The History Of Quantity surveyor

The origin of Quantity Surveying as a profession dates way back in the 17th century during the restoration of London after the Great Fire in 1666, though the first reference to a Quantity Surveyor is found in the Bible in the book of Luke 14:28 which says “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower, will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it.

Before 1666, masons, carpenters and other craftsmen were paid by the day, but because of the large amount of labour needed to reconstruct the city after the fire, it was decided that each craftsmen be paid for the quantity of his trades work. This meant that instead of being paid a wage, the tradesmen were paid for the amount of masonry, carpentry or any other craft ship contained in the building.

The professional institution with which most English-speaking quantity surveyors are affiliated with are the UK-based Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

The QS often reports to Project Manager, Project Director or Architect and provides advice in the decision-making process throughout the management of a project from initial inception to final completion. The QS handles estimating and cost control, the tendering process and, after contract award, the commercial interface. QSs should be able to carry out estimating and measurement of construction works prior to tender, producing the bill of quantities; produce tender documentation and manage the tender process; clarify and evaluate tenders; and manage the resultant contract through monthly valuations, variations control, contract administration and assessment of claims.

The traditional role of Quantity Surveyor is still practice on small to medium sized projects. It can be described as a measure and value system. Quantity Surveyor should prepared using a single price method of estimating, produce bills of quantities for tendering, measure the progress payments base on the work and prepare final account on the basis of the tender documentation. The following listed the traditional role of Quantity Surveyor:

• Single rate approximate estimates
• Cost planning
• Procurement advice
• Measurement and quantification
• Document preparation, especially bills of quantities
• Cost control during construction
• Interim valuations and payments
• Financial statements
• Final account preparation and agreement
• Settlement of contractual claims

Remember that when you buy a property there are three components that make up the true value:

The land value

The building value

The fixtures and fittings value

In real estate it is safe to conclude that the building and contents depreciate and the land appreciates in value.

But don’t think that just because a building isn’t brand new that you can’t claim potential tax deductions.

A quantity surveyor is an expert who you can include in your team to access depreciation and capital works tax deductions for a pre-existing building in certain circumstances.

But remember that you should always be investing to make money rather than save tax. Look at depreciation benefits as gravy on top but always have the likely cashflow as the primary reason for buying.

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