# Bill of Quantities (BOQ) Analysis with AI > Upload a bill of quantities and let AI extract every position, summarize each section, and flag gaps, risks, and change-order traps before you send it out. Turn a BOQ into a ready-to-send request for quotation in one step. A bill of quantities (BOQ), or Leistungsverzeichnis, is only as useful as it is complete. Missing quantities, vague specifications, and ambiguous positions are where budgets slip and change orders are born — and spotting them by reading hundreds of line items by hand is slow and error-prone. Streckenheld reads the whole document for you. Drop in a BOQ as a PDF, a [GAEB file](https://www.streckenheld.com/knowledge/gaeb.md), or an Excel export, and the AI extracts every position, groups it by section, describes the scope, and hands you a structured critique of what to fix before a single supplier sees it. ## Key features - **Reads PDF, GAEB, and Excel** — structured GAEB files (X83) are parsed directly without OCR; scanned PDFs and spreadsheets are read with AI OCR, no template setup - **Line-item extraction grouped by section** — every position with its quantity, unit, and section subheading, ready to review and edit - **Scope summary and per-section descriptions** — a plain-language overview of what the BOQ covers, section by section - **Three-way critique** — the AI returns **suggestions** (what to clarify or fix before sending), **highlights** (large or unusual positions worth attention), and **pitfalls** (contradictions, missing information, and likely change-order traps) - **Procurement-readiness analysis** — an on-demand report that classifies the document (true BoQ vs. BOM vs. specification), identifies trade packages, lists missing information needed for accurate pricing, and recommends how to package it for suppliers - **Auto-drafted request for quotation** — analyzing a BOQ automatically creates a draft RFQ from the extracted positions, so you go from document to sourcing in one step - **Analysis instructions you control** — a company-wide brief plus a note saved on the individual document tell the AI what to look for, so your standing requirements are checked on every bill of quantities ## How it works 1. **Upload the BOQ.** Add your bill of quantities from the BOQ page as a PDF, GAEB X83, or Excel file. Structured GAEB skips OCR and goes straight to extraction. 2. **AI extracts and structures it.** Every line item is pulled out and grouped under its section, with quantities and units normalized. 3. **Read the critique.** Review the scope summary, the per-section descriptions, and the suggestions, highlights, and pitfalls the AI surfaced — fix the gaps while the document is still yours to change. 4. **Run the procurement-readiness analysis.** For a deeper pass, generate the markdown analysis: document classification, trade packages, missing-information checklist, and recommended RFQ packages. 5. **Move to sourcing.** A draft request for quotation is created automatically. From here you can generate an [AI budget estimate](https://www.streckenheld.com/guides/budget-estimate.md) or [prepare and send the RFQ to suppliers](https://www.streckenheld.com/guides/rfq-preparation.md). ## Steering the analysis The critique is not fixed. Two layers of instruction shape what the AI looks for, and they are combined — company-wide first, then whatever is saved on the document: - **Company-wide instructions** live under Custom AI prompts in settings and apply to every bill of quantities your team analyzes. This is where standing rules belong: the standards you build to, the trades you always want split out, the omissions that have cost you before. - **Per-document instructions** are saved with the individual BOQ and cover what is specific to it — an unusual client, a phase that has to be priced separately, a section you want scrutinized. Because the instructions live on the document, re-running the analysis after changing them re-reads the same BOQ with the new brief. Nothing is uploaded again and the extracted positions stay untouched; only the section descriptions, the summary, and the critique are regenerated. Rewriting the brief and running it again is the cheapest way to get a sharper read on a document you already have. ## Who it's for BOQ analysis is built for procurement managers, estimators, and site managers at construction firms who receive bills of quantities they didn't write — and need to know, fast, whether a document is complete enough to price. The AI does the tedious line-by-line reading so you can catch the expensive gaps before they reach a supplier. ## Read next - [GAEB: formats, exchange phases and practice in construction](https://www.streckenheld.com/knowledge/gaeb.md): GAEB explained: GAEB 90, GAEB 2000 and GAEB DA XML, the exchange phases X81 to X86, and how bills of quantities flow between planner, contractor and supplier. - [AI Budget Estimate from a Bill of Quantities](https://www.streckenheld.com/guides/budget-estimate.md): Turn a bill of quantities into a priced budget in minutes. AI prices every position from your own contracts and past offers, falls back to regional market prices, and shows its assumptions — then export it as CSV, XLSX, or GAEB. - [Prepare an RFQ and Split It Across Suppliers](https://www.streckenheld.com/guides/rfq-preparation.md): Turn a bill of quantities into a request for quotation and send each supplier only the positions you want quoted. Suppliers submit prices or a PDF through a link — no account needed — and every offer lands in one comparison. --- Source: https://www.streckenheld.com/guides/boq-analysis Other languages: [Deutsch](https://www.streckenheld.com/ratgeber/lv-analyse.md) Streckenheld: https://www.streckenheld.com/llms.txt · Contact: https://www.streckenheld.com/contact · hello@streckenheld.com