Identify the vehicle the proposal is for
Use the actual registration and chassis information from the documents you already hold. Add the existing body details if the work is a replacement or conversion. A sales photograph or the name of a truck range is not enough to establish the vehicle’s configuration.
DAF’s Bodybuilder Information+ describes order-specific chassis drawings, dimensions and axle-load information for bodybuilders. That public description demonstrates the importance of vehicle-specific data; it does not approve a conversion or provide mounting instructions for your project.
Sources: DAF: Bodybuilder Information+
Describe usable space rather than one outside dimension
Explain what must fit inside, how it enters and where it is handled. Give the measurements you actually have and identify anything still to be confirmed. Distinguish a required clear opening from an approximate external body size.
Discuss the ordinary loading process and any recurring exception. Rear loading, side access and work at a loading dock create different questions for the specification. If equipment such as a tail lift is involved, include it in the same conversation instead of treating it as an unrelated addition.
Include fittings and equipment in the discussion
Mercedes-Benz Vans explains that people, tools and fitted equipment contribute to carried weight. The Australian examples on that page do not determine the permissible capacity of a Dutch vehicle.
Prepare a list of permanent fittings and the equipment normally carried alongside the goods. Ask the bodybuilder how the actual vehicle data and proposed installation will be assessed. Do not calculate an assumed payload by subtracting a guessed body weight from a general brochure figure.
Compare the assumptions behind each quotation
Compare proposals using the same fields. If one document states an outside dimension and another a clear loading opening, mark that difference before comparing prices. Leave an unconfirmed measurement open rather than converting a preference into an approved specification.
- Vehicle basis: which chassis records and existing body details were used?
- Space required: internal usable area, required clear opening and the source of each supplied measurement.
- Access: loading side, door use and any loading-dock or tail-lift requirement.
- Included fittings: floor, doors, lighting and equipment listed in the proposal.
- Unresolved points: what still needs technical assessment, who supplies it and when the proposal is updated.
Bring the vehicle records, existing body information and a description of the load space you need to the first quotation discussion.
Call the workshop