Terms and Conditions
General terms and conditions
General Terms of Delivery of RadioForce GmbH (2016)
1. Scope
1.1 Our deliveries, services and offers are made solely on the basis of these terms and conditions. These are thus also for all future business relations valid, even if they are not agreed upon.
Below is the RadioForce GmbH as "Seller"
1.2 These General Terms shall govern legal transactions between business enterprises, namely the delivery of commodities and, mutatis mutandis, the rendering of services. Software transactions are with precedence governed by the Software Conditions issued by the German Electrical and Electronics Industry Association.
1.3 Any departure from the terms and conditions mentioned in 1.1 above shall be valid only if expressly accepted in writing by Seller.
2. Submission of offers
2.1 Seller's offers shall be deemed offers without engagement.
2.2 Tender documents and project documentation must not be duplicated nor made available to third parties without the permission of Seller. They may be claimed back at any time and shall be returned to Seller immediately if the order is placed elsewhere.
3. Conclusion of contract
3.1 The contract shall be deemed concluded upon written confirmation by Sell¬er of an order received or upon dispatch of a delivery.
3.2 Particulars appearing in catalogue, folders etc. as well as any oral or written statements shall only be binding if Seller makes express reference to them in the confirmation of the order.
3.3 Subsequent amendments of or additions to the contract shall be subject to written confirmation.
4. Prices
4.1 Prices shall be quoted ex works or ex Seller's warehouse without VAT, pack¬ing and packaging, loading, disassembly, take-back and proper recycling and disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment for commercial purposes as defined by the Ordinance Regulating the Handling of Waste Electrical Equipment. Buyer shall be liable for any and all charges, taxes or other duties levied in respect of delivery. If the terms of delivery include transport to a destination designated by Buyer, transport costs as well as the cost of any transport insurance desired by Buyer shall be borne by the latter. Delivery does not, however, include unloading and subsequent handling. Packaging materials will be taken back only by express agreement.
4.2 Seller reserves the right to modify prices if the order placed is not in accord¬ance with the offer submitted.
4.3 Prices are based on costs obtaining at the time of the first quotation. In the event that the costs have increased by the time of delivery, Seller shall have the right to adjust prices accordingly.
4.4 In carrying out repair orders, Seller shall provide all services deemed expedi¬ent and shall charge Buyer for the same on the basis of the work input and/or expenditures required. The same holds for any services or additional services the expediency of which becomes apparent only as the repair order is ex¬ecuted. ln such an event special notification of Buyer shall not be required.
4.5 Expenses for estimates of costs of repair and maintenance or for expert valuations shall be invoiced to Buyer.
5. Delivery
5.1 The period allowed for delivery shall commence at the latest of the following dates:
a) the date of order confirmation by Seller;
b) the date of fulfilment by Buyer of all the conditions, technical, com¬mercial and other, for which he is responsible;
c) the date of receipt by Seller of a deposit or security due before delivery of the goods in question.
5.2 Buyer shall obtain whatever licences or approvals may be required from authorities or third parties for the construction of plant and equipment. If the granting of such licences or approvals is delayed for any reason the delivery period shall be extended accordingly.
5.3 Seller may carry out, and charge Buyer for, partial or advance deliveries. If delivery on call is agreed upon, the commodity shall be deemed called off at the Latest one year after the order was placed.
5.4 In case of unforeseeable circumstances or circumstances beyond the parties control, such as all cases of force majeure, which impede compliance with the agreed period of delivery, the latter shall be extended in any case for the duration of such circumstances; these include in particular armed conflicts, official interventions and prohibitions, delays in transport or customs clear¬ance, damages in transit, energy shortage and raw materials scarcity, labour disputes, and default on performance by a major component supplier who is difficult to replace. The aforesaid circumstances shall be deemed to prevail irrespective of whether they affect Seller or his subcontractor(s).
5.5 If a contractual penalty for default of delivery was agreed upon by contract¬ing parties when the contract was concluded, it shall be executed as follows, and any deviations concerning individual items shall not affect the remain¬ing provisions:
Where delay in performance can be shown to have occurred solely through the fault of Seller, Buyer may claim for each completed week of delay an indemnity of at most one half of one per cent, a total of no more than 2 %, however, of the value of that part of the goods to be delivered which cannot be used on account of Seller’s failure to deliver an essential part thereof, provided the Buyer has suffered a damage to the aforesaid extent.
Assertion of rights of damages exceeding this extent is precluded.
5.6 If the shipment is delayed at the request of the client, the seller is entitled to bill him the storage costs incurred starting a month after display of readiness to deliver for storage in our warehouse at least œ% of the contract amount for each month. Furthermore the seller is entitled after setting and unsuccessful course of a reasonable time to have the delivery itemavailable for any otherwise useand to supply the client with adequate extended period. If the client is not accepting the goods the seller is entitled after a grace period of 14 days to withdraw from the contract or demand damages for non-performance.
5.7 If acceptance is necessary, the client has to disclose by himself no later than 4 weeks after delivery or permitted partial delivery of an independent part of the performance an appointment to the common acceptance. The appointment must happen within 4 weeks. The client has to participate in the activities of collaboration he was required for to this date. If the appointment of acceptance does not happen, the delivery counts nevertheless as adopted and approved by the client.
6. Passage of risk and Place of performance
6.1 Enjoyment and risk shall pass to Buyer at the time of departure of the goods ex works or ex warehouse regardless of the terms of quotation (such as carriage paid, C.I.F. etc.) agreed upon. This provision also includes the case of shipment being effected, organised and supervised by Seller and the case of delivery being made in connection with assembly work to be undertaken by Seller.
6.2 For services the place of performance shall be the place at which the service is rendered; the risk in respect of such services or any part thereof that may have been agreed upon shall pass to Buyer at the time the services have been rendered.
7. Payment
7.1 Unless otherwise agreed, one third of the purchase price shall fall due at the time of receipt by Buyer of the order confirmation of Seller, one third after half the delivery period has elapsed and the balance at the time of delivery. Irrespective thereof the turnover tax comprised in the amount of the invoice shall be paid within 14 days of the invoice date.
7.2 In the case of part settlements the individual part payments shall fall due upon receipt of the respective invoices. The same shall apply to amounts invoiced for additional deliveries or resulting from additional agreements beyond the scope of the original contract, irrespective of the terms of payment agreed upon for the principal delivery.
7.3 Payment shall be made without any discount free Seller’s domicile in the agreed currency. Drafts and checks shall be accepted on account of payment only, with all interest, fees and charges in connection therewith (such as col¬lection and discounting charges) to be borne by Buyer.
7.4 Buyer shall not be entitled to withhold or offset payment on the grounds of any warranty claims or other counterclaims.
7.5 Payment shall be deemed to have been effected on the date at which the amount in question is at Seller’s disposal.
7.6 If Buyer fails to meet the terms of payment or any other obligation arising from this or other transactions, Seller may without prejudice to his other rights
a) suspend performance of his own obligations until payments have been made or other obligations fulfilled, and exercise his right to extend the period of delivery to a reasonable extent,
b) call in debts arisen from this or any other transactions and charge de¬fault interest amounting to 1.25 % per month plus turnover tax for these amounts beginning with the due dates, unless Seller proves costs ex¬ceeding this.
In any case Seller has the right to invoice all expenses arising prior to a lawsuit, especially reminder charges and lawyer's fees.
7.7 Discounts or bonuses are subject to complete payment in due time.
7.8 Seller retains title to all goods delivered by him until receipt of all amounts invoiced including interests and charges.
Buyer herewith assigns his claim out of a resale of conditional commodities, even if they are processed, transformed or combined with other commodities, to Seller to secure the latter's purchase money claim, and he undertakes to make a corresponding entry in his books or on his invoices. Upon request Buyer has to notify the assigned claim and the debtor thereof to Seller, and to make all information and material required for his debt collection available and to notify the assignment to the third-party debtor. If the goods are attached or otherwise levied upon, Buyer shall draw attention to Sellers title and immediately inform Seller of the attachment or levy.
8. Warranty and acceptance of obligation to repair defects
8.1 Once the agreed terms of payment have been complied with, Seller shall, subject to the conditions hereunder, remedy any defect existing at the time of acceptance of the article in question whether due to faulty design, material or manufacturer, that impairs the functioning of said article. From par¬ticulars appearing in catalogues, folders, promotional literature as well as written or oral statements which have not been included in the agreement no warranty obligations may be deduced.
8.2 Unless special warranty periods operate for individual items the warranty period shall be 12 months. These conditions shall also apply to any goods supplied, or services rendered in respect of goods supplied, that are firmly attached to buildings or the ground. The warranty period begins at the point of passage of risk acc. to paragraph 6.
8.3 The foregoing warranty obligations are conditional upon the Buyer giving immediate notice in writing of any defects that have occurred. Buyer shall prove immediately the presence of a defect, in particular he shall make available immediately to Seller all material and data in his possession. Upon receipt of such notice Seller shall, in the case of a defect covered by the warranty under 8.1 above, have the option to replace the defective goods or defective parts thereof or else to repair them on Buyer's premises or have them returned for repair, or to grant a fair and reasonable price reduction.
8.4 Any expenses incurred in connection with rectifying defects (e.g. expenses for assembly and disassembly, transport, waste disposal, travel and site-to-quarters time) shall be borne by Buyer. For warranty work on Buyer's premises Buyer shall make available free of charge any assistance, hoisting gear, scaffolding and sundry supplies and incidentals that may he required. Replaced parts shall become the property of Seller.
8.5 If an article is manufactured by Seller on the basis of design data, design drawings, models or other specifications supplied by Buyer, Seller's warranty shall be restricted to non-compliance with Buyers specifications.
8.6 Seller’s warranty obligation shall not extend to any defects due to assembly and installation work not undertaken by Seller, inadequate equipment, or due to non-compliance with installation requirements and operating conditions, overloading of parts in excess of the design values stipulated by Seller, negligent or faulty handling or the use of inappropriate materials, nor for defects attributable to material supplied by Buyer. Nor shall Seller be liable for damage due to acts of third parties, atmospheric discharges. Excess voltage and chemical influences. The warranty does not cover the replace¬ment of parts subject to natural wear and tear. Seller accepts no warranty for the sale of used goods.
8.7 The warranty shall lapse immediately if, without written consent of SeIler, Buyer himself or a third party not expressly authorised undertakes modifications or repairs on any items delivered.
8.8 Claims acc. to § 933b ABGB are struck by the statute of limitation with lapse of the period mentioned under point 8.2.
8.9 The provisions of sub-paragraphs 8.1 to 8.7 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to all cases where the obligation to repair defects has to be accepted for other reasons laid down by law.
9. Withdrawal from contract
9.1 Buyer may withdraw from the contract only in the event of delays caused by gross negligence on the part of Seller and only after a reasonable period of grace has elapsed. Withdrawal from contract shall be notified in writing by registered mail.
9.2 Irrespective of his other rights Seller shall be entitled to withdraw from the contract
a) if the execution of delivery or the inception or continuation of services to be rendered under the contract is made impossible for reasons within the responsibility of Buyer and if the delay is extended beyond a reasonable period of grace allowed;
b) if doubts have arisen as to Buyer's creditworthiness and if same fails, on SeIler's request, to make an advance payment or to provide adequate security prior to delivery, or
c) if, for reasons mentioned in 5.4, the period allowed for delivery is extended by more than half of the period originally agreed or by at least 6 months.
9.3 For the reasons given above withdrawal from the contract shall also be possible in respect of any outstanding part of the delivery or service contracted for.
9.4 If bankruptcy proceedings are instituted against any contracting party or an application for bankruptcy proceedings against that party is not granted for insufficiency of assets, the other party may withdraw from the contract without allowing a period of grace.
9.5 Without prejudice to Seller's claim for damages including expenses arising prior to a lawsuit, upon withdrawal from contract any open accounts in respect of deliveries made or services rendered in whole or in part shall be settled according to contract This provision also covers deliveries or serv¬ices not yet accepted by Buyer as well as any preparatory acts performed by Seller. Seller shall, however, have the option alternatively to require the restitution of articles already delivered.
9.6 Withdrawal from contract shall have no consequences other than those stipulated above.
10. Disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment
10.1 The Buyer of electrical/electronic equipment for commercial purposes, incorporated in Germnay, is responsible for the financing of the collection and treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment as defined by the Ordinance Regulating the Handling of Waste Electrical Equipment, if he is himself the user of the electrical/electronic equipment. If the Buyer is not the end user, he shall transfer the full financial commitment to his customer by agreement and furnish proof thereof to the Seller.
10.2 The Buyer incorporated in Germnay shall ensure that the Seller is provided with all information necessary to meet the Seller's obligations as manufacturer/importer.
10.3 The Buyer incorporated in Germany is liable vis-à-vis the Seller for any damage and other financial disadvantages incurred by Seller due to Buyer's failure to meet or fully meet his financing commitment or any other obligations according to Article 10. The Buyer shall bear the burden of proof of performance of this obligation.
11. Repairs
11.1 The extent of repairs must be made in writing by the client in the repair order may be given. A completion of submitted incomplete equipment is only done with the express written indication in the repair order of the client and repair is carried at cost. Missing parts required for the safe operation of the equipment are always, without specification of the customer, at fee exchanged.
11.2 Cost estimates have to be calculated. For devices that are not defect an all inclusive price verification is billed.
12. Patents
12.1 We make our client and its customers because of claims arising from violations of copyrights, trademarks or patents freely unless the draft was delivered goods by the buyer. The indemnification is limited on our part to the foreseeable damage.
12.2 Additional condition for the indemnification is that the leadership of litigations is on our side and that the alleged violation of law is exclusively assigned to the construction of our delivery items without connection or use with other products.
12.3 We either have the right to liberate us from the commitments made in point 1, that we either
a) procure the necessary licenses relating to the allegedly infringed patents
b) deliver to the client a revised delivery item which, in the case of exchange against the offensive delivery item eliminates injury allegation.
13. Structural changes
We reserve the right at any time to design changes; we are not committed to such changes to products already delivered.
14. Confidentiality
Unless otherwise agreed, subjects to the information provided to us in connection with orders submitted are not considered as confidential.
15. Seller's liability
15.1 Outside the scope of the Product Liability Act, Seller shall be liable only if the damage in question is proved to be due to intentional acts or acts of gross negligence, within the limits of statutory provisions. Seller shall not be liable for damage due to acts of ordinary negligence nor for consequential damages or damages for economic losses, loss of savings or interest or damage resulting from third-party claims against buyer.
15.2 Seller shall not be liable for damages in case of non-compliance with instructions for assembly, commissioning and operation (such as are contained in instructions for use) or non-compliance with licensing requirements.
15.3 Claims that exceed the contractual penalties that were agreed on are excluded from the respective title.
16. Assertion of Claims
All claims to which Buyer is entitled must be asserted in court within three years from passage of risk as specified under paragraph 6, unless shorter limits of time are prescribed by law, otherwise claims shall become for¬feited.
17. Industrial property rights and copyrights
17.1 Buyer shall indemnify Seller and hold him harmless against any claims for any infringement of industrial property rights raised against him if Seller manufactures an article pursuant to any design data, design drawings, models or other specifications made available to him by Buyer.
17.2 Design documents such as plans and drawings and other technical specifications as well as samples, catalogues, prospectuses, pictures and the like shall remain the intellectual property of SeIler and are subject to the relevant statutory provisions governing reproduction, imitation, competition etc. The provisions of 22 above shall also cover design documents.
18. General
Should individual provisions of the contract or of these provisions be invalid the validity of the other provisions shall not be affected. The invalid provision shall be replaced by a valid one, which comes as close to the target goal as possible.
19. Jurisdiction and applicable law
Any litigations arising under the contract including litigations over the existence or non-existence thereof shall fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent court at Sellers domicile; the competent court of Munich, Germany, shall have exclusive jurisdiction if Seller is domiciled in Germany. The contract is subject to German law excluding the referral rules. Application of the UN Convention on Contracts for the lnternational Sale of Goods is renounced.
20. Our Intellectual Property
Plans, sketches, cost estimates and other documents provided by us or created through our contribution remain our intellectual property.
The use of such documents outside of the intended use, in particular the passing on, duplication, publication and making available, including copying only in part, requires our express consent.
The customer further undertakes to keep secret the knowledge he has received from the business relationship towards third parties.
If a proof of concept (POC) was carried out in the course of project work, the general terms and conditions of the POC are a reciprocal part of these GTC.
SW Demo version on loan
Software product (s) on loan, can be used as demoversion for HW products. If such a product license is used, the software may only be used for purposes of testing in order to assess its suitability for the purchase of a license that is subject to a charge.
Test or demosoftware is limited in a certain way, whether by a limited period of use, limited functionality or by suitably displayed access data. RadioForce is not responsible for any damages resulting from the use of the software or the use of the software after the expired time limit.
In addition, RadioForce is not required to provide any kind of support for demo and test versions. After 30 days, the customer can decide whether to agree to a chargeable operation according to these terms.
General Terms and Conditions Proof of Concept (PoC)
Our General Terms and Conditions Proof of Concept apply exclusively. We do not recognize conflicting or deviating terms and conditions of the customer unless we have expressly agreed to their validity in writing.
Our General Terms and Conditions Proof of Concept (PoC) also apply if we carry out the delivery to the customer without reservation in the knowledge of conflicting or deviating terms and conditions of the customer.
Our General Terms and Conditions Proof of Concept (PoC) apply to all current and future business relationships with our customers.
All agreements made between RadioForce and the customer for the execution of a contract are set out in writing in the relevant contract. Oral agreements have not been made.
Our general terms of delivery and payment apply only to companies within the meaning of Section 14, Paragraph 1 of the German Civil Code.
Proof of concept
In project management, a proof of concept (PoC) is a milestone that demonstrates the basic feasibility of a project. The positive or negative proof of concept is the result of a feasibility study.
As a rule, the proof of concept is usually associated with the development of a prototype/process structure that has the required core functionality.
Commissioning Proof of Concept
The contents and the scope of the order confirmation result from both a fee-based and a free order for a PoC. The protection of intellectual property remains in place in all cases, regardless of whether the commission is subject to a fee or free of charge.
Best effort
RadioForce will provide the PoC service on a "Best Effort" basis.
As part of the PoC, RadioForce will endeavor to identify/recognize the benefits for the customer, but does not guarantee this.
If and to the extent that RadioForce offers the PoC service free of charge, RadioForce reserves the right to withdraw from the contract or adjust the service at any time without giving reasons.
In this case, the interested party/customer has no right to compensation or contractual penalties.
The customer is not entitled to any work product produced by RadioForce as part of the PoC. Unless expressly agreed, the prospect/customer is not entitled to use the solutions provided by RadioForce during the PoC for productive purposes.
Our Intellectual Property
Models, forms, devices, drafts, plans, sketches, cost estimates and other documents that we have provided or that have arisen as a result of our contribution remain our intellectual property.
The use of such documents outside of the intended use, in particular the passing on, duplication, publication and making available including copying in extracts, requires our express prior consent.
Furthermore, the customer undertakes to maintain secrecy towards third parties regarding the knowledge he has received from the business relationship.
Furthermore, and above all, for solutions that are developed for a proof of concept and specifically presented to the customer, RadioForce has the sole execution and copyright.
The following components or process-related solutions are subject to intellectual property:
- Transponder type used (shape, color, size, power, etc.) during the PoC.
- Attachment of the transponder(s) (location, type of attachment) during the PoC.
- HW (hardware) and SW (software) used during the PoC.
- Coding algorithm of the transponders before/during the PoC.
- All relevant solutions for process optimization resulting from the PoC.
Follow-up order
Of course, the interested party is free to place a follow-up order after the PoC has been commissioned and completed. An assignment to RadioForce includes the full use of the developed solution.
If a third party is commissioned and the solution (as a whole or partial solutions) from the PoC is taken over, the prospective customer shall reimburse RadioForce with the amount of 75% of the order volume of the overall solution. The order volume refers to the sum of the developed solution from HW and SW components to realize the project described. The last offer prepared by RadioForce serves as a reference for the calculation.
Severability Clause
Should individual parts of these General Terms and Conditions be ineffective, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining parts.
We, as well as the entrepreneurial customer, are already obligated to come to a mutual agreement - based on the horizon of honest contracting parties - that comes as close as possible to the economic result of the ineffective condition.