Hello folks 👋
I only started getting my teeth into post-contract work three and a half years into my professional career. Before that, I had a few stints supporting colleagues with bits and pieces, but never anything I could call my own.
When I finally got my own projects, I made loads of mistakes.
Here are some things that you can do to be a "value add" to the construction team:
Read the Contract - I am not telling you to memorise the thing word for word (It would be a great party trick if you could). No - I am saying that you need to be comfortable enough to navigate the contract. There are somethings that you should know verbatim like the payment and change process. Learn these - it will save you time and give you an aura of professionalism that is seldom found in our industry.
Understand the Programme - The programme is your second best friend after your contract. Many people think that the programme is just a project management tool. But it is so much more than that. As a QS the programme will give you the potential future financial liabilities you need to assess for a client. Obviously the contract and the programme tie in together with respect to completion dates. But from a financial perspective, you can use the programme to forecast potential applications for payments. This is useful from a funding perspective as you can inform your client about any additional funding requirements.
Change Management - As the commercial representative of your client, it is your duty to control any change. Remember, change in construction = more cost to the client. This is a general rule, of course change can result in de-scoping etc. but you know what I mean. As the QS you need to ensure you are copied into all correspondence between the design team, the project manager and the supplier. It will give you visibility of any potential variations. This is vital for your cost reporting so you can report any anticipated changes.
That's all for this post, if you have any questions give me a shout on LinkedIn!
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