Most people don’t fully understand what being a Quantity Surveyor fully entails, Ken Murphy explains what it's all about.
I have heard Quantity Surveyors described as ”parasites” and as being like “someone who after the battle goes in and bayonets the wounded”.
On a more serious note within our organisation the main function is to provide cost estimates for projects, cost advice on types of construction and advice on contractual procedure. Agreeing and negotiating final accounts with contractors.
Most problems with construction projects stem from lack of information and lack of communication, very often the QS will not be approached until the problem has arisen.
Our goal is to provide a professional service, eliminating as many of the problems as we can, with a “can do” approach to projects, whatever the site problems or time restraints.
A realistic cost plan at feasibility stage will save a lot of problems when it comes to final account stage.
Most Quantity Surveyors make no apology for not being the most popular member of the team as often the advice we have to give means you can’t afford exactly what you want.
This often calls for a “think outside the box” approach and embracing “non traditional” forms of construction or going back to basics.
The vision is to provide a fully co-ordinated, integrated approach to all our projects giving best value to our clients in terms of Project Cost.