General Quantity Surveying Services

Budget / Cost Estimate Stage

Clients are often faced with tough strategic decisions during the early design stages of projects. In order to help with such decisions we can prepare preliminary budget estimates of construction costs accompanied with an overall project budget that will include additional costs such as local authority contributions, professional fees, site acquisition etc. Likely revenue generated from the project can also be assessed. This will give a firm indication as to the viability of the project in question at an early stage thus enabling our Clients to revise the proposal if necessary to best suit their requirements without incurring significant costs or delays.

Once the preferred proposal has been agreed we will proceed with a detailed cost estimate of the construction costs. This will further define the budget and can be used to monitor costs as the design proceeds. Any possible additional costs will be flagged to the Design Team / Client and revisions / alternatives discussed and costed to ensure that the budget is maintained.

Tender Documentation / Tendering Stage

Our role during this stage is to ensure that a comprehensive set of tender documentation is produced which will be used to seek competitive tenders from the most appropriate Contractors for the project in question. This process will bring several benefits such as:-

• The measurement process will invariably raise many design detail queries for the Design Team to be addressed pre-tender thus ensuring a more complete design.
• Value for money will be achieved as tenders will be sought under competition with documentation that will allow easy comparison on a like for like basis.
• Comprehensive, unambiguous tender documents will form a sound basis for the contract and will help avoid disputes during and after the contract period.
• The Bill of Quantities aids strict cost control during construction allowing thorough assessment of interim payments and valuation of omissions and additional works.

Post Contract Cost Control / Final Account

Our pro-active approach to cost control which involves constant assessment of revised drawings and other information produced during construction, immediate measurement and valuation of any variations / additional works that may arise and reporting our findings to our Client and Design Team. This, where possible, will be done in advance of additional works proceeding giving the Client and Design Team the opportunity to make an informed decision to proceed or to make an alternative proposal. Regular reports on the projected final cost taking account of all omitted works, additional works, and adjustments to P.C. / Provisional Sums etc. as the work proceeds, will also increase cost certainty and control. We will also thoroughly assess interim payment requests issued by the Contractor.     

A final account will be presented to the Client for their approval on project completion. This will identify the original contract sum and any adjustments made to it to account for any omitted or additional work, P.C. and Provisional Sum adjustments etc. Following this we will then proceed to negotiate the final cost with the Contractor.