The exchange of GAEB data takes place in several phases that cover the entire life cycle of a construction project.
Phase 1: Determination of requirements
The first phase, the determination of requirements (80), includes the creation and specification of bills of quantities.
Phase 2: Tendering and awarding
The second phase, tendering, awarding and invoicing (81 to 86), comprises the tendering of construction services, the processing and review of tenders and the awarding and invoicing of contracts.
Phase 3: Construction and documentation
The third phase, construction execution and documentation (31 to 35), relates to the actual execution of the construction work and the associated documentation, including construction diaries and construction schedules.
Different files are provided for each phase to cover the requirements of that phase.
File formats
The format of the files has evolved over the years since the introduction of GAEB. Nevertheless, old file formats are still used in some projects:
GAEB 90: Older version of the format in ASCII files with fixed record length
GAEB 2000: Widely used version with extended functions and improved structure
GAEB XML: Most modern and flexible version that uses XML for data exchange and validation