CCTP vs DPGF: what is the difference and how do they fit together?

The CCTP: the "what" and the "how"

The specification (CCTP) is the written document that describes, package by package, the works to be carried out and their requirements: nature of materials, installation, expected performance, applicable standards. It is the technical reference document of the contract.

The specification answers two questions: "what to build?" and "how?". It contains no priced quantities and no prices: it describes, it prescribes, but it does not count. That is what sets it apart from the DPGF, its quantified counterpart.

The DPGF: the "how much"

The priced breakdown (DPGF) is the priced detail of the offer. It lists, line by line and package by package, the works of the contract as a table the contractor fills in with its quantities and unit prices.

The priced breakdown answers a single question: "how much?". Sent out blank to contractors during consultation, it comes back filled in and serves as the basis for pricing, then for bid analysis. It is the document that makes bids comparable — provided every contractor answers on the same template.

Their place in the tender package

The specification and the priced breakdown do not live in isolation: they are part of the tender package, alongside other documents that each play a distinct role.

• The administrative clauses (CCAP): the administrative rules of the contract — deadlines, penalties, payment terms.
• The CCTP: the technical description of the works, package by package — the "what" and the "how".
• The DPGF: the priced breakdown — the "how much" — that contractors fill in.
• The drawings and the model: the graphic translation of the project, which locates and sizes the works.

How they fit together

The specification and the priced breakdown describe the same project from two angles: every line of the DPGF should match a work item described in the CCTP, and vice versa. The specification explains what is expected; the priced breakdown organises its cost. The two documents are inseparable.

In practice, a contractor reads the specification to understand what it must build, then prices the priced breakdown based on that description. If a work item is described in the CCTP but missing from the DPGF — or the other way round — the contractor hesitates, queries, or prices "its own way". Consistency between the two is therefore decisive.

Why consistency matters — and how to guarantee it

When the specification and the priced breakdown drift apart — a forgotten line, a quantity that no longer matches, a work item described but not priced — the consequences are costly: bids built on different scopes, hence not comparable, and disputes during the works over "what was planned". The consistency of the written documents is not a formality: it is what secures the tender.

The risk comes mainly from double entry: a specification written in Word, a priced breakdown built in Excel, a take-off copied by hand, and three files that drift out of sync at the first change. A platform like BuildOS connects these documents around a single project dataset: the 3D model feeds the take-off, the take-off feeds the specification and the priced breakdown, and every priced line stays tied to the described work item. Enter it once — a change propagates everywhere, and the bids stay genuinely comparable.