The difference between a pack and a pile
Everybody can merge PDFs. What makes a handover pack usable is that somebody can find the galvanising certificate in it eighteen months later without scrolling through four hundred pages.
So this does the two things a merge does not. It writes a contents page where every line is a link, and it builds real PDF bookmarks, the tree down the side of the reader, set to open when the file opens. Those are what turn a merged file into a document somebody can navigate.
There is no free tool that does this. The paid ones are aimed at document control departments and priced accordingly, so most handover packs get assembled by hand in Acrobat, or not at all.
Why the counting is the hard part
It sounds trivial and it is the whole job. The contents page numbers depend on how many pages the contents itself takes, and that depends on how many entries are in it, which is circular.
It comes apart because a line is one line whether it says 7 or 147. So the contents can be laid out before any page number is known, and the number of pages it will take is settled first. Only then does anything get a page number.
Out by one and every number in the pack is out by one, the bookmarks all land a page early, and nothing about the file says so. It looks perfect until somebody follows one, which is generally the client, six months after handover.
Sections in the order you want them
Each section holds its own documents and both can be reordered. The contents and the bookmarks are generated from that one structure, so they cannot drift apart from each other or from where the pages actually ended up.
A section with nothing in it is left out rather than listed with nothing under it. Rename anything: the standard section names are a starting point, not a rule, and the pack is yours.
What it does not change
Every document is copied page for page. Drawings stay vector and stay sharp when zoomed. Text stays selectable and searchable. Certificates keep whatever they had. Nothing is rasterised, re-encoded or compressed, so the pack is roughly the size of the originals added together.
Page numbers are optional and go in the bottom corner on a small white panel, so they stay readable over a drawing border. The cover is never numbered.
What this is not
It assembles the pack. It does not tell you what belongs in it, and it does not check that anything is missing, because what a pack needs depends on the contract, the client and the trade. If your employer's requirements list a section, that judgement is yours.
It is also not the CDM 2015 health and safety file, which is a specific duty of the principal designer covering residual risks for future work on the structure. The two are often issued together, and that is why health and safety information is one of the standard sections here.
A handover pack is the whole job in one file
The whole pack is assembled on this page using your own machine, which you can confirm in your browser network tab. That matters on a handover pack more than most things: it is the complete record of a job, with the client's name, the site address and every subcontractor on it, and the usual free option is to upload the lot to a company that keeps it for a few hours.
There is no page limit and no file limit, because there is no server charging by the page.
Common questions
What goes in an O&M manual?
Usually a project directory, a description of the works, as-built drawings, material and test certificates, any Declaration of Performance, surface treatment records, maintenance requirements, warranties and health and safety information. The standard set is one button here, and you can rename or delete any of it.
How do I combine PDFs with bookmarks for free?
Name your sections, add the PDFs to each one, and press build. You get a single PDF with a cover, a contents page where every line is a link, and real bookmarks in the sidebar that open by default. No account and nothing uploaded.
Is this the same as the Health and Safety File?
No. Under CDM 2015 the health and safety file is a specific duty of the principal designer and covers residual risks for future work on the building. An O&M manual is the wider handover document. Packs are often issued together, which is why health and safety information is one of the standard sections.
Will the drawings still be sharp?
Yes. Every document is copied page for page rather than redrawn, so vectors stay vectors, text stays selectable and searchable, and the file stays roughly the size of the originals added together.
Is there a page or file limit?
No. It runs on your own machine, so there is no server being paid for by the page. A pack of several hundred pages is fine, though a very large one takes a moment to put together.