- Today, we're gonna talk about cost management,
also referred to as quantity surveying and cost consultancy.
And who better to introduce that
then our operations director, Andy Flambard.
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- Okay. What is cost management?
Cost management is the process of establishing, reporting,
monitoring and reporting on a project's budget.
These we set out in some defined steps.
The first step is establishing a high level budget
or otherwise known as an order of cost estimate.
And these are really useful for a client
to be able to make informed decisions
about requirements of funding,
budget requirements,
and its viability status and levels of design
that they wish to put into the project.
The next step is introduction of a robust cost plan.
This captures all of the design activity
and breaks it down elementally
so you get individual budgets
for every construction activity and elements
that we can report against and monitor
as a project progresses.
The next step during the construction phase
and with a cost plan in place,
we can exercise cost control measures
to ensure the budget is maintained.
And the key activities enable to invoke this
are as follows.
We ensure that the design team
design within the cost plan budgets.
We can produce a cashflow forecast,
which helps with funding
and the client is aware of their own personal finances.
We can give regular updates so the client knows
where he or she is at any given point in time.
We can undertake change control process
that is disciplined and invoke financial control.
And also, it's really important, is managing risk.
The early indication of what risks are financially
gives the employer time to manage that risk,
mitigate the risk or even eliminate it.
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So a question that's often asked is,
why do we need a cost manager?
I'd like to think I've explained that previously
with the words I've spoken, but for me,
the most important factor is that the client knows
exactly where they are financially
at any given point in time of the project.
No client likes surprises at the end of the project.
It's frustrating to have cost overruns,
but equally there's no merit in being under budget
at the end because it's missed opportunity for the client
to invest elsewhere or develop further the project.
So robust and financial discipline
through the life of the project means
the client knows exactly where they are
at any given point in time.
Another important factor as to why you need a cost manager,
is that you have the confidence
that you're getting value for money
for every part and element of the project
that you're expending on.
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A question you may be asking yourself is,
does a cost manager have to be a member of the RICS?
Strictly speaking, no.
There are lots of other credible professional institutes
that they may be a member of, such as the CIOB.
But what's great about the RICS
is you get the comfort blanket of knowing
that we're professionally accredited
and there's certain levels of service level
and ethical practice that can be assured of
for your project.
Also you benefit from our unrivaled privileges
in terms of market data, benchmarking and cost indices,
which when applied to your project,
so you know you're getting value for money
and you get an accurate reporting.
Furthermore,
you benefit from our continued professional development
and ongoing training,
which assures you that we are at the forefront
of the industry.
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Amongst some of the questions
that you may ask a cost manager,
and the questions we're often asked
by a prospective client is,
we're paying you a fee,
what value for money do we get for that fee?
Again I'd like to think I've answered that question
through the other narrative I've given,
but at the end of the day,
financial control can pay you tenfold
what you're paying in fee.
You know where you are, you get value for money.
And I think it's a really wise investment
to appoint a cost manager to your project.
Furthermore,
we're also asked is,
how does your relevant experience
align to my project and its objectives?
I mean, you can get massive range of projects.
You can get cost managers who do a hundred million pound
rail infrastructure works to a 300,000 pound home extension.
So it is a valid question,
and we demonstrate through case studies,
live reporting and also customer testimonials,
how we can align our skillset to your project
and reward the benefits that's expected of us.
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- So I really hope you found value in this video.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
And we really look forward to hearing from you.
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