Glossary
Positionsarten (item types in a German bill of quantities)
Positionsarten are the item types of a German bill of quantities, such as normal, base, alternative and provisional items. The type decides whether an item counts toward the bid total.
In short
A German bill of quantities (LV) uses several item types. The type sets what the bidder has to offer and whether the item counts toward the bid total.
Not every type counts in full. Wahlpositionen and Bedarfspositionen without total take a unit price only. Textpositionen carry no price.
The type is stored as a flag in the GAEB file. Read the flag, not only the wording.
Example
A heating LV can contain items of these types. The GAEB element is given in brackets where there is one.
Normalposition: an ordinary item. It counts toward the bid total.
Grundposition: the base item of a choice. It counts toward the bid total.
Wahlposition (Alternativposition): an alternative to a Grundposition. Only a unit price is entered, and the item is not in the total.
Bedarfsposition (Eventualposition): a provisional item. Without total (Provis WithoutTotal): unit price only, not in the total. With total (Provis WithTotal): it counts. Under VOB/A 2019 § 7 Abs. 1 Nr. 4, Bedarfspositionen are in principle not part of the LV.
Pauschalposition: one lump sum with the unit „psch“ (LumpSumItem). It counts.
Stundenlohnarbeiten: hourly work (HourIt). Under VOB/A 2019 § 7 Abs. 1 Nr. 4, appended hourly work may be part of the LV only to the strictly necessary extent.
Zuschlagsposition: a markup on other items (MarkupItem).
Zulageposition: an ordinary item whose text adds to another item, for example „Zulage zu Pos. …“. GAEB has no own flag for it.
Textposition (Hinweistext): text without quantity and without price.
Position „entfällt“: no longer part of the LV, not in the total (NotAppl).
Freie Menge: the bidder enters the quantity (QtyTBD).
What to watch for
A change of type changes the bid total and what has to be offered. Check the type before you calculate.
Check the flags in the GAEB file, not only the text. GAEB 90 (D83) also marks the types in the item record.
Items with a unit price only are not in the total, but the bidder still enters a unit price for each.
A Zulageposition has no flag of its own. Read its text to see which item it adds to.
Not to be confused with
Zuschlagsposition and Zulageposition: a Zuschlagsposition is a markup on other items. A Zulageposition is an ordinary item whose text adds to another item.
Leistungsbereiche of STLB-Bau: they organise the text by trade. They are text structure, not an item type.
In Mercura
When Mercura imports a GAEB file, it reads the item type with it: Grundposition, Bedarfsposition (with or without total) or Wahlposition.
Related terms
Bedarfsposition (provisional item)
A Bedarfsposition (also Eventualposition) is an item in a German bill of quantities for work that is only carried out if the client orders it during construction. Without total, the bidder states a unit price only.
Wahlposition and Grundposition (alternative and base item)
A Wahlposition (also Alternativposition) is an alternative to a Grundposition in a German bill of quantities. The bidder gives a price for both, and the client decides later which one is commissioned.
Ordnungszahl (OZ, item number in a bill of quantities)
An Ordnungszahl (OZ) is the unique number of an item in a German bill of quantities. It shows where the item sits, for example 01.02.0030 for item 0030 under levels 01 and 02.
Kurztext and Langtext (short and long text)
Kurztext and Langtext are the two texts of every item in a German bill of quantities. The Kurztext is a one-line label, and the Langtext is the full description of the work with material, dimensions, norms and scope.
STLB-Bau (German standard specification texts)
STLB-Bau (Standardleistungsbuch für das Bauwesen) is a digital, dynamic text system with standard wording for VOB-compliant tender texts. Its texts are organised by trade.
Leistungsbeschreibung (statement of work in a German tender)
A Leistungsbeschreibung describes the work being tendered. It is the umbrella term: a Leistungsverzeichnis, with quantities for each item, is one form of it, and a Leistungsprogramm, with goals and requirements, is the other.
On mercura.ai