Machinery is the hardest class to get right
A manufacturing loss is decided on the machinery line. Heat and smoke damage on equipment is easy to overstate from a distance and easy to understate up close: sheet metal and paint take the visible damage first, while drives, ways, spindles and controls may be untouched — or quietly ruined by acidic smoke residue that will not show for months.
Each unit is recorded by manufacturer, model, serial number, capacity and year, with the nameplate photographed. Where the plate has burned off, the machine is described by physical characteristics — bed size, tonnage, spindle count, voltage, table dimensions — which is enough for a dealer to identify the model. That identification is what makes a line priceable; a description does not.
Tooling, raw stock and finished goods
These are three separate claims that happen to be in one building. Tooling, fixtures and dies carry replacement cost far beyond their appearance and are routinely swept into a single line. Raw material is priced against commodity markets. Finished goods carry the value added in production and may be unsaleable after smoke exposure even when physically intact.
Work in progress is its own problem: partially completed product has a cost basis that is neither raw nor finished, and establishing it needs the insured’s production records rather than an inspection.
Where the recovery is
Manufacturing is the sector where salvage most often exceeds expectations, because machine-tool dealers and rebuilders buy, refurbish and resell exactly this equipment. Recoverable property is identified during the inspection and marketed to that trade rather than to general liquidators, which is usually the difference between a scrap price and a real bid. Removal is scheduled against the demolition contractor and documented.