Häufig gestellte Fragen
Is a standard ERP sufficient for a construction company?
A classic standard ERP generally does not cover the construction-specific core processes, because it lacks functions such as GAEB data exchange for bills of quantities, quantity takeoff per REB 23.003, change order (claims) management and VOB billing with progress and final invoices. Generalists such as SAP Business One or Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central can be made construction-capable via certified industry add-ons, whereas a dedicated construction ERP such as RIB iTWO, Nevaris Build, BRZ-Bau or BauSU delivers these building blocks as standard. Which route fits depends strongly on company size, project type (building construction, civil engineering, general contracting) and the existing IT landscape. Anyone who regularly participates in public tenders can hardly avoid genuine construction-specific functionality.
What does GAEB data exchange mean, and why is it central for construction ERP?
GAEB stands for the Gemeinsamer Ausschuss Elektronik im Bauwesen (Joint Committee for Electronics in Construction), whose standard governs the electronic exchange of bills of quantities, tenders and quantity takeoffs between client and bidder. The exchange phases are numbered, including DA 81 for handover of the bill of quantities, DA 83 for the invitation to tender, DA 84 for tender submission and DA 86 for contract award with award prices; the current standard is the XML-based format GAEB DA XML with file extensions such as X81 or X84. A construction ERP must read these files, transfer them into the costing, enrich them with its own master data for material, labour, equipment and subcontractors, and output the tender again in GAEB format. Without end-to-end GAEB capability, media discontinuities and manual transcription errors arise, which can lead to exclusion in public procurement.
How does an ERP support VOB billing and retention money?
Under VOB/B contracts, billing takes place via verifiable progress invoices during the construction phase and a concluding final invoice, each based on the quantity takeoff and the bill-of-quantities items. Under Section 17 VOB/B, the client may withhold a performance security from progress payments of generally no more than 10 per cent, while for defect claims after acceptance around 5 per cent of the final amount is usually retained; the contractor can replace this cash retention with a guarantee. A construction ERP must correctly manage this logic, including progress-invoice continuation, retention, release and defect reservation, and generate verifiable invoices. The exact percentages and deadlines follow from the respective construction contract.
What role does the reverse-charge procedure under Section 13b UStG play in construction ERP?
For construction services between construction companies, the reverse-charge mechanism under Section 13b of the German VAT Act (UStG) frequently applies, under which it is not the performing subcontractor but the recipient of the service who declares and pays the VAT. The prerequisite is that the recipient itself sustainably provides construction services, which is generally assumed if it generates more than roughly 10 per cent of its revenue from construction services and evidences this with a certificate (form USt 1 TG). An invoice under Section 13b then shows the net amount without VAT and contains a note on the recipient's tax liability. A construction ERP should map this tax logic automatically for incoming and outgoing invoices, as errors here lead to back payments and liability risks.
Do construction companies have to be BIM-capable for public contracts?
Building Information Modeling is becoming increasingly binding in public construction projects in Germany, driven by the federal government's phased plan and the Masterplan BIM for federal buildings with a step-by-step introduction until 2027. For federal buildings from a construction volume of about 500,000 euros, the BIM use cases of stages I and II apply, very large projects fall under the further stages earlier, and from 2027 the differentiation by project size is to largely cease. Central is the vendor-neutral, open exchange standard IFC (Industry Foundation Classes), via which different software platforms exchange model data. A construction ERP for the general contracting and building construction segment should therefore include IFC integration, while the specific obligation varies depending on the client and project.
How does a construction ERP support payroll and SOKA-BAU obligations?
The main construction industry is subject to special payroll obligations, including contributions to the social funds of the construction industry (SOKA-BAU), which finance the holiday fund, vocational training and supplementary pensions, among other things, via a levy system. Added to this are collectively agreed minimum wages under the collective agreement of the main construction industry, whose final stage takes effect on 1 April 2026 and aligns the previous east-west differences, as well as the general statutory minimum wage. A construction ERP usually does not run payroll itself, but supplies the project- and site-related hours and master data via interfaces to specialised construction payroll programs such as DATEV Bau or Sage. This allows SOKA reports, site diary attendance records and subcontractor documentation to be linked consistently.
How long does implementation take, and what costs are realistic?
The project duration for introducing a construction ERP in the mid-market is, based on experience, around 6 to 12 months, while general contractors with extensive BIM integration and many interfaces should plan for more like 12 to 24 months. As a rough guide to total cost of ownership over five years and around 30 users, our editorial team cites a range of about 200,000 to 500,000 euros, depending on the licence model (purchase or rental/cloud), customising depth and interface effort. The biggest time and cost driver in practice is usually the migration of historically grown master data from old Excel and Access environments. Only a specific quotation from the respective vendor based on your own processes provides binding figures.