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All about Quantity Surveyors

The Quantity Surveyor is a professional person responsible for ensuring that the budget developed during the design stage of construction works is the same as the final amount spent on a project. In order to achieve this Quantity Surveyor performs a number of functions during the design to completion stage. 

What is a QS?

Quantity Surveyors have usually completed an appropriate tertiary degree course and undertaken work experience which qualifies them for membership of AIQS. They work on projects ranging from office blocks, schools, hospitals, factories to bridges, railways, oil and mining development, shipbuilding and large process engineering works such as oil refineries. Anywhere, indeed, that major construction work is carried out.

The Quantity Surveyor, also known as a Construction Economist, or Cost Manager, is one of a team of professional advisers to the construction industry.As advisers they estimate and monitor construction costs, from the feasibility stage of a project through to the completion of the construction period. After construction they may be involved with tax depreciation schedules, replacement cost estimation for insurance purposes and, if necessary, mediation and arbitration. 

Quantity Surveyors work closely with Architects, Financiers, Engineers, Contractors, Suppliers, Project Owners, Accountants, Insurance Underwriters, Solicitors and Courts and with all levels of Government authorities.

Quantity Surveyors get their name from the Bill of Quantities, a document which itemises the quantities of materials and labour in a construction project. This is measured from design drawings, to be used by the contractors for tendering and for progress payments, for variations and changes and ultimately for statistics, taxation and valuation..get more to know at -  AIQS.

The range of services offered by Quantity Surveyors

Firms generally offer a wide spectrum of services to their clients but naturally tend to gain experience or concentrate their services in specific fields. Before commissioning the services of quantity surveyors, prospective clients are advised to investigate the particular experience and the services in which they specialise.

The services they offer could be:

Estimating and cost advice

Estimates and cost advice during all stages of the development of a project are essential if the correct decisions with full awareness of their financial implications are to be made.

Sophisticated techniques, extensive cost data banks and an intimate knowledge of building and construction economics enable quantity surveyors to provide reliable cost advice.

Cost planning

Clients want to know that they are receiving value for money, not only with regard to the capital cost but also in respect of the running and maintenance cost of a project.

Cost planning enables decisions on various design alternatives to be made with actual costs being constantly monitored against original budgets.

Property development advice

A building should meet the functional dimensional and technological requirements for which it was designed, should be aesthetically pleasing and meet the cost limits of the client's budget. 

A quantity surveyor is able to provide pre-design feasibility studies involving technical and/or economic investigations thereby enabling a client to decide whether, and in what form, to proceed.

Read more at - Asaqs.

Qualifications and training required

There are routes into a career as a quantity surveyor for both university graduates and school leavers. Graduates will need:

either an undergraduate degree accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in quantity surveying, commercial management or a related construction subject

or a postgraduate conversion course (usually a Pg Dip or a masters) accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)

However, some employers will hire graduates with a non-accredited degree and sponsor them through the postgraduate conversion course. Read up on how to get an employer to do this.

Graduates either apply for an individual vacancy or for a graduate scheme...click here to read more - Targetjobs.co.uk.

What are the benefits of hiring a quantity surveyor?

So, now that we know what they do, why would you hire quantity surveyors? Well, first off, construction is always a costly endeavor; one of the most expensive there is.

Surveyors allow you to avoid risks and pitfalls linked to unreliable back-of-the-envelope calculations and ballpark figures. Accurate cash projections allow you to plan the budget ahead of time and prevent any unpleasant surprises. You are also able to steer away from unnecessary financial hurdles like overpaying for construction materials.

What is more, these professionals are versed in uncovering opportunities to save money – opportunities that fly under the radar of most people. It also helps to receive an estimate on how long the project will take. After all, surveyors closely monitor processes and supply you with reports on the progress made. This significantly reduces the risk of delays and other setbacks...to know more, visit - Engineering Management Institute.

Contract negotiations are within the reach of the quantity surveyor. Anything that comes under the construction project is looked out by the quantity surveyor. For all your building quantity surveyor needs, hire a professional quantity surveyor that will make your job easier.