CPV 378 – Arts and Crafts Materials

What does CPV 378 cover?

CPV group 378 covers arts and crafts materials for public institutions. This includes painting and drawing materials (all types of paint, brushes, sketchbooks, canvases, easels), craft materials (paper, card, adhesives, scissors, felt, wool), modelling and pottery materials (clay, modelling compound, glazes), printmaking materials (lino, printing inks, rollers), as well as craft products for exhibitions and resale in museum shops and cultural facilities.

Contracting authorities include schools and secondary schools with art curricula, art schools and adult education centres, nurseries, museums and cultural centres with workshop programmes, therapy facilities (art therapy) and public libraries with creative workshop offerings. Procurements are often regular consumable orders, but also cover the initial fit-out of new art rooms. The full CPV structure is available at the European Commission (SIMAP) and Regulation (EC) No 213/2008.

Safety requirements are particularly important for products used with children: school materials must be free from hazardous substances (REACH compliant), paints for children must be tested to EN 71, and adhesives and varnishes must be solvent-free. Sustainability (certified paper, eco-friendly paints) and fair manufacturing conditions are increasingly applied as procurement criteria.

Typical Services in CPV 378

• Paints (watercolour, acrylic, oil, gouache) for teaching
• Drawing materials (pencils, charcoal, sketchbooks)
• Canvases, easels and painting accessories
• Craft materials: paper, card, adhesives, scissors
• Clay, modelling compound and pottery accessories
• Printmaking materials (lino, screen printing supplies)
• Craft articles for museum shops

Examples of Tenders with CPV 378

• Annual supply of art materials for a comprehensive school: Framework supply contract for painting and drawing materials, craft materials and tools for art education across all year groups of a 1,200-pupil school – published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily).
• Equipping an art room in a primary school: Initial delivery of pottery supplies (clay, glazes, potter's wheel), craft accessories and consumables for a newly furnished art room with 32 pupil workstations – published.
• Procurement of art materials for adult education courses: Framework agreement for acrylic paints, canvases, brushes and painting media for an annual programme of 80 painting courses with approximately 800 participants at a municipal adult education centre – published on TED.

Current tenders with CPV 378 are published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and on national procurement platforms.

Who is CPV 378 relevant for?

Public Contracting Authorities

Schools, adult education centres, museums, cultural centres and therapy facilities procure art materials on a regular basis. Safety standards for children's products, environmental requirements and pedagogical quality guide selection. District-level framework agreements covering all schools in a school authority area are economically advisable. Further guidance is available from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

Companies and Bidders

Art supply retailers, school supplies wholesalers and direct sellers of craft materials can bid on public tenders. Product safety certificates (EN 71 for children's products, REACH compliance), broad catalogue range and reliable delivery capacity are key eligibility criteria. Online ordering systems for framework agreement call-offs add convenience for public buyers.

How does Bond help with CPV 378?

Tender Match – Automatically Find Tenders (CPV 378)

With tender.match, art materials retailers and school supplies wholesalers automatically receive all relevant tenders with CPV 378 directly in their dashboard. BOND indexes tenders from over 1,000 procurement portals in the EU – from TED to national platforms and regional contracting authorities. Instead of manually searching dozens of portals every day, matching arts and crafts supply contracts are filtered and delivered by industry, competency, region, and company profile. An automated gap analysis immediately shows where the company meets the requirements and where gaps exist. This ensures companies never miss a deadline and can focus on preparing their bids.

Company Match – Find the Right Partners and Suppliers (CPV 378)

For companies looking for suppliers, subcontractors, or consortium partners for school and cultural institution supply projects, company.match provides direct access to qualified firms from an EU-wide database of over 28 million companies. Especially for larger arts and school supply contracts that a single company cannot handle alone, company.match automatically identifies suitable partners for bidding consortia and partial services – increasing the chances of winning the contract.

Frequently Asked Questions about CPV 378

What does the CPV code 37800000 mean?

The CPV code 37800000 classifies arts and crafts materials within the EU's Common Procurement Vocabulary. It covers all painting, drawing, craft, modelling and printmaking materials procured by public educational, cultural and therapeutic institutions, as well as craft products for museum retail.

How do I find tenders with CPV 378?

Tenders are published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) for EU-wide procedures and on national platforms. Bond aggregates all relevant tenders automatically.

What are the requirements for participating in tenders with CPV 378?

Products must be REACH-compliant and, for children's use, EN 71-tested. Paints and adhesives should be solvent-free. Sustainability certifications (eco-label, certified paper) and product safety documentation are frequently required. The applicable frameworks are VgV and UVgO depending on contract value.