Uneasy bed fellows

However in an earlier life I was involved in one of the original bids for the project management/construction managers role.

From my recollection, within the PM's role were obligations with respect to value engineering, VE Certification at defined stages and development of the cost plan as well as managing the cost reporting to the client along with the management of the design process and subsequent construction.

These had a significant impact on the fee required, particularly as at the time there were few certified VE people in the UK. With the safe guards that were initially intended with respect to the cost then it may not have been the QS who was responsible and the blame must lie in a significant proportion elsewhere.

One other observation is the fee structure when bidding for such projects. Were the fees the client was prepared to initially pay realistically representative of the level of cost control that was required and was the QS given the authority to actually exercise any real control?

In a later life I was on the receiving end of some drawings as a tender enquiry for some specialist supply and install items in which architectural intent and structural reality were so far removed even the designers had given up and required the specialist subcontractor/supplier to solve, in a very short tender period. Not conducive of obtaining value for money. No doubt someone would price it, we declined as the risk was too high due to the lack of definition and the programme.

So, easy as it is to blame the QS, particularly if like a lot both inside and outside the industry you do know what a good QS can really do - they do not actually draw or construct anything so they do not initiate the cost. Also if the QS's voice is not truly independent or not heeded you will not get the service you need. QSs now think of themselves as PMs and QSs, but I would say that you cannot do both in a commercial world where reputations and profit make uneasy bed fellows with integrity.

Align the issue of value with a fake Rolex watch - if it says Rolex but costs £25 then you know it is not a Rolex and you buy it and spend the £1,475 you saved on something else. So do not complain when the pin in the strap fails and you loosen it, even though it still looks like a Rolex and worked for eight months - just long enough for you to become dependent on it. You are now left not knowing the time but still need a watch and your money is spent. Sad thing is, some will just buy another fake Rolex.

Anonymous, via our website