Department Of Civil Engineering

Coursework
Quantity Surveyor Practice

Done by
Muataz Darwish AL Zadjali
19F19411
Submitted To
Mr.Adam Joe

1
TABLE OF CONTENT
1. INTRODUCTION

2. ROLES AND TOOLS OF QUANTITY SURVEYOR

2.1 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITY OF A QUANTITY SURVEYOR

2.2.1 Quantity surveyor duties
2.2.2 skills and knowledge
2.2. PRE CONTRACT AND POST CONTRACT STAGES IN QUANTITY SURVEY
2.2.1 Pre contract stages
2.2.2 Post contract stages
2.2.3 The role of quantity surveyor in the pre contract stage
2.2.4 The role of quantity surveyor in the post contract stage
2.3 RELEVANCE OF CIVIL ENGINEERING STANDARDS OF METHODS OF MEASUREMENT
(CESMM) IN QUANTITY SURVEYING
2.3.1 Development of civil engineering codes of measurement
2.4 CESMM AS AN AID IN PREPARING CONTRACT DOCUMENTS
2.4.1 CESMM in contract documentation
2.5 PURPOSE OF METHOD RELATED CHARGES ON CONTRACTORS POINT OF VIEW
2.6 PROCESSES INVOLVED IN PREPERATION OF ESTIMATE
2.6.1 Preparation
2.6.2 Itemizing
2.6.3 Quantifying
2.6.4 Pricing
2.6.5 Presentation
2.7 COMPARISON OF CESMM AND CESMM4
2.8 REFRENCES
2.9 CONCLUSION AND RECCOMENDATION

2
 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Roles of a Quantity Surveyor

Figure 2. Pre contract and post contract stages

Figure 3. Itemising a drawing by marking green and yellow

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Comparison of CESMM & CESMM4

3
 1. INTRODUCTION

Quantity survey professional with expert knowledge on construction methods, materials, costs,
drawing readings and contracts. Quantity surveyors are not like land surveyors. They calculate
and report the tax deductions an owner can expect annually for the depreciation of their
investment property. A depreciation schedule prepared by a quantity surveyor is sure to give
maximum write off to your tax deductions, Also the Bill of Quantities or the estimate of a work
prepared by a Quantity Surveyor can give you an almost idea of how much budget you will
require for the materials and Man power.
They work on both office and site and the primary work scope is to minimize expenses on the
project and keep them within the limits of a budget. They work hard to do it without
compromising on the quality of the work or failing to meet the building, health, and safety
regulations.
They also take part in projects and work with contractors/clients right from the start, preparing
comprehensive project estimates. They gather tender and contract documentation, conduct
feasibility studies, and undertake risk control. Once the building construction process starts,
quantity surveyors keep close watch on any variations that may lead to cost fluctuations.
During the course of the project, main tasks are to prepare outcome analysis, work evaluation,
and progress reports. But, it is not uncommon for surveyors to take on additional responsibilities,
like distributing work to subcontractors, ordering construction materials, and arranging payments.
The list of tasks they can handle goes on and depends on the type of the project, the number of
employees in the project, how big is the project, and the employer.

4
 2. ROLES AND TOOLS OF QUANTITY SUVEYOR
2.1. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF A QUANTITY SURVEYOR
A quantity surveyor's duty is to manage the costs relating to building construction and related
engineering projects like waste water treatment plant , road work, dam construction,etc . The
building construction may include new buildings, renovations or maintenance work.
From the initial design costs to final estimate, quantity surveyors work to minimise the costs of
the project and enhance value for money while ensuring that the project meets all legal and
quality requirements and regulations without any compromise.
2.2.1 Quantity surveyor duties
 Conducting feasibility studies to estimate materials required, materials available, time
and labor costs.
 Preparing, analyzing and negotiating the tenders and contract cost.
 Coordination of work force.
 Advising on legal and contractual issues.
 Evaluating completed work and making arrangements for payments.

2.1.2 Skills and Knowledge

In addition to qualification requirements employers also look for the following qualities:
 Critical way of thinking
 Good knowledge of construction process, materials, costs, etc
 Excellent problem solving skills.
 Has expertise in the estimating softwares and other computer skills
 Has good financial and numeracy management skills
 Having excellent communication and negotiating skills

5
 Figure 1. Roles of a Quantity Surveyor

2.2 PRE-CONTRTACT AND POST-CONTRACT STAGES IN QUANTITY

SURVEY
2.2.1 The pre-contract stages

•    Inception of the project

Meeting the client, receiving the client’s brief, starting to collect survey information, initial
design ideas and programming the design period.

•    Feasibility study

Formulating the design brief, including contributions and opinions from all the consultants.

•    Outlining a proposals

Establishing a concept from the design requirements, obtaining outline advice from interested
authorities.

•    Schedule preperation

Developing a proposal idea into a working schedule, obtaining approvals from related authorities.

•    Detailed design stage

Developing the idea, incorporating specialist design work for structures, electrical, mechanical
and heating installations, etc.

•    Construction detailing and drawing

Preparing detailed working drawings and specifications defining all the components in the new
building.

6
 •    Measurement and estimation
Preparation of bills of quantity

•    Preparing tender documents

•    Pre-contract planning

Analysis of tenders and exchange of contracts between the client and the bid winning contractor

2.2.2 The post-contract stages

•    Construction on site

Supervision, inspections, sample tests, approvals and valuations.
Construction using labour force and Materials

•    Completion
Handover to client and user occupation, correction of defects, completion of contract
requirements and settlement of the final account.

2.2.2 The role of a quantity surveyor in the pre-contract stage.

 Feasibility study

 Cost estimation and planning

 Engineering, climatic and cash flow forecasts

 Bill of Quantities preperation

 Tender services including compilation,documentation, tender analysis,

negotiations, and recommendations

 Contract drafting as per FIDIC.

2.2.3 The role of a quantity surveyor in the post-contract stage.

 Preparations of contract document for approval and signature by both parties
 Preparations of schedules of rates and schedule of expense during the construction
period and advising on payment to the contractor stating dates and amounts
 Preparations of interim evaluation of cost of work and recommendations for
payment
 Preparations of cost analysis and giving cost information at all stages of the
contract and keeping a control on the expenses

7
 Figure 2. Pre contract and Post contract stages

CIVIL ENGINEERING STANDARD METHOD OF MEASUREMENT

(CESMM) IN QUANTITY SURVEYING.
Civil engineering measurement is a fundamental requirement for the evaluation of the cost of
proposed works and the calculation of the total cost required for work executed. Formal
agreement/ decision to standardize the method of preparing such quantity measurements in the
civil engineering industry occurred much later in the building sector. Civil Engineering Standard
Method of Measurement – Third Edition (or ‘CESMM3’), is an excellent document with an
which makes reference to the various aspects of construction and its various rules very
convenient.
2.3.1 Development of civil engineering codes of measurement
The Institution of Civil Engineers published a report of a committee of engineers dealing with
engineering quantities in 1933, and thus provided for the first time a standard procedure for
drafting bills of quantities for civil engineering work. Prior to the introduction of this document
there was no uniform practice in the measurement of civil engineering quantities, and engineers
responsible for the preparation of civil engineering bills of quantities largely worked on their
own systems of measurement as they liked. The order of the billed items, the units of

8
 measurement and the method of tabulating the information in specific columns usually referred to
as ruling, which was adopted for the bills of quantities, varied from person to person.
It was studied that this lack of uniformity in the preparation of civil engineering bills of quantities
made the task of civil engineering contractors in pricing them far more difficult than it is today,
because a more uniform method of measurement had to be adopted.
In 1953, after much discussions and consultation, a revised document, entitled Standard Method
of Measurement of Civil Engineering Quantities, was issued by the Institution of Civil Engineers.
This amended the previous (1933) report to meet the changing needs of civil engineers and
contractors, and tied up with the provisions of the General Conditions of Contract for use in
connection with Works of Civil Engineering Construction. New sections covering site
investigation, soil tests and site clearance were added and provisions were made for the
measurement of pre-stressed and post tensioned concreting methods

2.4 CESMM4 AS AN AID IN PREPARING CONTRACT DOCUMENTS

A contract can be defined as a legally binding agreement between parties. In the case of civil
engineering works the contract is normally an agreement to have work done in return for a
specified amount of money. The client offering the work is legally known as the ‘employer’
while the party carrying out the work is legally known as the ‘contractor’. The submission date
of the proposed work is to be clearly specified while the timing and method of payments for the
work also to be clearly specified.
The majority of civil engineering contracts will be based on one of the standard ICE conditions
of contract issued by agreement between the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Association of
Consulting Engineers and the Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors.

The two important Acts which virtually affect all work with very few exceptions are:
1) The Construction (Design and Management) Act.
2) The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration.

The first Act is related to safety throughout the total life of the construction ,from the design
stage to construction phase, occupancy or use and the ultimate demolition or decommissioning
of the works. The second is to ensure fair payment terms and dispute resolution within
construction contracts for clients, contractors and sub-contractors as well.

9
 2.4.1 CESMM in contract documentation
Bill of quantities and the contract documents in order of importance are as follows:
(1) Conditions of Contract
The conditions of contract represent the legal agreement between the parties and cover
important elements such as expected completion date of the work, methods and timing of
payments, access to the works, access to the sites, the sequence of construction, storage areas
available to the contractor , accommodation to labourers, equipment rented or available, power
and electricity availability etc.
(2) Contract Drawings
The contract drawings give the location, scope and design of the works and show the pictorial
representation to the full extent of what is required to be constructed and its nearby buildings
also.
(3) Specification
The specification state the quality required in the various stages of the work. The contract
drawings indicate locational information but cannot represent quality .They therefore have
specification clauses which fully describe the expected quality of each element. Quality may be
specified by prescriptive or performance criteria.
(4) Bill of Quantities
The definition used in rule 1.7 of CESMM3 is as follows: ‘Bill of Quantities means a list of
items giving short descriptions and estimated quantities of the work comprised in a Contract’.
This definition rightly states that the bill should be brief and should not repeat information
contained elsewhere on the drawings or the specification.

2.5 PURPOSE OF METHOD RELATED CHARGES ON CONTRATORS

POINT OF VIEW
Method related charges are useful to contractors to receive early payments for plant and
equipment brought to the site and for avoiding under recovery of fixed costs and time related
costs in case of quantity variations. The contractors have the opportunity to declare the cost of
items which they do not wish to be subjected to the measurements process so that their real costs
are recovered without being affected by change in quantity estimated.

10
 Method-related charges are a systematic evaluation of a range of changes and variations,
including delays, may be achieved by the separation of method related charges in the bill of
quantities. This approach was introduced in the British Civil Engineering Standard Method of
Measurement (CESMM) in 1976 and moves away from the concept that all charges are
proportional to quantities of completed work. Method-related charges are introduced to permit
tenderers to enter their own items in the first section of the bill of quantities for any operations
whose costs are not directly linked to the quantities of permanent works. The rates entered
against the bill of quantities are consequently more realistic and are dominated by material costs.
Greater similarity between cost and price. The production of estimates in an operational form
which is directly related to his programme has greatly facilitated cost forecasting by the
contractor.

2.6 PROCESS INVOLVED IN PREPERATION OF ESTIMATE

If you are a project owner, general contractor, or a subcontractor ,getting a good idea of what costs
will be involved is the first very important step on the way to the success of your construction
project. Exceeding budget, overbidding and losing a tender or ending up with no profit is something
that brings us loss.
Preperation of estimate includes the following steps:
2.6.1 Preparation of documents
The first thing we need to do is to collect every relevant data and documents. That
includes drawings, specifications, addenda, schedules, etc.
Carefully read the documentation to understand the scope of the work.
2.6.2 Segregation of work or Itemizing of work
We need to create a list of items to be estimated before quantifying and pricing. This step-by-step
approach,  will help not miss any details, as well as keep track of the work progress.

11
 Figure 3. Itemizing a drawing by marking green and yellow

2.6.3 Quantifying
In this step we put a quantity against each item. We can obtain it from construction
documentation like detailed structural drawings, civil drawings, architectural drawings etc.
Therefore it is very important for a Quantiy surveyor to know how to read and interpret drawings
very well. The process of determining quantities from drawings is called take-off.
During take-off, the lengths ,widths , heights , and areas are measured on the plan, scaled and
converted to quantities. For example the no. of type I doors in a building can be taken off from
the layout of the building.
2.6.4 Pricing
After taking off the quantities , we need to find out the price for each item by multiplying its
quantity by rate.
A subcontractor, will have their own list of rates that they use for pricing jobs and materials.
Project owner and consultants may want to use industry-wide average rates published in various
Construction Cost Guides.

12
 2.6.5 Presentation
After all the work is completed, we need to double-check everything and present all the
information in a report and submit it. This can be a quote for a customer, a bid for a tender, or the
budget of a construction project.

2.7 COMPARISON OF CESMM AND CESMM4

Table 2. Comparisons of CESMM & CESMM4

CESMM CESMM 4
1. Published in 1976 1. Published in 2012
2. First edition of CESMM 2. Fourth edition of CESMM
by Institute of Civil by ICE and Civil
Engineers(ICE) Engineering Contractor
3. Has defined ICE Association.
conditions as the 3. It is contract neutral
conditions of contract 4. Does not refer to any
4. Refers to British specification
Standard specifications

2.8 REFERENCES

13
 1. Richard Krikhman (2007),Ferry & Brandan’s Cost Planning of buildings, Wiley Blackwell press,
United kingdom.

2. Duncan P.Cartlidge (2002),Quantity Survey Practice, Elsevier press, United Kingdom.

3. Martin Brooke (1993) Estimating and tendering for construction work, Elsevier Butterworth-
Heinemann,Great Britain.

4. Fredd Sherratt (2015) Introduction to Construction Management, Abingdon, Oxon, New York,
NY.

5. www.constructiontuts.com

6. www.quantitysurveyorsmelbourne.co.au

7. www.whiteandlloyd.com

2.9 CONCLUSION & RECCOMENDATION

14
 The study revealed that the quantity surveying fraternity is serious in establishing their own
competency standards to improve and maintain the services provided by professional quantity
surveyors. Various professional quantity surveying organizations such as RICS, AIQS, and
PAQS had already established the competency standards for their own use. Whatever model they
follow, the quantity surveyors were found to be very receptive towards the idea of adhering to
these prescribed standards in producing competent quantity surveyors. The next challenge in the
profession would be to improve the competency standards models a step further, and to extend
their use to a larger number of quantity surveying practices. In view of the competency
framework proposed by the Board of Quantity Surveyors more research works need to be done to
see the benefits of the prescribed competency standards coming from the various professional
quantity surveying bodies. Preparing the report employed a lot of research in this area of study.
This report writing has enabled me to organize the collected data and information into an orderly
manner in the prescribed format. The study has enabled me to understand the necessity of quantity
surveying and its codes being followed in civil Engineering. I feel very proud in having being
able to do the report as per the specifications given by the department

15