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X84 file: the GAEB bid with prices
An X84 is the bid a contractor returns in reply to an X83: a unit price and a total for each item number, plus the LV total. It usually has no texts. Drop yours into the viewer to see every item with its prices or export them to Excel; below, an X84 is explained element by element.
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What is in an X84
First what an X84 holds, then the X84 that answers the short X83 on the X83 page, valid against the GAEB DA XML 3.3 schema.
What the file holds
| Content | In the file | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Bidder | Yes | Name and address of the bidder (CTR). |
| Item numbers (OZ) | Yes | The OZ of each priced item, in the structure of the X83. |
| Unit prices | Yes | UP per item, with up to three decimals. |
| Totals | Yes | IT per item where it counts, then totals per section and for the LV. |
| Bidder text additions | If asked for | The gaps from the X83, filled in. |
| Quantities | Free quantities only | Where the X83 left the quantity to the bidder. |
| Section titles, short and long texts | No | The phase 84 schema has no fields for them; the texts stay in the X83. |
The sample, explained
| Sample | What it says |
|---|---|
| X84 answering the X83 sample | |
| XML declaration and root element. The namespace names the exchange phase (DA84) and the version of GAEB DA XML (3.3). |
| GAEBInfo: version of GAEB DA XML and the program that wrote the file. PrjInfo: project number and name. |
| DP 84 = Angebotsabgabe (bid), with the currency. |
| The bidder (CTR) with name and address. |
| LV name, the OZ structure and the bid total: 5,268.80 EUR. |
| Sections 01 and 01.01, without titles: the phase 84 schema has no field for them. |
| Item 01.01.0010: unit price (UP) 18.40 and total (IT) 892.40 for the 48.5 m of the X83. No quantity, no text: the X84 refers to the item by its number. |
| Item 01.01.0020, the contingency item: a unit price only, no total. |
| Totals of section 01.01 and section 01. |
| Sections 02 and 02.01. |
| Item 02.01.0010: 14 × 312.60 = 4,376.40, and the bidder's text addition with the offered make. |
| Section totals and the end of the file. |
Tender phase
Where the X84 fits in a tender
84 is the bid. It answers the 83, and the client compares the bids before awarding the contract with an 86.
| Phase | Name | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| 80 | Universal LV data | Any LV data, not tied to a step of the tender. |
| 81 | Leistungsbeschreibung (description of works) | The LV with its texts, as the planner hands it to the client. Usually without prices. |
| 82 | Kostenanschlag (cost estimate) | The LV with estimated prices, for award decisions and cost control. |
| 83 | Angebotsaufforderung (request for quotation) | The LV without prices, sent to the companies invited to bid. |
| 84 | Angebotsabgabe (bid) this file | The bidder's prices, text additions and free quantities, sent back to the client. |
| 85 | Nebenangebot (alternative bid) | A bid with an alternative way of execution, if the client allows it. |
| 86 | Auftragserteilung (contract award) | The award to the most economical bid. With it, the construction contract is concluded. |
| 87 | Auftragsbestätigung (order confirmation) | The contractor confirms the order. |
| 89 | Rechnung (invoice) | The invoice with items and quantities, which can be backed by quantity take-offs. |
| 93–97 | Trade (Handel) | Between contractor and manufacturer or wholesaler: price request (93), price offer (94), order (96), order confirmation (97). |
Three generations of the format
| Format | Files | Status |
|---|---|---|
| GAEB DA XML this file | .X80 to .X89, plus other phases | The current standard, version 3.3 (edition 2023-01). |
| GAEB DA 2000 | .P81 to .P86 | Keyword format. No longer supported by the GAEB. |
| GAEB 90 | .D81 to .D86 | Line format with fixed columns. No longer supported by the GAEB. |
Open and convert
How to open and convert an X84
Reading an X84 is easy; reading it with texts takes the X83 as well.
| Task | How |
|---|---|
| Read it now | Drop the file into the viewer at the top of this page. It opens X8x, P8x and D8x files in your browser; the file is not uploaded. |
| Excel or CSV | In the viewer, choose Excel (.xlsx) or CSV: one row per item with OZ, short and long text, quantity, unit and prices. |
| Open the print view in the viewer and save it as PDF. | |
| Work with it | AVA or estimating software with a GAEB interface. The BVBS certifies such interfaces for GAEB DA XML 3.1 to 3.3. |
| Texts and prices together | An X84 usually carries prices only. The texts are in the X83 it answers; open that file next to it. |
| Compare bids | The client reads the X84 files into AVA software and compares them in a price comparison (Preisspiegel). |
PDF and Excel tenders
Not every tender comes as GAEB.
Many bills of quantities still arrive as PDF, scan or Excel, and someone types them in. Mercura reads tenders in GAEB and PDF and suggests matching articles from your catalogue for every item, so a PDF tender is handled like an X83.
FAQ
Questions about GAEB files.
An X84 is the bid (Angebotsabgabe) in GAEB DA XML, exchange phase 84. The bidder sends it back to the client in reply to an X83. It carries a unit price and, where it counts, a total for each item number, plus section and LV totals and any bidder text additions.
Phase 84 carries prices, not texts: its schema has no fields for short and long texts, only for bidder text additions. The texts are in the X83 the bid answers. The viewer still opens such an X84 and lists every item number with its prices.
Drop it into the GAEB viewer on this page. It shows the items with unit prices, totals and the LV total, and exports them to Excel, CSV or PDF. The file stays in your browser.
The X84 is a bid. The X86 (Auftragserteilung) is the contract award: the client gives the order to the most economical bid, which concludes the construction contract. Unlike an X84, an X86 can hold texts, quantities and prices.
Bids in the older formats GAEB 90 (D84) and GAEB DA 2000 (P84). Like an X84 they often carry only item numbers and prices. The viewer opens both.
With estimating or AVA software that reads the X83, lets you enter your prices and writes the X84, or with the free GAEB converter at mercura.ai/tools/gaeb-converter, where you type your unit prices in the browser or fill in an Excel price sheet. Check the X84 in your own software before you submit it.
GAEB formats
More GAEB formats, explained.
X83
Request for quotation
The bill of quantities without prices that bidders receive.
GAEB formats
X, P and D, phases 80 to 89
All formats and phases at a glance.
D83
Request for quotation, GAEB 90
The same request in the GAEB 90 line format.
X81
Description of works
The description of works from the planner.
P83
Request for quotation, GAEB 2000
The request in the GAEB 2000 keyword format.