotiation support through award.
Questions
Frequently asked
What is a basis of estimate and why does it matter so much?
It is the documented reasoning behind each estimated cost element: why these hours, this labor mix, this material cost. It matters because a reviewer cannot accept a number they cannot trace. A well-supported estimate at a higher price frequently fares better than an unsupported lower one.
When is certified cost or pricing data required?
Generally for negotiated procurements above the statutory threshold where an exception such as adequate price competition or a commercial product determination does not apply. The certification is a serious representation and the sweep process before it deserves real attention.
Can you help price firm-fixed-price work?
Yes, and FFP deserves more pricing rigor than it usually gets. On FFP the entire risk of a bad estimate is yours, with no adjustment mechanism afterward. The discipline is the same; the consequence of getting it wrong is more immediate.
What is a forward pricing rate agreement?
An agreement with the government on the indirect rates you will use in future proposals. Where your proposal volume justifies it, an FPRA removes a recurring point of contention and speeds up every subsequent bid.
Do you work with our capture and technical teams?
Yes. The cost volume has to agree with the technical and management volumes. Inconsistency between volumes is a common and entirely avoidable weakness.
More
Related services
Certified cost or pricing data (TINA)
When certified data applies, how to disclose it so it holds up, and how to answer a defective pricing finding.
Guide: TINA and CAS thresholds after the FY2026 NDAA
Certified data now starts at $10 million for DoD contracts after June 30, 2026. What changed, and what still gets reviewed below it.
Commercial items & OTAs
Commercial item determinations and price reasonableness support, so a proposal can be priced without cost-based data.
DCAA-compliant accounting systems
Design, configure, and document a system that meets DFARS 252.242-7006 and survives a system review.
SF 1408 pre-award surveys
Get your accounting system judged adequate so you can accept a cost-type award.
Incurred cost submissions
Adequate ICE submissions filed on time, with schedules that reconcile the first time.
Indirect cost rate structures
Pool design, allocation bases, provisional billing rates, and the annual true-up.
Government audit support
Preparation and representation for DCAA and DCMA audits and buying command cost analysis.
Forward pricing rates (FPRP & FPRA)
Forward pricing rate proposals and agreements so every future bid prices faster and with less argument.
CAS Disclosure Statements
Form CASB DS-1 preparation, cost impact analysis, and disclosed practice compliance.
Post-award & business system reviews
DFARS 252.242-7006 reviews, material weaknesses, payment withholding, and corrective action.
Terminations, REAs & claims
Termination settlement proposals and requests for equitable adjustment. Frequently underclaimed.
Have a solicitation in front of you?
Send us the contract type, the due date, and the cost volume instructions. We will tell you what the pricing effort realistically requires.