A device and method for determining the position for a working part of a machine with a position-determining apparatus is disclosed. A detector is placed at a defined place on the machine to determine the position in a fixed coordinate system. A positional relationship device determines the positional relationship of the working part in relation to the detector in a machine-based coordinate system. A calculating device calculates, with signals from the position-determining apparatus and the positional relationship device, the position of the working part in the fixed coordinate system. The position-determining apparatus comprises an inclination- and orientation-measuring device that measures the instantaneous position and orientation of the position of the machine in the fixed coordinate system. The calculating device converts the measuring result from the position-determining apparatus and the positional relationship device to give the instantaneous position and orientation of the working part in the fixed coordinate system.