DPGF, BPU, DQE: the contract form decides
You do not choose the document, you deduce it: lump sum or call-off contract, the answer follows.
The answer in three lines
The DPGF, breakdown of the lump-sum price, details how an already fixed lump sum splits across the works. The BPU, schedule of unit rates, sets a price per unit of work without stating quantities, for a contract where orders come as needed. The DQE, estimated quantity schedule, crosses the BPU rates with estimated quantities, purely to rank the bids. Classic trap: the DQE does not commit the quantities, it exists to compare; the BPU is what commits the prices.
What sets them apart
DPGF
Breakdown of the lump-sum price. The total is already fixed; the document shows how it splits, item by item, to make the bid readable and to allow variations.
BPU
Schedule of unit rates. One price per unit of work, with no quantity stated. It is the contractual document that binds you for the whole term.
DQE
Estimated quantity schedule. The BPU rates multiplied by assumed quantities, to obtain an amount comparable from one bidder to the next. A simulation, not a commitment.
When to use which
DPGF
Lump-sum contract: the price is firm, the quantities are your own commercial risk.
BPU
Call-off or framework contract: nobody knows how much will be ordered, only at what price.
DQE
At bid submission, to rank the candidates. It then disappears: the BPU is what stays applicable.
These three documents belong to French contracting practice. Elsewhere the equivalents carry other names but oppose the same thing: a firm price on one side, unit rates on the other.
Frequently asked questions
Can you inflate some BPU rates by reading the DQE?
That is the classic temptation, and the risk is real: if actual quantities depart from the DQE, an inflated rate on a rarely ordered line earns nothing, and a slashed rate on a heavily ordered line is expensive. Buyers also watch for those imbalances.
Where do the quantities in a DPGF come from?
From a pre-measure done on the tender drawings. That is exactly the step FloorScan shortens: areas and lengths come out of the PDF and feed the breakdown instead of being read by hand.
Other common confusions
What if the plan did the work?
FloorScan reads a PDF, produces areas and lengths, and exports in whatever format your counterpart expects.