ADVANCED MEASUREMENT OF CONSTRUCTION WORKS II QUS 302.

HND I QS
BILL FORMATS

Bills of quantities should constitute a document that is precise and capable of communicating
clearly the intentions of the client or his representative to the contractor in written descriptive
form. The contractor should be able to locate bill items easily inside the bill.
The history of quantity surveying development have issued out diverse formats of arranging
the items contained in the bill of quantities. Most of the formats were developed to gain from
the disadvantages of the preceding formats. In the process, some formats evolved and
accorded easy handling of the whole construction process and secured a greater
understanding of the bill document entirely for the benefit of the contractor and other
participants in the construction sector. This has simplified the work of the contractor at the
tender stage, and also facilitated better understanding of the document to the client and his
representative including easy identification or location of bill items.
Some of the formats provide greater benefits at the construction stage by facilitating easy
management of the construction works including easy assessment of the work in progress or
subletting of sections, which simplifies the work of valuers during interim valuation
processes. The advantages and disadvantages of individual formats have carefully been spelt
out in this section. The quantity surveyor is left to decide on which format to use for a
particular project and also when a format is best applicable. There are seven formats in all
and listed as follows:
1. Trades bill format
2. Elemental bill format
3. Sectionalized Trades format
4. Work section bill format
5. Operational bill format
6. Activity bill format
7. Annotated bill format

1. Trades Bill Format

The arrangement of bills by trades was developed at the cradle of the quantity surveying
profession. This is the format bills of quantities were first prepared. Before the development
of quantity surveying it was a practice that architects employ the services of master craftsmen
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to execute the work on their design based on each trade. For example, the carpenter,
electrician, painter etc, were employed independently to execute their relevant parts of the
work in the design after which each tradesman puts up his claim, covering the material and
labor for payment. These tradesmen later decided to employ “measurers” to assess the work
on their behalf before starting the execution. The main reason was to avoid some difficulties
they usually encounter regards to claims after the job has been executed. The architect
usually will dispute their amount of claims. This process later led to the preparation of bills of
quantities by the architect himself using the measuring experts based on each trade, and
negotiations were often concluded before the work starts.
A trade can be said to be a craftsman or skill worker. All the works within each trade were
often grouped in separate sheets in the bill for easy extraction or easy copying for various
sub-contracting negotiations. Evershed (1923) suggested the order of taking-off based on
trades as, “to take the order of specification, each trade completed before the next trade is
attempted”. The advantage is that it enables each specification to be cleared before another.
And the various items can be billed at once, without much trouble of abstraction. Any trade
completed can also be sublet before others are finalized. It also implies that the work can start
very early for the trades that negotiations have been completed. However, time is often
wasted in going over and over the same ground for different trades. It means that the
measurer must go through the whole drawing each time a trade is to be measured in order to
extract relevant works, and there could be many trades in a project. For example, he must go
through the whole drawing when measuring for masonry, painting, and carpentry works, etc.
since these trades do occur at different parts of a building. The classification of a building
into trades is included here below. In each case individual trades should be separated into
appropriate subheadings. The classifications cannot be so rigid but rather depends on how
local practitioners group themselves into trades. Table 4.2 gave further details of trades and
items of work that might be associated to each. These are examples of trades in a bill:
Bill number 1: Preliminaries
Bill number 2:
Trades number:
1. Excavator and concreter
2. Drains
3. Brick layer
4. Mason
5. Tiler
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6. Carpenter
7. Joiner and iron monger
8. Founder and smith
9. Plasterer
10. Plumber
11. Electrician
12. Painter and decorator
13. Glazier

Merits and Demerits of Trades Bill

Merits of trades bill
a. The building industry still relies largely on crafts processes; contractor’s estimator
will find it easy to get quotations from craftsmen during assessment.
b. It is more convenient to sublet or subcontract one or more of the trades because the
extraction of the trades has already been done.
c. A contractor who does not have the capability of executing the job can easily engage
and manage different sub-contractors on site since each sub contractor’s work has
been clearly defined and cost inserted.
d. It reduces repetitive descriptions of items.
Demerits of trades bill
a. Most of these trades have been superseded by modern technology and
industrialization; as such some trades are combined together in the industry into one
profession. It is therefore difficult sometimes to separate these trades. For example,
factory glazed metal and aluminum components have combined the work of a glazier
with that of a smith.
b. Many trades have developed out of other trades as new areas of specializations, as
such; division of a project into trades seems infinite. For example, tile work alone
could have specialists in different roof tiling, floor tiling (like terrazzo layers,
ceramic, granolithic, quarry tiles etc.) and wall tiling such as mosaic tiles, quarry,
ceramic etc.
c. New building materials and ways of construction have evolved over the years that
come along with their trained workers, which cannot be handled by just any
tradesman. Examples are the different types of suspended ceilings, roof tilling and
sheeting, and some finishes. Therefore the classification cannot really help in
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 assigning jobs as it combines simple and complex industrial operations in the same
trade.
d. Most tradesmen limit themselves to a narrow craftwork, it is difficult to really place
some work items in a trade. Should they appear as separate trades, then the list of
trades could be so many as to make no since. For example, terrazzo and granolithic
paving, Tyrolean and rendering, roof tilling and sheeting, aluminum door and window
components and steel or alloy prefabrications.
e. Interim valuations are also difficult due to difficulty in sorting out from different
trades when an element has been completed.
f. It is not suitable for cost planning.
g. Cannot easily be understood by the client.
h. The classification does not follow the work order on site unlike the work section
format as such cannot help the contractor.
i. It is difficult to get a uniform classification to achieve its purpose because,
classifications should always be adapted to suite the way local tradesmen group
themselves or practice their trades in a location if the main advantages are to be
derived.
j. Generally, this classification does not portray the technological advancement in the
construction delivery sector; as trades still suggest a primitive way of approach in
construction technology, for example blacksmithing instead of metal work, carpenter
instead of woodwork.It is evident that the disadvantages of trades bill format are
many. There was the need to find other formats that may offer better advantages.

2. Elemental Bill Format

The elemental bill format derives its name from the word element. An element is defined as
that integral part of a building performing a particular designed function different from other
parts. For example, the wall performs the function of protection of occupants against
horizontal threats, while the roof protects against threats that is dropping vertically. The doors
provide access into and out of the building in which no other element does. The Windows
allow lighting, ventilation and viewing of the outside, Frames are for stability and the
substructure founds the whole structure etc.
It has been made clear above that an element performs a specific function in a building
system in which no other performs irrespective of its form of construction; material used in
the construction and its size or position in the building. The elemental bill of quantities
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therefore follows the same pattern of the elemental functional units in the arrangements of the
work tasks. It is a format where items on the BOQ are grouped in accordance to the elements
they fall into, or rather according to the function they perform in the building. If a galvanized
iron sheet is used for protection against horizontal or vertical threats or used as a decorative
or staircase construction, the iron sheets will be measured and grouped in a bill according to
what it does. Steel therefore will be found in the different elements mentioned. If we also
consider the roof element, which lies horizontally and provides protection against weather
and falling objects, all items used in its construction are grouped together as one element
called roof. It doesn’t matter what form of construction, its size or material used to construct
it. All items forming part of the roof should be grouped together in one section under the
heading called roof. The wall that provides protection against horizontal threats or doors that
provide access into the building, and windows etc. should also have all items under them
grouped accordingly. In most cases, the items are subdivided into trades or work sections
order for clarity and easy identification. Under the roof element, subheadings like
Concretework, Blockwork, Rendering, Painting, Woodwork, Structural Steelwork, etc. could
occur where they are applicable.
It is very difficult sometimes to classify some items where they perform more than one
functions. For example the top course beam in a building could either be classified under
Roof, Frame or Wall items. The lintel can be classified under the window or door, or as wall
element, while the ground tie beams can be classified either in the substructure or in the
frame element, etc.
List of elements: Dividing a building into elements is a very difficult task. There is always
confusion and difficulty in placing an item if that item performs more than one function or
falls between two elements. For example, the top course beam performs the functions of tying
columns together, connecting roof to the wall and also falls directly as part of the wall. This
item can be classified under the roof, frame, or wall element. The lintel, while created as a
result of the need for openings do fall directly on the wall and partly performing the functions
of the wall. It can therefore be classified as an item under the wall or openings (windows and
doors) elements. The ground tie beams can also be classified into two, either as a sub-
structural item or classified as frames etc. This confusion has led to great variation in the
classification of elements over the Years. Different countries have developed different lists of
elements, and have classified items in different ways based on their perception. Individuals
have also modified the list to suit their conditions as such a variety of list of elements can be
found today.
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The unit format ii elemental classification
This form of elemental classification for buildings is meant to suit the purpose of
specifications, cost estimating and cost analysis. “The building community needs a
classification framework to provide a consistent reference for the description, economic
analysis and management of buildings during all phases of their life cycle” (Charette and
Marshal 1999). In 1973, a standard elemental format was produced for the use of the
American Institute of Architects (AIA) and The General Service Administration (GSA)
called the UNIT FORMAT. This was a combination of the AIA standard called the
MASTERCOST and the one being developed by the GSA since they were found to be
similar. In 1989, a subcommittee on Building Economics, representing a wide spectrum of
the construction industry in America, initiated the development of an ASTM Standard
Classification for Building Elements using much of the existing UNIFORMAT which was
then called UNIFORMAT II to emphasize its ties to the original UNIFORMAT. A wide
consensus was obtained from the design and construction industry in 1992 in preparation for
writing an ASTM standard on UNIFORMAT II which was approved in 1993. The standard
was revised in 1997. The UNIFORMAT II (see Table 4.2) therefore provides significant
advances over the original UNIFORMAT produced for GSA and AIA. This new format takes
into consideration a broader range of building types than those originally considered, and
numerous suggestions for improvement made by practitioners using the original
UNIFORMAT were incorporated.
Criteria for UNITFORMAT II Classification
The framework for the UNIFORMAT II classification (including Level 4), the selection of
items to include, and the decisions in which parts of the classification to include the items are
based on the following criteria:
• framework is hierarchical to allow aggregation and summarization at different levels
• framework is suitable for a range of applications, including cost control and schematic
phase preliminary project descriptions
• framework accommodates unlisted items based on the judgment of building professionals
• selected items have a significant influence on project cost.
The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Building Cost Information Service
Department attempted to solve the problem of the formats diversity by categorizing all
elements in a building into six (6) main groups. The elements were reported and listed by
Ojimelukwe (1991), and Ferry and Brandon (1991) as shown below.
1. Substructure
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2. Superstructure
3. Internal finishes
4. Fittings and Furnishings
5. Services and
6. External works

Every item in a building must therefore fall within these six elements when preparing the
bills of quantities. A more detailed classification was done by BCIS based on the six
elements, thus listing out sub elements within each element.
Merits and Demerits of Elemental Bill Format
Merits of Elemental Bill Format: The advantages of elemental bill format are:
a. Elemental bills offer an advantage of being the most convenient format when
preparing the bill.
b. It assists a standardized system of cost analysis which may be adopted particularly
where buildings of a similar nature are to be repeated
c. For the fact that items are related to particular part of the building, it makes estimating
more accurate. The risk of omitting some items is reduced.
d. It is most efficient for cost planning, and cost of elements could easily be compared to
justify allocation side by side with function of the elements.
e. It is easier to use and make reference; to locate individual items in the bill is easy.
f. Variations effect on individual elements is apparent.
g. The cost data in elemental form can easily be manipulated for cost prediction and
budget proposal.
h. Interim valuation relates directly to stage of work and because all items are within the
same section makes it easier and good in cost control process.
i. Each stage of work can be subcontracted easily for being properly defined, and for the
fact that it is easy to understand what an element of a building means (e.g. roof, wall,
doors etc.) than other formats.
j. The Estimator finds it easier, faster and more economical to prepare since most details
in design are often shown within their elements.
k. It relates better to value engineering processes
l. The contractor understands the elements better and this can assist him in a more
précised tendering.

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 m. The client also understands elements better and could easily appreciate the cost
variations in individual elements.

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Demerits of Elemental Bill Format: The major disadvantages are as follows:
a. Classification of buildings into elements is usually a difficult task because some
items fall within two elements or perform dual functions as such different people can
place them at different elements. E.g. lintel can be placed in wall or window elements,
lintel beams can either be placed in frames, doors or windows also.
b. There’s repetition of item descriptions that occur in more than one element. For
example, full description of concrete, formwork and reinforcements must be repeated
where it occurs in substructure, frames, roof doors and window elements.
c. Due to repetitions of items, bill often become bulky and more costly to prepare.
d. Extraction of similar trades is difficult. For example a welder or iron bender must sort
out from all elements to known his commitment in a particular project.
e. It is also a cumbersome task for contractors preparing materials schedule to gather all
related materials from different elemental sections of the bill if the same material falls
into several elements.

3. Sectionalized Trades Bill Format

The sectionalized trades bill format is an advanced development of the elemental bill. It is
produced to overcome some of the objections to the elemental bill format. In this format each
trade or work section is subdivided into functional elements and the normal trade order
followed within these elements. The essence is that the bill can be presented either as a work
section bill or as an elemental bill. In the bill, each element is started at the top of a fresh
sheet, the elements classified to guarantee re-organization or rearrangement of work tasks
without mixing up, or the document produced in loose leaf form with each element on a
separate sheet so that the bill may be put together in either of the following forms: -
a. Trades in the usual order starting with preambles and within each trade the items
grouped in elements.
b. Elements as the main heading each divided into such trades as occur within the
element. This is suitable for cost analysis purposes and post contract management.
c. Work section sub divided into elements suitable for tendering.
Successful contractor is often provided with several copies of the bill, which permits the use
of work section order for purchasing materials and elemental order for site management or
trades for sub-contraction purposes

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Merits and Demerits of Sectionalized Trades
Merits
1. Since it can be presented in the form of either work sections or elemental, it combines
the advantages of both.
2. It is produce in loose sheets that can be reshuffled to adapt to the need that arises.
Demerits of Sectionalized Trades
1. The bill could be bulky due to repetition of trades in different elements.
2. It is costly to produce due to bulkiness and for the fact that several copies are giving
to the contractor
3. The loose sheets nature and large number of sheets stands the risk of losing some of
the sheets.

4. Work Sections Format

The Work Sections Format is one of the formats mostly used in bill preparation. The standard
methods of measurement (SMM 6 and 7) editions divided a building into work sections
following the order of site implementation of works. The work sections follow the general
order of trades and in most cases, it is merely a case of using the work section headings in the
SMM, e.g. Excavation and Earthwork, Concrete work, Brick and Block work- instead of
excavator, concreter and brick layer etc., see a list of work sections in Table4.6. In general it
also follows an order of progress of work in a logical manner. An exception to the approach
exists where the work section plaster work and other floor, wall and ceiling finishes combine
different trades instead of subdividing them into work sections. However, this section could
equally be sub-divided into trades for the benefit of the estimator. Table 4.7 shows the list of
work sections.
Merits and Demerits of Work Sections Format
Merits of Work Sections Format
a. It makes pricing of items easier for the contractor since all items of similar nature are
in the same section.
b. It also makes it easy to prepare material schedule since one doesn’t have to flip
through the bill looking for similar items.
c. It is compatible with site activities as such can form a guide to contractors on the job
sequence.
d. Since it follows the sequence of site progress it alerts the contractor the appropriate
time, quality and quantity of material to order.
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 e. Planning and monitoring become easier.
f. Repetition of descriptions is reduced but not eliminated, for example concrete work in
substructure and super structure one repeated.
g. Bulkiness of bills also reduced and of course, the cost of production.
h. Extraction of similar trade is easier than in elemental form.

Demerits of Work Sections Format

a. Taking-off becomes more cumbersome since one will have to scan through the whole
drawings to pick up items that fall within same work section.
b. The chances of omitting items are higher than in the elemental method.
c. Repetition of description also occurs
d. When sub-contracting an element, items not related to the same element must be
separated, or in the alternative the element to be sublet be extracted. E.g. to
subcontract frames, other items of concrete work like the staircase, roof slabs,
concrete fascia etc. must be removed since they fall in the same work section.
e. It is not a suitable format for cost planning purpose.

5. Operational Bill Format

The Building Research Establishment in the UK developed the operational bill format. It is a
format whereby the various work items are set out in site operational terms i.e. in the way
work is to be carried out on site as distinct from trades or elements. Operations can be so
described as work done by a man or gang of men during some definite stage in the building
process. A construction operation is a complex process that encompasses several distinct sub
processes, each having its own technology and work sequences. The sequences can further be
broken down into activities for the purpose of equating the physical segment of project to
time and cost control. The time schedule is important when calculating the cost of an
operation. The content of each operation is often given as an item against which the estimator
inserts a lump sum price based on the time for an appropriate squad of men to carry out the
work. This is a fundamental divergence from traditional bill, with the separation of labor and
material items, and also it does not follow the principle of measurement laid down by the
Standard Method of Measurement (SMM). In this format, the sequences of operations are
often illustrated in the bill on a precedence diagram, which indicates their relationship to one
another and can take the form of a circle and link diagram.

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The operational bill format requires a fully preplanned design, or a complete set of drawings,
and calls for a detailed knowledge of site procedures. It is however possible to measure the
work in accordance with the SMM and arrange the items in the Bill of Operational order.
These sequences of operations are not binding on the contractor during execution.
Operational Estimating: The estimator usually groups together some bill items he will wish
to estimate as an operation. The group of bill items would be represented in the construction
program as one or more activities and so the construction program would provide the
duration of the operation. The next step is to identify the resources (material, plant, and labor)
requirement to complete that operation. The unit cost of each resource and the duration of the
activities are used to produce the total cost of that operation. The total cost will then be
assigned back to each item that combines to form the operation in the bill see Appendix III
Merits of Operational Bills
a. The contractor could more readily appreciate the implications of design at the
time estimates are prepared since it gives out much information about the
design.
b. The sequence of operation makes interim valuation easier.
c. Bonuses, target outputs, overhead, losses and control measures are more
readily tackled using the operational bill than other bill formats.
d. It does not curtail the freedom of the contractor on site to select the best
constructional techniques.
e. The estimator often gets a clear picture of the work involved, which enables
him to produce more realistic estimates, and also eases up considerably the
task of obtaining quotations for materials.
f. The precedence diagram, labor and material schedule ease up the work of the
contractor in preparing his program of work.
g. This type of estimate links well with planning and is effective in allowing for
idle time, which is common in most plant-dominated work.
Demerits of Operational Bills
a. Operational bills are bulky and costly to produce.
b. The task of contractor’s estimating department is often more than in other
formats.
c. A complete set of the drawings is needed when preparing the bill, this
therefore cause delay in early start of the work.

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 d. Precedence diagram requires a more detailed knowledge of site operations and
organizations, which many professionals may not possess.
e. It does not follow the rules of measurement in the SMM; it is therefore
difficult for practitioners to make such a radical change from the traditional
methods.
f. It does not conform to normal rules of estimating practice.
g. In general, operational bills have not come into common use; the estimator is
faced with grouping the items into operations himself.

6. Activity Bills Formats

This bill format is an improvement of the operational bill format. It is usually grouped in
more or less the same order as the operational bill, the major difference being that traditional
units of measurement are used e.g. block work- square meters, timber trusses- linear meters,
etc., and without the separation of labor and materials. It is subdivided into sections based on
activities or operations derived from a network analysis, and the work can be measured
according to the standard methods. In this case, on-site and off-site activities are usually
separated and special equipment, components and the work of nominated specialists grouped
in separate bills.
Some activities need to be completed before others start. For example, columns must be
erected before beams and upper floors can be raised, likewise louver windows must be
mounted before the louver blades are fixed. Sequence of activities can be represented
graphically in the form of network analysis. The design team can produce the network
analysis for smaller and less complex projects, but those for larger and more complicated
contracts may need a liaison with the contractor. The advantages and disadvantages of
activity bills are similar to that of the operational bill formats.

7. Annotated Bills Formats

Annotated bill format was developed in order to make plain some vital information, which
might not be easily noted or might not be explicit to enough in the bill. Despite the fact that
bill of quantities might present to the contractor clear and detail quantities, quality and type of
materials and labor, and the complete set of drawings showing to him precisely where and
how the work is to be executed, there are always instances where some bill items pose
difficulties to locate. Their locations in the work are not readily identifiable. The client might
desire to also have the contractor take special note of some items in the bill. It becomes
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necessary to have a note against them in the bill of quantities, giving their locations, and, and
as a means of laying emphasis on them. This type of bill having notes against the bill items
can be prepared in any of the existing formats, such as the elemental, work sections etc. This
is called annotated bills.
There are two ways of producing annotated bills. The first way is that the annotations can be
compiled in s separate document different from the main bill of quantities and attached at the
back of the bill. In this case, each notation is properly cross-referenced so that the contractor
can easily locate the item in the main bill. The second alternative is to interleave annotations
into the bill so that the notes appear opposite the relevant bill item. The second alternative
can provide the clearest and more helpful information than the first method. This is because
when notations are in a separate document the contractor may be tempered to concentrate
more on the main document and could loss the notation document.
Merits and Demerits of Annotated Bill Formats
Merits of Annotated Bill Formats
a. It draws the attention of the contractor to vital items the client might want him
to take special note.
b. Areas mostly emphasis by the client and or his representatives can easily be
identified by the contractor in which ordinarily it would have looked trivial.
c. Hidden items that might not easily be noted are made explicit and more
explanations about meanings could be given.

Demerits of Annotated Bill Formats

a. The annotations are simply repetitions, additional work and cost to the production of
contract documents since it is equally possible for the contractor to identify and take
adequate note and become clear on items that seem hidden or ambiguous.
b. It adds to the bulkiness of the document.

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