Assistant Quantity Surveyor
Career information and advice on being a Assistant Quantity Surveyor

An Assistant Quantity Surveyor will usually work alongside a Senior Quantity Surveyor on large projects, helping them with the financial accounts and budgets for building and engineering projects.

On smaller jobs the Assistant Quantity Surveyor may run the entire project, only getting feedback and assistance where necessary from a Senior Quantity Surveyor.

The Assistant Quantity Surveyor prepares cost estimates and strategic plans for the materials that will be used on the job. They are also responsible for figures for the labour that will be required to complete the construction.

Once construction has begun the Assistant Quantity Surveyor will monitor running costs to ensure that they are within budget. If there is a difference and the project is running into the red it would need to be highlighted early so that it can be rectified or budgets can be altered to ensure that the job is completed properly.

Assistant Quantity Surveyors are usually employed by the construction company that has been commissioned to complete the project. They could, however, also be employed by a client if the company is big enough to handle its own contracting and construction.

Other names for Quantity Surveyors are Commercial Managers or Cost Consultants and the field of Cost Engineering is closely related.

Working under a Senior Quantity Surveyor, an Assistant Quantity Surveyor could work closely with Architects, Accountants, Engineers, Planners, Buyers, Lawyers, Master Builders, Plumbers, Carpenters, Interior Designers, the client and local utility companies.

Your Functions May include

The function of an Assistant Quantity Surveyor is to provide assistance to the Senior Quantity Surveyor in the preparation and detailing of cost estimates and projections based on the scope of a project.

To do this you may use a variety of methods such as cost estimation, valuation, Value Engineering, Cost Planning, feasibility studies, lifecycle costing and cost benefit analysis.