BOQ Builder — Pre-filled Quantities & CPWD-DSR Rates

What makes a real BOQ — and where most online tools fall short

A complete BOQ has six layers, and most free online calculators only cover two of them. The six layers: (1) structure decomposition — every item that physically goes into the structure (excavation, PCC, brick, RCC, plaster, paint, steel, formwork, finishes); (2) IS 1200 measurement rules — net quantities computed per the BIS standard for each work category, with proper deductions for openings, column volumes, reinforcement displacement and so on; (3) item descriptions in the language of the governing SOR (CPWD DSR, MoRTH, IRC, state PWD) so the BOQ matches tender expectations; (4) per-item unit rates from the active edition of that SOR; (5) rate analysis showing how each composite rate breaks into labour + material + plant + overhead — for negotiation or escalation claims; (6) abstract / summary rolled up by chapter for the cover page. Free Excel templates floating online give you items 3 and 4 — descriptions and rates — but force you to manually decompose the structure, apply measurement rules, and compute amounts. The InfraLens BOQ Builder ships all six layers from your dimensional inputs.

How IS 1200 deductions are applied automatically

IS 1200 Methods of Measurement has 28 parts, each defining the net-quantity rules for one work category. The BOQ Builder hard-wires the relevant rules into each structure template. Examples: IS 1200 Part 1 (Earthwork) — trench width = wall thickness + 2 × 150 mm working space (Clause 5.1.1). IS 1200 Part 2 (Concrete) — reinforcement displacement deducted only where steel exceeds 1% of concrete volume (Clause 5.2.1). IS 1200 Part 3 (Brick masonry) — openings above 0.1 m² deducted from masonry volume (Clause 5.4.2); RCC stiffener columns subtracted from net brickwork. IS 1200 Part 5 (Reinforcement) — measured as actual length × unit weight per IS 1786 Table 3, with NO lap-length deduction. IS 1200 Part 12 (Plaster) — openings up to 0.5 m² ignored (small-opening balance); 0.5-3 m² deducted on one face only; >3 m² both faces deducted plus jambs/soffits added separately. Every template states which IS 1200 parts apply, and the formulas implement those rules. You don't need to remember them.

What's live now and what's coming

Live today: Boundary Wall. Brick + RCC stiffener column boundary wall with full plaster + exterior paint. 10 BOQ items per CPWD DSR 2023, plan / elevation / section views with break-lines for long walls, IS 1200 gate-opening deductions, Excel download. Coming soon (in rough priority order): Box Culvert (1×1, 2×2, 3×3 m spans) — full PWD/PMGSY culvert BOQ with wing walls, deck slab, parapet, bearing pads. Cantilever Retaining Wall — heel + toe + stem with IS 14458 design check, drainage backfill. Septic Tank (5, 10, 20, 50-user) — IS 2470 standard sizes with leach pit. Soak Pit + Recharge Pit — rainwater harvesting per IS 15797. UGSR / OHSR (5, 10, 25, 50 kL) — RCC water tank with staging. RCC Drain — storm-water network with manholes and gulley pits. Internal Road — per km BT (Bituminous) or CC (Concrete) per MoRTH/IRC, with cross-drainage. Hume Pipe Culvert — NP3 / NP4 pipes with bedding + headwalls. Anganwadi / PHC Building — single-storey rural building. Check Dam — masonry / RCC small dam for water harvesting. Compound Wall variants — for industrial, residential, commercial plots. The roadmap follows GSC search-volume + ease-of-formula-implementation; templates ship as engineering-reviewed, not all at once.

How rates are sourced — and how to use your own

Each structure template ships with CPWD DSR 2023 rates as the default because DSR is the most-cited national reference and reflects fully-loaded Indian rates including labour, material at controlled rate, plant hire, overhead and profit. The CPWD DSR is published in two volumes — Vol 1 (Civil Works) and Vol 2 (Finishing) — and a separate DSR (E&M) Vol 1 + Vol 2 for mechanical-electrical work. Rates valid from October 2023. For your tender or estimate, you'll typically want to override these with your local PWD / SOR rates: state SORs (Maharashtra PWD, Karnataka PWD, Rajasthan RHB, Gujarat WSSB, Bihar RCD, Andhra Pradesh SoR, Tamil Nadu Highways, Telangana SSR, Madhya Pradesh PWD Roads, etc.) typically run 8-15% below DSR; municipal corporation SORs are usually still cheaper. The downloaded Excel keeps rates editable in column F — change a rate, the SUM formulas recompute totals automatically. The item codes and descriptions stay DSR-aligned but item codes from your state SOR can be manually added to the same row if needed for tender compliance.

Visual confirmation — plan, elevation, section

Every BOQ has a hidden assumption: that the person ordering the estimate visualised the structure the same way the person preparing it did. Misread one dimension (foundation depth 0.75 vs 7.5 m, height in metres vs feet) and the BOQ is wildly wrong. The InfraLens BOQ Builder shows three engineering schematics — plan (top-down), elevation (front face) and section (cross-cut) — generated live from your inputs. The section view in particular catches dimensional mistakes instantly: the foundation depth, wall height, plinth band and coping are all visible at scale with annotations. The drawings are schematic, not detailed — they confirm dimensions, they don't replace structural drawings. For actual execution, get a licensed structural engineer to produce GFC drawings.