Frequently Asked Questions

What is a 'Quantity Surveyor'?
What is "FECA"?
What is "UCA"?
What is "GFA"?
What is a "Cost Plan"?
What is "TEC"?
What is "TCC"?
What is a "Bill of Quantities"?
What is "BPI"?
Why would I need a Quantity Surveyor?

What is a 'Quantity Surveyor'?
A Quantity Surveyor typically manages the financial aspects of a building or construction project. Historically the quantity surveyor was responsible for the measurement and scheduling of all materials and works involved in building. Today the role of the quantity surveyor can range from feasibility studies and economic evaluation including determining budgets, forecasting future values and cashflow, as well as accounting for quantities of building materials, estimating the value of future works and monitoring the expenditure, variations and claims during the construction phase of a project.

Some Quantity Surveyors are also involved in management, project management or facilities management, tax depreciation and cost management of events or business operations. A Quantity Surveyor is also sometimes referred to as a Cost Consultant, Cost Engineer or Building Economist in different parts of the world. Most often, the quantity surveyor is simply known as "the QS" in a project team.

What is "FECA"?
FECA. stands for Fully Enclosed Covered Area.

This is the measure of the sum of all such areas at each building floor levels, including basements (except unexcavated portions), floored roof spaces and attics, garages, penthouses, enclosed porches and attached enclosed covered ways alongside buildings, equipment rooms, lift shafts, vertical ducts, staircase and any other fully enclosed spaces and useable floor areas of the building.

This is calculated by measuring from the normal inside face of exterior walls (ie excluding the wall thickness) but ignoring any projections such as plinths, columns, piers and the like which project from the normal inside face of exterior walls.

Unit of measurement : Square metres ( m²)

What is "UCA"?
UCA stands for Unenclosed Covered Area.

This is the measure of the sum of all such areas at each building floor level, including roofed balconies, open verandahs, porches and porticos, attached open covered ways alongside buildings, undercrofts and useable space under buildings, unenclosed access galleries (including ground floor) and any other trafficable covered areas of the building which are not totally enclosed by full height walls.

This is calculated by measuring the area between the enclosing walls or balustrade (inside face excluding the wall or balustrade thickness). Measurement is taken to the edge of the paving or the edge of the cover (whichever is the lesser) when the covering element is supported by columns.

Unit of measurement : Square metres ( m²)

What is "GFA"?
GFA stands for Gross Floor Area.

This is the measure of the sum of the "Fully Enclosed Covered Area" FECA (see above) and the "Unenclosed Covered Area" UCA (see above).

Unit of measurement : Square metres ( m²)

What is a "Cost Plan"?
A Cost Plan is a document prepared by a QS which describes all of the cost aspects of a project including forecasts or estimates of the likely total project cost. The Cost Plan is prepared based on the relevant design documentation (plans and specification) supplied by the Architect, Structural, Civil and Services Engineers, as well as the Project Manager and Client. It normally includes a cashflow projection of the anticipated project expenditure as well as a commentary on various likely items of risk.

The Cost Plan normally includes a schedule of all major building components required for the project including associated quantities, rates and costs or allowances for unresolved components. These components are grouped into various elements of a building such as External Walls, Windows, Doors and Fitments. These elements are then summarised into the headings Shell, Fitout, Services, Site works and External Services. The Cost Plan will also have allowances for Preliminaries, contingency provisions, loose furniture, furnishing & equipment, fees and other design and management costs, future cost escalation, GST, etc.

Just as a project can go through various planning and design stages before construction, so does the Cost Plan. For example separate cost plans are produced at Masterplan stage (Cost Plan A), Feasibility stage (Cost Plan B), Schematic Design stage (Cost Plan C1), Design Development stage (Cost Plan C2) and Contract Documentation stage (Cost Plan D).

Each successive Cost Plan should include a statement which reconciles the changes which have occurred in project scope or price in order to provide a record of any potential or actual budget impacts as well as any strategies for counteracting such impacts.

What is "TEC"?
TEC stands for the Total End Cost value of a project.

The TEC of a project normally includes all committed and forecast costs associated with a project from the design and related consultants, the building and related site works as well as loose furniture and any specialist equipment.

The Total End Cost provides the Client and/or Project Manager with a target amount of likely total expenditure for the project in question. It also includes a provision for future cost escalation and other risk factors both prior to project commitment and during the course of it's development.

What is "TCC"?
TCC stands for the Total Construction Cost value of a project.

The TCC normally includes all committed and forecast costs associated with the building and related site works components of a project.

The TCC is usually the figure against which tender prices are compared. It includes all of the measured elements and allowances referred above (see What is a Cost Plan) including preliminaries and contingencies. The difference between TCC and TEC is that TCC does not include costs associated with equipment, fees and escalation.

What is a "Bill of Quantities"?
A Bill of Quantities is a document containing a detailed schedule of all items of work and the quantities required for a building or other project. It is prepared by a Quantity Surveyor and involves the description and measurement of (several thousand) items translated from documents (drawings and specification) produced by the Architect, Structural, Civil and Services Engineering Consultants as part of the Contract Documentation.

Often referred to as the BQ or BOQ, it may be issued to the tendering contractors for use by them as an aid to the preparation of their tender price. The BQ and its individual quantities and rates can also form a part of the Contract Documents. It establishes a common basis for tender comparison, helps to define the contractual scope of a project and can be used to check and value progress works and variations to the project during construction stage.

The requirement for the Bill of Quantity is often dependent on the size and nature of the project, however is often provided on projects which exceed $3m (TCC) in value.

What is "BPI"?
BPI stands for Building Price Index.

It is a numerical index relative to a base of 100 that reflects fluctuations in building prices and market conditions from a given base date to any other date.

A BPI is used in databases and cost planning in order to adjust any price at a particular date to be equivalent with prices at a different date. It is typically used by program managers and funding authorities as well as quantity surveyors.

Why would I need a Quantity Surveyor?
A Quantity Surveyor can provide independent financial advice for anyone who currently has a project(s) in the property and/or construction sector or have future projects in mind.

They can provide analysis of different options you can have from the Masterplanning stage to setting out budgets and financial implications during design to controlling and auditing the flow of cash during construction.

Some Quantity Surveyors also provide other services such as project management, tax depreciation, recurrent costing, event management, schedule of furniture and fittings, etc.

Source: http://www.padghams.com.au/faq.asp