Quantity surveyors are expected to manage a large number of documents and notes relating to building projects, while continually travelling between various working locations. The role is primarily making sure that projects come in on time and under budget. It is also essential that building regulations are adhered to, and so they must have a thorough understanding of this matter, and how its going to affect any particular project.
A quantity surveyor might find themselves working onsite, with a client, at their own firm, or with legal professionals preparing contract documentation. All of these activities go towards evaluating the final cost of a new building, including materials, labour and administration.
The documentation that needs to be drawn up and recorded can range from bills of quantities, feasibility studies, progress reports and forms relating to health and safety regulations. All of these must be written to exacting standards, and read and understood by the relevant parties, including clients, contractors, lawyers, administrators and construction staff.
To streamline this process, construction firms may seek to identify and assign tasks to surveyors based on their expertise and location. They may need somebody on a building site at 9 am, then somebody else to meet with clients at 11, and then draw up contracts with lawyers at 12. Modern smartphones and tablets speed up this process, allowing everybody involved to communicate via email and SMS, while also sending and storing documents digitally.
SwiftCase is a cloud-based case management software solution that helps quantity surveyors free up more time and resources, leading to increased productivity in their day to day work. Cases and their component tasks are created and recorded in a system accessible to anyone with a desktop computer, tablet or smartphone online through an easy to use interface.
Surveyors can be allocated tasks automatically, based on their postcode location, hours available and relevant expertise. Users can choose their own coverage areas and timeslots to work. When a task requires a surveyor to be in a particular place at a given time, the system will send an SMS message to the most appropriate staff member informing them of the job. The recipient can then accept or decline, attending the task or letting the system allocate another surveyor. When one particular task is complete, the system automatically moves on to the next relevant stage in a case.
The many documents involved in quantity surveying can be scanned, sent, securely stored against a particular case and then accessed by anyone in the system with the permission to do so. Staff have convenient access to what they need, but won’t see anything they don’t have permission to.
By automating various processes and keeping clear records of cases and tasks, SwiftCase can make your quantity surveying workflow more streamlined, reducing your administration expenses and the overall time spent organising the costing of a building project. If you would like to take advantage of our cloud-based case management solution, get in touch today.