How to Prequalify a Florida Commercial Glazier (Six Questions That Predict Project Outcome)

I run a Florida commercial glazing contractor. I get prequalified by general contractors every week. Most prequal forms ask the wrong questions. Here are six that actually predict outcomes.

Question 1: Show me three recent permits in my AHJ

Not 'do you have HVHZ experience.' Show me the permit numbers. Show me the AHJ, the permit issue date, and the NOAs referenced. If a glazier can produce three recent HVHZ permits with documentation in 48 hours, they have HVHZ experience. If they can't, they don't — regardless of what their website says.

Question 2: Email me your last three completed shop drawing packages

Shop drawings tell you everything. Are they organized? Are anchor details engineered? Are NOA references current? Are revisions tracked properly? A glazier whose shop drawings look like 2008 AutoCAD output will perform like a 2008 AutoCAD glazier on your job.

Question 3: What's your average bid response time, and what's your slowest in the last 6 months

Average bid response tells you about operational discipline. Slowest response tells you what happens when they're overloaded. Both numbers matter. We respond in 48 hours on standard plans; slowest in the last 6 months was 8 business days on a complex curtain wall package.

Question 4: Walk me through your last warranty call

Every glazier has warranty calls. The question is how they handle them. Did they show up within 7 days? Did they identify root cause? Did they document the resolution? A glazier who can't tell you specifically about their last warranty call has either no warranty calls (suspicious) or doesn't track them properly (also suspicious).

Question 5: What's your EMR and what's it been the last three years

Experience Modification Rate (workers comp). Industry average is 1.00. Below 1.00 means below-average claims. Below 0.85 is good. Below 0.80 is excellent. Ours is 0.81. A glazier with 1.20+ EMR has a workplace safety problem that will eventually show up on your jobsite.

Question 6: Show me your contractor's qualification statement (AIA A305)

AIA A305 is the standard contractor qualification document. It pulls together license, bonding, insurance, financial capacity, and project history. Every legitimate commercial glazier has one updated and ready. A glazier who can't produce A305 within 24 hours is operating below the qualifications threshold for serious commercial work.

The questions that DON'T predict outcomes

Years in business — some 5-year companies are sharp; some 25-year companies are coasting. Website quality — some great glaziers have terrible websites. Office size — our office is 1,800 SF; we execute $20M+ in commercial work annually. The questions above test what actually matters.

How we score on these six

Permits: ready in 24 hours. Shop drawings: ready in 24 hours. Bid response: 48-hour average. Warranty calls: tracked in Procore, can walk through any of them. EMR: 0.81. AIA A305: pre-populated, available on request. The point isn't ACG — the point is the framework. Any commercial glazier worth hiring can answer these six in a day. The ones who can't, can't.