Work package bill of quantities

A bill of quantities (sometimes referred to as a 'BoQ' or 'BQ') is a document, typically prepared by a cost consultant (often a quantity surveyor), that provides measured quantities of the items of work identified by the drawings and specifications in the tender documentation for a project. It is issued to tenderers to allow them to prepare a price for carrying out the works.

According to NRM2, RICS new rules of measurement, Detailed measurement for building work, there are three main breakdown structures for bill of quantities:

• Elemental bill of quantities.
• Work package bill of quantities.
• Work section bill of quantities.

The work package breakdown structure undertakes measurement and description divided into employer, quantity surveyor or contractor defined work packages (based either on a specific-trade, or a single package comprising a number of different trades). This structure may be preferred by contractors for procuring from their supply chain.

NRM 2 suggests that a typical breakdown structure for a discrete work package might be:

• Bill No. 1: Main contractor’s preliminaries.
• Bill No. 2: Intrusive investigations.
• Bill No. 3: Demolition works.
• Bill No. 4: Groundworks.
• Bill No. 5: Piling.
• Bill No. 6: Concrete works.
• Bill No. 7: Roof coverings and roof drainage.
• Bill No. 8: External and internal structural walls.
• Bill No. 9: Cladding.
• Bill No. 10: Windows and external doors.
• Bill No. 11: Mastic.
• Bill No. 12: Non-structural walls and partitions.
• Bill No. 13: Joinery.
• Bill No. 14: Suspended ceilings.
• Bill No. 15: Architectural metalwork.
• Bill No. 16: Tiling.
• Bill No. 17: Painting and decorating.
• Bill No. 18: Floor coverings.
• Bill No. 19: Fittings, furnishings and equipment.
• Bill No. 20: Combined mechanical and electrical engineering services.
• Bill No. 21: Lifts and escalators.
• Bill No. 22: Facade access equipment.
• Bill No. 23: External works and drainage.
• Bill No. 24: Risks.
• Bill No. 25: Provisional sums.
• Bill No. 26: Credits.
• Bill No. 27: Daywork (Provisional).

[edit] Find out more about related subjects

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki

• Advantages of a bill of quantities.
• Approximate bill of quantities.
• Bill of quantities.
• Bill of quantities breakdown structures.
• Bill of quantities software.
• Common Arrangement of Work Sections (CAWS).
• Common mistakes in bill of quantities.
• Comparison of SMM7 with NRM2.
• Elemental bill of quantities.
• Firm bill of quantities.
• How to take off construction works.
• Measurement.
• NRM1.
• NRM2.
• NRM3.
• Schedule of rates.
• Standard Method of Measurement (SMM7).
• Taking off.
• Tender.
• Tender documentation.
• Tender pricing document.
• Types of bill of quantities.
• Uniclass.
• Work section bill of quantities.