A Quantity Surveyor (QS) is a professional within the construction industry, concerned with procurement, cost, and contracts.
What are the roles of a Quantity Surveyor?
A Quantity Surveyor will:
- Estimate or forecast the cost of labour, plant, and materials required for a project
- Prepare tender documents, contracts, budgets, bills of quantities, and other key documentation
- Track changes to the design and/or method of working and update budget projections accordingly
- Procure or agree on the services of contractors and/or subcontractors
- Measure and value the work completed on-site
- Issue payments to subcontractors
- Liaise with the client and other professionals, such as site managers, project managers, and engineers
- Select and/or source construction materials
- Quantity Surveyors can be office-based, site-based, or a mix of both.
How do you become a Quantity Surveyor?
Although not true in all circumstances, most QSs follow one of three common paths:
Graduate Route – Obtain a degree in Quantity Surveying and enter the industry as a Graduate QS.
Apprenticeship Route – Begin an apprenticeship in construction as an Apprentice QS. Employers often fund your degree while you gain on-the-job experience.
Career Change Route – While working for a construction company, you become interested in the commercial department and pursue a QS role. If your employer is flexible, they may support you through a degree while giving you the title of Trainee QS.
Each route has its pros and cons:
Option 1 gets you a degree quickly but you may lack practical experience and accrue student debt.
Options 2 and 3 take longer but offer valuable work experience and employer-funded education. However, you’ll be working full-time while studying, and your employer may include a clause requiring repayment of degree costs if you leave within a set timeframe.
How do I become a chartered Quantity Surveyor?
The most common route is through RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors).
Other chartered organisations include:
CICES – Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors
CIOB – Chartered Institute of Building
ICOSTE – International Cost Engineering Council
Why is a Quantity Surveyor useful on a project or contract?
A Quantity Surveyor’s main role is to control costs on a construction project—or, to put it simply, to ensure their client gets the best value for their investment.
A Quantity Surveyor will:
- Monitor actual costs and regularly report on the budget, advising on alternatives if forecasts exceed targets
- Prepare and agree on key documents: contracts, valuations, change instructions, and final accounts
For an employer or client, a Quantity Surveyor will:
- Produce feasibility reports, budget costings, tender documentation, and manage the cost process from invitation to tender through to the end of the defects period
For a contractor or subcontractor, a Quantity Surveyor will:
- Prepare tenders, negotiate contract sums and forms of contract, and manage the full cost process from valuations and change instructions through to the final account
Not appointing a Quantity Surveyor may seem like a cost-saving measure, but in most projects, it is a wise and cost-effective investment.
Metroun provides commercial services to employers, contractors, and small businesses to maximise project efficiency.
How Metroun Can Help
The construction industry is a dangerous environment. A lack of judgment or attention to detail can have catastrophic results—impacting the health of the workforce or members of the public, and causing serious financial implications for those involved. So it’s understandable why professionals in the construction industry often give in-depth answers to questions or overly detailed explanations of certain items.
However, this can be problematic:
- People may find it difficult to understand what is being explained and, as a result, be put off working in the construction industry.
- Some individuals may assume that a particular role or document is too complicated and won’t attempt to engage with it themselves.
At Metroun, we like to make things simple.
- Simple for contractors and small businesses looking to implement or improve their own commercial processes.
- Simple for students using this website as an educational source.
- And simple enough for a layman to understand.
