Quantity Surveyors harp on effective regulation, service delivery –

Effective regulatory framework has been assured by the Nigeria Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) to ensure professionalism and effective service delivery.

The assurance was given on Monday by the national president of the Institute, Mercy T. Iyortyer, while delivering an opening address at the institute’s third research conference at Zaranda Hotel in Bauchi.

Mercy stated that the conference, with the theme: ‘Confluence of Research, Theory and Practice in the Built environment’ was aimed at undertaking research into project development cycle saying that ‘availing such‎ information to its members is a fundamental objective of the institute’.

She said the research conferences which began in 2013 are also targeted at stimulating debates and discussions between researchers and practitioners as well as a basis for new areas of research in Quantity Survey and the construction industry.

“This conference will provide an avenue for the academia to interact with the practitioners. It will enhance capacity development for both groups. It will also provide sufficient opportunities for our members especially those in the academia to present papers. Together we can seek for ways to adopt the findings of research as means of growing the profession and promoting our influence,”she explained.

Delivering a paper titled ‘Exploring Current and Future Roles of Quantity Surveyors In Nigerian Construction: Significance Of Education, Training And Research’ Abba Bello Ingawa observed that there is need for constant innovation and Research by quantity surveyors for them to be relevant.

According to Inqawa, “the traditional Quantity Surveyor is lagging behind the current and future anticipated needs of practising Quantity Surveyors ‎for them to be at the frontier of the knowledge required to improve business opportunities and services offered to clients of the built environment.”

He explained that a modern Quantity Surveyor provides an alternative through provision of better Cost and value management and project management and other services.

He added that “in reality, the Quantity Surveyor uses his technical function to create tools such as cost plans, bills of quantities, cost control models, life cycle costing and others”.