Year 11 students were asked to consider the role of the quantity surveyor in a workshop led by Soben, one of our newest Digital Futures partners.
The Introduction to Quantity Surveying workshop, which took place on 4 November, kicked off with representatives from Soben talking to the students about the vital role of a quantity surveyor within a data centre lifecycle.
“Quantity surveying is vital in any construction project as we are the custodians of cost, which is often a key driver for investment, buildability and commercial viability,” explained Max Elswood, project director at Soben, who led the session.
The workshop required the students to consider measurement, cost planning and value engineering when they were asked to measure the floor areas of a (fictional) data centre building, while highlighting the differences in floor finishes. A scenario was then set by Soben, whereby the project was over budget, with the students asked to consider which cost saving option was most suitable.
These exercises gave the students a chance to work with technology and raised some challenging questions.
They next investigated some of the attributes that make a good quantity surveyor, including some of the softer skills needed to build relationships and handle challenging conversations in a project environment – such as the ability to negotiate around cost savings, striking the balance between cost, quality and time.
The session finished with a discussion about writing a good CV, highlighting hobbies, or work experience.
Thank you to Lewis Kyriacou, Max Elswood and Robert McQueen from Soben for delivering such an engaging workshop. Soben is the only partner within the Digital Futures Programme teaching this particular discipline, adding to the rich content of our unique curriculum bespoke to the data services industry.
