Wao, J O and Flood, I (2016) The role of quantity surveyors in the international construction arena. International Journal of Construction Management, 16(2), pp. 126-137. ISSN 1562-3599
Abstract
The quantity surveying profession is unpopular in some countries, such as the USA. However, in the international construction arena, quantity surveyors have renowned construction competencies and are widely involved in construction projects. They have different names in different countries ‒ e.g. cost engineer, building economist, cost manager, or construction accountant. In spite of the different names, they have significant skills that have evolved to meet the increasing and changing needs of clients, especially in the international construction arena. This research investigated the roles of quantity surveyors and the complexities they may find in international construction. A literature review and survey questionnaire were used to investigate the roles, complexities, and the level of competition from other construction professionals. The results showed that quantity surveyors had many roles in construction, with a majority of them acting as representatives of clients in construction projects. Also, they experienced varied complexities and faced competition from other construction professionals. It is noteworthy that they had procedures to safeguard the survival of the profession and had room for future expansion and diversification of their roles in international construction. The research provides useful information for those professionals and clients wishing to take part in international construction.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction competencies; cost engineer; estimator; international construction project; quantity surveying |
| Index terms: | surveying, survey, literature review, competition, estimator, questionnaire, construction project, international construction project, complexity, accountant, quantity surveying, cost manager, engineer, international construction, profession, diversification, construction professional, survival |
| Subjects: | systems engineering, market analysis, production management, professional development, data analysis and analytics, environmental science, health monitoring assessment and metrics, institututions, strategic management, profession, data collection methods |
| Topics: | Health and Safety, Engineering Principles, Information Management, Research Practice, Project Management, Roles and Professions, Sustainability, International Construction |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here