A specialty subcontractor wins work two ways, as a prime on a public contract and as a sub on a GC trade package, and a sub that does not distinguish the two misjudges the terms and the effort.
What separates prime and sub specialty work
On a prime public specialty contract the sub bids the owner directly and carries the prime obligations: bonds, prevailing wage reporting, and contract administration. On a GC trade package the sub bids the general contractor and carries the terms the GC passes down. The role decides the obligations and the pursuit.
Why the role is easy to misread
Whether a solicitation is a prime public contract or a GC trade invitation, and the obligations that come with each, sits in the documents, not always the title. A sub that misreads the role bids the wrong terms and the wrong effort.
How an AI bid agent splits prime and sub work
An AI bid agent reads each specialty solicitation, classifies it as prime public work or a GC trade package, and surfaces the role and the obligations that drive the pursuit. The sub bids each on its actual terms.
You can see how the agent classifies a solicitation in our AI bid agent demo for specialty trade contractors. It separates prime public specialty contracts from GC trade packages and surfaces the obligations of each.