What is a Quantity Surveyor?
A Quantity Surveyor is also known as the Commercial Manager in many countries.
In some countries, the term used is “Building Accountant.”
A Quantity Surveyor, or Commercial Manager, is a building professional, or construction professional, who deals with the financial or Commercial functions of a building company. They have expert knowledge on costs of construction and construction contracts.
Quantity Surveyors deal with the estimate, the negotiation for the tender, the procurement of goods, monthly claims, monthly variations, the payment of the claims and the final account, and of course, ensuring all are paid into their client’s bank accounts.
The Quantity Surveyor, or the Commercial Manager is in effect the Building Accountant.
Services provided by a quantity surveyor may include:
- Cost estimating and cost consulting
- Cost planning and commercial management through the life cycle of the project. This management continues from inception to post-completion
- The determination of value
- Calculation and risk management
- Procurement advice and help during all tendering procedures
- Tender analysis and agreement of the contract total amount
- Contract administration and commercial management
- Assistance with any dispute resolution
- Asset capitalisation
- payment assessment and interim valuations
- Cost management process
- Assessing additional costs of any design variations
- Production of the company pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) documentation which must be in line with company policies.
QStimate currently offers quantity surveying/construction commercial management services the UK and Ireland.