Role Of Quantity Surveyor Construction Essay

Role Of Quantity Surveyor Construction Essay Introduction The name quantity surveyor conjures up a variety of different images in peoples imaginations. For some, the term quantity surveyor is an outmoded title from the past. It certainly no longer accurately describes the duties that are performed. When the term was first applied to the profession, the work of the Q.S. was vastly different to that now being carried out and anticipated in the twenty-first century. A Quantity Surveyor (QS) is a professional which is essentially construction accountant who manages the financial costs and contracts within construction industry. A Quantity Surveyor is involved in four main areas of work in construction industry which are building work such as residential housing and industrial developments, building engineering services such as lift services and others where prime cost sums are to be included in the bills of quantities, civil engineering such as infrastructure construction projects, and heavy and industrial engineering such as onshore and offshore oil and gas and petrol-chemicals. (Yeaw, 2008) Quantity surveyors deal with a wide variety of people including clients, architects, design engineers, construction managers, engineers, planners, estimators, supplier, lawyers and buyers. As building work increased in volume and complexity, there are a lot of sectors recognised the advantage of employing and independent quantity surveyor to prepare an accurate bill of quantities, and measure and value any variation during the progress of work. (Seeley, 1997) Today, quantity surveyors are also being appointed as a project manager to take control of the project from inception to completion and to coordinate the work of the design team and the main contractor and subcontractor. (Seeley, 1997) They can find employment in various areas such as property surveys for hidden defects on behalf of potential purchasers, running estates, valuing the mineral deposits for mining companies, selling property and even Leasehold Reform Act work. The roles of Quantity Surveyor will vary depending on his role either within the clients consultant or the contractor. Role of Private or Public Quantity Surveyor The Quantity Surveyor who works in private or public sector is an important member of the design team. The role of QS includes: Preliminary Cost Advise The QS is an expert in cost appraisal. He/She gives practical advice on the likely cost of the scheme from the inception of a new project. Besides that, he also advises on the comparative costs of alternative layouts, materials, components and methods of construction. Cost Planning during the design stage The QS will prepare a realistic budget and a cost plan showing the distribution of cost for each element once the employers brief is done. (Seeley, 1997) Cost planning during the design stage of the project is to ensure the client obtain the best possible value of his money including added value to his property asset, preferably having regard to total costs using life cycle costing technique so that the costs are distributed in the most realistic way and the contract sum is kept within the clients budget. Approximate estimate of the initial costs of building are prepared using feasibility or conceptual estimating which are single price methods of estimating. (Seeley and Winfield, 1999) When the budget and cost plan were acceptable to the client then the design was developed by the architect. Procurement Advice The QS in design team has a duty to advice the client on the most appropriate form of building procurement based on the type of project, quality of building, speed of construction, apportionment of risk and price certainty. (Seeley and Winfield, 1999) There are numbers of procurement methods using in United Kingdom. For example, traditional method is to negotiate tenders with a single contractor and design and build method is where the contractor undertakes the whole task of design and construction. (Seeley, 1997) Documents Preparation (Tender and Bills of Quantities) The QS will need to prepare tender document in the tendering stage and Bill of Quantities is a part of tender document. Measurement and quantification are required to provide a complete Bill of Quantities. (BQ) BQ translates the drawings, schedules and specification notes produced by designers into a document listing in detail all the components parts required for the project to enable all contractors to calculate his tender prices in same quantities. (Seeley, 1997) Selection of Contractor The QS provides frank, sound and practical advice on contractor selection. QS will based on the industrial relations record, past performance in meeting standard, time target and the quality of management and then make recommendations to the employer on the make up of the selection list. (Seeley, 1997) Negotiation During tendering, the private or public QS will evaluation of tenders and negotiate rates with contractors. Sometimes, QS will choose two of the best contractors and ask them price for the project again with discount rates. Valuing work The contractor is paid monthly in most construction contracts. QS will value the work carried out each month based on the report of Clerk of Works and contractors QS and then making recommendations as to payment to be made to the contractor including advising on the financial effect of variation or receipt of instructions from the architect. (Seeley, 1997) Settlement of contractual claim QS will prepare interim certificate to contractor every month based on the negotiate accepted claims with the contractors QS. Financial Statement A QS prepares financial statement to employer during the construction period and advice the employer on anticipated liability for payment, giving dates and amounts. Preparation of Final Account At the completion of the contract works, QS will need to prepare the final account for the whole project and agree details and totals with the contractors Quantity Surveyor. Role of Contractors Quantity Surveyor The Quantity Surveyors work in contractors firm and is an important member of the construction team. The duties of QS will vary according to the size of the firm. For smaller firms, the roles are tending to be more very wide in scope. However, the roles are tending to be more specified for large firms. (Seeley and Winfield, 1999)It includes: Preparation of Bills of Quantities Commencing of a project, contractors QS will need to prepare BQ with accurate measurement and estimating and then insert prices into the tender document which is provided by private or public QS. There are two types of contract document which are lump sum contract and BQ contract. Lump sum contract is the contract document comprises a BQ without quantities. So, the QS will need to do his own measurement based on the drawings and then come out with accurate quantities. BQ contract means the contract document comprise BQ with quantities. So, the QS just need to do pricing for those documents. Cost Planning during the construction stage Seeley (1997, pg63) wrote that Cost planning is a specialist technique used by the quantity surveyor. It is used to help all the members of construction team to keep works within the budget. Once a realistic estimate is agreed and everything follow in accordance with it, effective cost planning will help to ensure over-budget will not occur in the project from the successful contractors tender to final project cost. Constant monitoring of the cost planning will decrease the risk of overspending at an early stage and prompt corrective action can be taken. Cost planning improves the better value of money. The contractors QS will aim to secure maximum payment for the work done at the earliest possible time to avoid any possible cash flow problems. (Seeley, 1997) He will prepare cost plans that list down all the expenses right through to the projects completion. Negotiation Contractors QS is responsible to control the construction cost during construction stage. To improve the better value of money and maintain the quality of the building, he will negotiate the material price, machinery cost and labour cost with the supplier and come out with a most reasonable price and quality report. Sometimes, he also needs to negotiate with the clients QS for the variation order and payment issue. Comparison of cost QS will need to collect information about the cost of various operations in order to give a better value of money and provide information for the contractor to prepare future estimates. He will do the comparison of the cost of alternative methods of carrying out various operations so that the most economical procedure can be adopted. (Seeley, 1997) Documents Preparation (Sub-contract and meeting report) Preparation of the BQ for the sub-contract is done by contractors QS when some of works are substituted to another specialist. QS will prepare a lump sum contract or BQ contract base on the scope of work of the sub-contractor. In the sub-contract, QS will state the contract sum, commencing date, completion date, scope of work and etc. Besides that, QS also need to prepare site meeting report before the site meeting. He will receive a letter which state the date of site meeting one week before the meeting. The frequency of site meeting is depended on the architect. Normally, it is twice a month. The meeting report includes the project brief, contract information, document register, quality report, work progress chart and progress photos. Making application to the architect or engineer for variation order The QS requires assessing the cost of alternative designs of temporary works and other operations in order to prepare cost and value reconciliations for internal purposes and to forecast trends. He also makes application to the architect for variation orders if drawings or site instructions vary the work and the agreeing the value of variations with clients QS. (Seeley, 1997) Interim valuation and payments QS will prepare interim costing to clients QS so that the contractor can ascertain of his financial position and make appropriate action taken when necessary. (Seeley, 1997) Contractors QS is responsible for looking after the financial interest of the contractor and work in conjunction with private practice on the preparation of interim payments. (Ashworth and Hogg, 2007) Final account preparation QS will assembling data for the final account from the start of the contract to ensure that it will be completed in all its aspects and to give the contractor his proper entitlement under the contract. (Seeley, 1997) Other roles of Quantity Surveyor Ashworth and Hogg (2007, pg9) write In response to the potential demise of bills of quantities, quantity surveyors began exploring new potential roles for their services. The evolved roles of Quantity Surveyor are: Whole life costing The meaning of whole life costing is defined by the Ashworth and Hogg who refer to the Construction Best Practice Programme 1998 (2007, pg146) write that the systematic consideration of all relevant costs and revenues associated with the acquisition and ownership of an asset. All the costs associated with various options for a project are added together to represent a total cost. Future costs are discounted to a present day value. The QS provides the whole life costing to the clients based on the initial cost such as design and construction costs and future cost such as rental and maintenance cost to give an emphasis on a whole or total cost approach undertaken during the acquisition of a capital cost project or asset rather than merely concentrating on the initial capital costs alone. (Ashworth and Hogg, 2007) Value Management Value management is a specialist area. It is important to the success of projects in providing the foundation for improving value for money in construction. Clients are generally wanted higher quality buildings at lower prices and which were produced more quickly. QS involves in value management will examine a strategic problem that a company may face before the decision to build a building. He also uses the value management knowledge to obtain a reduction in construction costs. (Ashworth and Hogg, 2007) Risk Analysis Nowadays, most of the dedicated project manager has a quantity surveying background. Amongst all client advisors, QS is the most suited and motivated toward the management of risk. Sometimes, risk may affect an estimate. So, the QS will need to assess the probability and extent of the effect. The QS evolved the risk analysis to control the occurrence and impact of risk factors and provides clients with better information upon which to make decision. (Ashworth and Hogg, 2007) Expert witness The QS also can become an arbitrator nowadays. He often called upon to act as expert witness in respect of a wide variety of building disputes due to he has the knowledge of the building contract. As an expert witness, the QS need to produce a proof of evidence covering all his intended evidence. (Seeley, 1997) Conclusion The traditional roles of Quantity Surveyor can be classified into private or public Quantity Surveyor and contractors Quantity Surveyor. The table below shows the summary of the roles of Quantity Surveyor in different working sectors. Private or Public Quantity Surveyor Contractors Quantity Surveyor Provide preliminary cost advise Prepare Bills of Quantities during tendering Prepare cost planning during the design stage Prepare cost planning during the construction stage Advice client for different procurement method Prepare tender document and Bills of Quantities Prepare sub-contract and meeting report Select the best contractor to do the work Negotiate the pricing rate with the contractor Negotiate the material price and construction cost with the supplier and the sub-contractor Value the work done by contractor Compare the cost provided by supplier and sub-contractor. Settlement of contractual claim Make application to the architect or engineer for variation order Prepare financial statement Prepare interim valuation and payment Prepare final Account Prepare final account Nowadays, the introduction of computerised systems for preparing BQ makes Quantity Surveyors practices become very nervous. The traditional roles of Quantity Surveyor are not enough for QS to survive in construction industry because it is becoming to take over by technology. So, in these few years, QS are trying to evolve their roles in construction industry. They become project managers, value managers, expert witness to provide whole life costing, value management, risk analysis, a prove of evidence in building disputes and so on to employers. The QS still have a lot of development spaces in construction industry. It will never be ended up and replaced by others. As QS in the future, I wont worry about the unemployment because it seems to be good in the economical crisis at 2007. I always believe that QS job is a Quite Smart job in the construction industry and has a good future. (Total: 2418 words)

A Philippine Hero

†¦ I. for my part, have done everything possible to avoid it, although at the cost of many rights uselessly sacrificed†¦ My government can not remain indifferent in view of [the] violent and aggressive seizure of its territory by a nation which has arrogated to itself the title champion of oppressed nations. Thus†¦ my government is disposed to open hostilities [if America attacks the Visayas]. Upon their heads be all the blood which may be shed. Emilio Aguinaldo Proclamation, Malolos, January 5, 1899 In Larry Henares' program, some of the panelists -staunch admirers of Aguinaldo- expressed the oft-repeated view that the general failed to achieve greatness in the eyes of Filipinos simply because he lived too long. He didn't die young, in the flower of youth, like Jacinto, or in some twilight of the gods manner, like Bonifacio. He wasn't martyred, like Rizal, and he didn't die, penurious and neglected, like Mabini. He simply lived on, and on, until he became something like an antiquated relict fit for gawking at, but not for reverence. Poor, unheralded man. No one ever made it clear if anyone asked Aguinaldo if that's what he felt. I would think that Aguinaldo was exceedingly fortunate to have lived so long. He outlived many of his friends, but he also outlived all of his enemies. He was reviled during his lifetime -in some cases, because he involved himself in politics and thus made himself fair game- but he lived to see independence day moved to June 12. Isn't having lived long enough to be told of that change an exquisite achievement? And throughout his life, he had the loyalty and devotion of the those who belonged to the League of the Veterans of the Revolution. The things held against him, the sordid Tejeros Convention -one professor of history has pointed out that there were more votes cast than there were actually people to cast them- which led to the eventual execution of Bonifacio, and the assassination of Gen. Antonio Luna which was a great blow to the military viability of the forces of the Republic, may forever bar him from reaching the same exalted place in the affections of the Filipino people. They will always haunt him. But they do not, I think, diminish his greatness at all. The power struggle -a naked coup d'‚tat, some have called it- that led to Bonifacio's downfall does make for sickening reading. And his execution was a poor end for a patriot. But is such indignation over this, warranted? Do people get upset over this because, in reality, they are applying quasi-religious morality to a subject that should be divorced from it? Why should standards befitting religious sainthood be applied to secular heroism? Must you be â€Å"good† (in the way people like Fr. Nudas would define it) to be a hero? A hero for a secular country? When Bonifacio's competence to hold the portfolio of the department of the Interior was questioned by Daniel Tirona, the Supremo, indignant, demanded a retraction. He failed to get it. Furious, he declared the proceedings null and void, and left. NCC Chairman Laurel recounted with pride on Henares' program how his grandfather, Sotero, head of the Batangas delegation at Tejeros, and a Bonifacio supporter, reacted to the uproar that followed. He called for lambanog. He drank, pulled out his gun, and put it on the table. He demanded that, as they had all agreed to earlier, the decision of the majority be respected. Otherwise, mag ubusan na tayo. The majority sided with Aguinaldo. Bonifacio (or, depending on how you see it, Aguinaldo) had thrown down the gauntlet. As Sotero Laurel might have put it then, matira ang matibay. Aguinaldo won, obviously. The thing is, in a revolutionary situation, extreme situations call for extreme measures. You can't dilly-dally and sort things out and massage egos while the enemy tries to kill you all . Every revolution everywhere has been marred with competing factions, many of whom act out of less-than-noble motives. In the end, one group must prevail, one destiny achieved. The Revolution, for good or ill, had its destiny tied to Aguinaldo. While the movement (as Mabini saw it) faltered as a result of the Supremo's liquidation, it made it through. It was suspended after biak-na-bato, resumed again, and gave birth to the proclamation made from a window of a house in Kawit on June 12. The proclamation of the Philippines as a free country. The Republic did not prosper. Was it Aguinaldo's fault? The fault of the Ilustrados? Did it fail because of competing views and interests within it, divisions that exist to this day in our country and in other countries with similar histories? Left to ourselves, they had as good a chance of eventually working them out as any other people on earth. But they weren't left alone. They were subdued with krag rifles and American tactics. Laudably, the Centennial Commission has made it clear that it is the proclamation and not the substance of independence that will be commemorated in 1998. A proclamation whose aspirations have endured. As have its symbols: our flag, our anthem. Aspirations we strove to fulfill in 1946, aspirations every generation tries to fulfill up to the present. Aguinaldo was responsible for that declaration, that flag, that anthem. He gave the nation vessels to contain its soul. We should be able to forgive him for being a flawed man and a poor politician. Again and again, our pantheon of heroes has been besieged by angry mobs, intent on pulling down -or raising up high above the others- the statues of great Filipinos. We, who should, as befits a supposedly democratic and liberal state, find nothing wrong or ignoble in having our heroes stand side-by-side, remain obsessed with establishing heroic hierarchies, as though the leaders we revere were petty princelings subject to Byzantine rules of precedence. Are we a people unworthy of heroes in the first place?

Marketing Dicussion

CHAPTER 17 DESIGNING AND MANAGING INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS Marketing Discussion. Pick a brand and go to Web site. Locate as many forms of communications as you can find. Conduct an informal communication audit. What do you notice? How consistent are the different communications? Intodruction In 21. Century Technology’s has changed the way we live, the way we catch the information. In nowadays the society has become indifferent and it is hard to draw the attention. That’s way the company’s use the marketing communications to inform, persuade and remind consumers about the product and brand they sell. It’s very important to establish a dialogue and built relationships with consumers. The disciples in marketing communications include: Media advertising, sales promotion, events and experiences, public relations, direct marketing, persuade selling. [pic] Nikita is an Icelandic clothing brand, founded by its head designer Heida Birgisdottir in a tiny street wear store in Reykjavik 10 years ago. Now they have stores world wide. NIKITA marketing communication mix: 1. NIKITA CHIKITA CAMP – you can take a part in the girls snowboarding camp in the snow sport canter in Cardona. . WANNA WIN A TRIP TO ICELAND – you must unload of Picture of yourself wearing NINITA outwear to facebook wall and win a trip to Iceland. 3. NIKITA GIRLS – Good Snowboard riders from different countries: Maude Richon, Christel Thoresen, Anna Hellman, Natasza Zurek are sponsored by NIKITA clothing 4. WWW. NIKITACLOTHING. COM – offer opportunity to buy clothes in ONLINE SHOP. 5. NIKI TA take a part in European Snowboarding Championships and built its brand image thought sponsoring events and riders. 6. Twitter, Facebook, Youtube account. NIKITA has developed effective communications and has identified her target audience- girls who ride with skate and snow. The company have a great customer relation because they know customer habits. NIKITA perfectly know what to say, how to say it and who should say it. The marketing communications which use NIKITA: personal selling, direct marketing, events and experiences. NIKITA gives acceptance to individuality. It's brought personality, freedom, vision, a voice, logic and power. Company is successful and use right marketing communications.

Is Neoclassical Architecture Really New

Neoclassical architecture describes buildings that are inspired by the classic architecture of ancient Greece and Rome. In the United States, it describes the important public buildings built after the American Revolution, well into the 1800s. The U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. is a good example of neoclassicism, a design chosen by the Founding Fathers in 1793. The prefix neo- means new and classical refers to ancient Greece and Rome.  If you look closely at anything called neoclassical, youll see art, music, theater, literature, governments, and  visual arts that are derived from ancient Western European civilizations. Classical architecture was built from roughly 850 B.C. to A.D. 476, but the popularity of neoclassicism rose from 1730 to 1925. The Western world has always returned to the first great civilizations of mankind. The Roman arch was a repeated characteristic of the medieval Romanesque period from approximately 800 to 1200. What we call the Renaissance from about 1400 to 1600 was a rebirth of classicism. Neoclassicism is the influence of Renaissance architecture from the 15th and 16th century Europe. Neoclassicism was a European movement that dominated the 1700s. Expressing the logic, order, and rationalism of the Age of Enlightenment, people again returned to neoclassical ideas.  For the United States after the American Revolution in 1783, these concepts profoundly shaped the new government not only in the writing of the U.S. Constitution, but also in the architecture built to express the ideals of the new nation. Even today in much of the public architecture in Washington, D.C., the nations capital, you may see echoes of the Parthenon in Athens or the Pantheon in Rome. The word.neoclassic (without a hyphen is the preferred spelling) has come to be a general term encompassing a variety influences, including  Classical Revival, Greek Revival, Palladian, and Federal. Some people dont even use the word neoclassical because they think it is useless in its generality. The word classic itself has changed in meaning over the centuries. At the time of the Mayflower Compact in 1620, the classics would have been the books written by Greek and Roman scholars — today we have classic rock, classic movies, and classic novels that have nothing to do with ancient classical times. The commonality is that anything called classic is considered superior or first class. In this sense, every generation has a new classic, or neoclassic. Neoclassical Characteristics During the 18th century, the written works of the Renaissance architects Giacomo da Vignola and Andrea Palladio were widely translated and read. These writings inspired appreciation for the Classical Orders of architecture and the beautifully proportioned architecture of ancient Greece and Rome. Neoclassical buildings have many (although not necessarily all) of four features: (1) symmetrical floor plan shape and fenestration (i.e., placement of windows); (2) tall columns, generally Doric but sometimes Ionic, that rise the full height of the building. In residential architecture, a double portico; (3) triangular pediments; and (4) a centered domed roof. The Beginnings of Neoclassical Architecture One important 18th century thinker, the French Jesuit priest Marc-Antoine Laugier, theorized that all architecture derives from three basic elements: the column, the entablature, and the pediment. In 1753, Laugier published a book-length essay that outlined his theory that all architecture grows from this shape, which he called the Primitive Hut. The general idea was that society was best when it was more primitive, that a purity is native in simplicity and symmetry. The romanticization of simple forms and the Classical Orders spread to the American colonies. Symmetrical neoclassical buildings modeled after classical Greek and Roman temples were thought to symbolize principles of justice and democracy. One of the most influential Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson, drew upon the ideas of Andrea Palladio when he drew architectural plans for the new nation, the United states. Jeffersons neoclassical design for the Virginia State Capitol in 1788 started the ball rolling for the building of the nations capital in Washington, D.C. The State House in Richmond has been called one of the Ten Buildings That Changed America. Famous Neoclassical Buildings After the Treaty of Paris in 1783 when the colonies were forming a more perfect Union and developing a constitution, the Founding Fathers turned to the ideals of ancient civilizations. Greek architecture and Roman government were nondenominational temples to democratic ideals. Jeffersons Monticello, the U.S. Capitol, the White House, and the U.S. Supreme Court building are all variations of the neoclassical — some being more influenced by Palladian ideals and some more like Greek Revival temples. Architectural historian Leland M. Roth writes that all of the architecture of the period from 1785 to 1890 (and even much of it up to 1930) adapted historic styles to create associations in the mind of the user or observer which would strengthen and enhance the functional purpose of the building. About Neoclassical Houses The word neoclassical is often used to describe an architectural style, but neoclassicism is not actually any one distinct style. Neoclassicism is a trend, or approach to design, that can incorporate a variety of styles. As architects and designers became known for their work, their names became associated with a particular type of building — Palladian for Andrea Palladio, Jeffersonian for Thomas Jefferson, Adamesque for Robert Adams. Basically, its all neoclassical — Classical Revival, Roman Revival, and Greek Revival. Although you may associate neoclassicism with grand public buildings, the neoclassical approach has also shaped the way we build private homes. A gallery of neoclassical private homes proves the point. Some residential architects break the neoclassic architectural style into distinct time periods — no doubt to assist the realtors who market these American home styles. Transforming a built house into a neoclassical style can go very badly, but this is not always the case. Scottish architect Robert Adam (1728-1792) redesigned Kenwood House in Hampstead, England from what was called a double-pile manor house into a neoclassical style. He remodeled Kenwoods north entrance in 1764, as outlined in on the English Heritage website. Fast Facts Time periods of when architectural styles flourished are often inexact, if not arbitrary. In the book American House Styles: A Concise Guide, architect John Milnes Baker has given us his own concise guide to what he believes neoclassical-related periods to be: Federal Style, 1780-1820, is named after the new U.S. government, although ideas come from the British Isles, including a continued interest in the Palladian window and the work of Robert Adams. A Federalist building does not always have imposing pillars, but its symmetry and decorative details are classically inspired.Neoclassical, 1780-1825, is the period of Americas breaking away from European modifications of Classical ideas and ideals, adhering instead to strict classical orders of proportion. Baker says the Neoclassicists rarely presumed to distort the proportions of the classical orders except in the subtlest way.Greek Revival, 1820-1850, de-emphasized Roman architectural details, such as the dome and arch, and focused more on the Greek way. This was a favorite of Antebellum architecture, the stately plantation homes built before Americas Civil War.Neoclassical Revival, 1895-1950, became a modernists interpretation of ancient Rome and Greece. When well done, writes Baker, thes e houses had a certain dignity, but the line between dignity and pomposity was tenuous at best....Some of the most grotesque, tasteless, and nouveau-riche buildings offered by speculative builders today are pale shadows of the Neoclassical Revival. One can often see the pretense carried to absurdity when a makeshift portico is slapped on the facade of a raised ranch or pseudo-colonial. Unfortunately it is not an uncommon sight. Sources About the U.S. Capitol Building, https://www.aoc.gov/capitol-buildings/about-us-capitol-building and Capitol Hill Neoclassical Architecture, https://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/architecture-styles/neoclassical-architecture-capitol-hill, Architect of the Capitol [accessed April 17, 2018] A Concise History of American Architecture by Leland M. Roth, Harper Row, 1979, p. 54 American House Styles: A Concise Guide by John Milnes Baker, Norton, 1994, pp. 54, 56, 64, 104 Additional Photo Credits: Kenwood House, English Heritage Paul Highnam/Getty Images (cropped) Kenwood: History and Stories. English Heritage.