Estimation and costing are the vital aspects of every construction project

Estimation and Costing are the significant aspects of construction management. Whether you are a property owner or a contractor, you need to have a precise and exact forecast of how much a building project will cost and how long it will take to complete the project. Learn in-depth the cost estimation in the construction process, best practices, pitfalls for construction estimator.

ESTIMATION AND COSTING: THE BASICS AND BEYOND

Overview

What’s it about?

Every building has its price whereas accurate forecasting the cost of future projects is an essential skill for civil engineers and cost estimators. This course focuses on approaches to estimating costs and schedules for any project. You will be preparing for the various project areas that must be evaluated, the tools and the methodologies best suited for the estimates. Also, recognize the importance of effective estimating throughout the project management lifecycle.

Objective

The aim of this course:

• Understand the Sensitivity of estimates
• Basic spreadsheet based estimating
• Types of resources used in projects
• Cost estimating techniques
• Establishing cost budgets
• Revision of cost budgets
• Identifying cost control requirements
• Effective cost control techniques
• Reporting cost performance progress
• Early identification of deviation from cost budget

Course Design

Who is this course designed for?

• Business owners
• Estimators
• Builders
• Civil Engineers
• Architectural Students
• Construction Professionals
• Project Managers
• Project Coordinators
• Site and Work Managers

Technology

What’s involved?

The technology involved in this course is AutoCAD, Revit, Navisworks, Synchro, Microsoft.

Opportunites

Who can I be after this course?

If you are excited to know what your future could be in this area, below are some potential careers you could consider:

• Construction Estimator
• Cost Estimator
• Project Manager

Source: https://nibt.education/elearning/courses/83-estimating-and-costing

Techniques used for approximate construction estimation and costing

Construction cost estimation is the conjecture of the price of a program, project, or operation. The budget is the product of the estimating and costing process. Also, the cost estimate has a single total value and may have identifiable element values.

The cost estimation is the tool to decide. In case of commercial projects, you can check the net income earned justifies the money spent or not.

Primarily, the practical experience and cost of comparable works help in preparing approximate cost estimation. Further, a report accompanies the construction cost estimation by correctly describing requirement and efficiency of the project, with a site plan or layout.

Techniques of Estimated Construction Cost Estimation Preparation

Most noteworthy, the following are the processes in use for the preparation of approximate construction cost estimation:

1. Plinth area method
2. Cubical contents method
3. Unit base method

• Plinth area method:

The definition of the construction’s value is multiplying plinth area with plinth area rate. So, the area we get by multiplying length and breadth (outer dimensions of a building) is the value.

In determining the plinth area rate, accurate observation and necessary inquiries are done concerning quality and quantity perspective of materials and labor, type of foundation, the height of a building, roof, woodwork, fixtures, number of storeys, etc.

• Cubical Contents Method:

Multi-storeyed buildings usually use this technique. The estimation of construction cost is almost as the entire cubical contents (Volume of buildings) multiplied by Local Cubic Rate.  We obtain the volume of the building by multiplying length x breadth x depth or height.

• Unit Base Method:

According to this method, the cost of the structure is defined by multiplying the total number of units with a unit rate of each item. Therefore, the unit rate estimated by dividing the actual expense incurred or cost of related building in the nearby region by the number of units.

Hence, cost estimation is the technique of calculating or computing the various quantities and the expected expenditure to be incurred on a particular work or project.

Need for estimation and costing

• Cost estimation gives an idea of the work, and hence it’s feasible and can determine, whether the funds available are sufficient to practice a project or not.
• Cost estimation gives a sense of the time required for the completion of the work.
• Estimation and costing needed to control the expenses during the execution of the work.

Course design

Every building has its price whereas accurate forecasting of the cost of future projects is an essential skill for civil engineers and cost estimators.  Therefore, this course focuses on approaches to cost estimation and schedules for any project.

The course is specially designed for

• Business owners
• Estimators
• Builders
• Civil Engineers
• Architectural Students
• Construction Professionals
• Project Managers
• Project Coordinators
• Site and Work Managers

Opportunities

There is a vast opportunity in future. Therefore NIBT is imparting the course and the knowledge to you and helping you to make a potential career.

Afterwards, you could find yourself as an Expert Construction Estimator, Expert Cost Estimator or Project Manager.

The Benefits and the Advantages of Estimation and Costing are

Estimation and costing and valuation are a vital part of civil engineering. Estimation and costing help us to estimate the entire cost of construction, and after that, the engineer receives a  certain percentage of the project cost.

• Cost Estimation helps us in evaluating the number of materials, labor needed for work.
• Cost Estimation Tells us the approximate amount of materials, labor required. Estimation and costing give us the estimated overall cost of the building.
• Estimation and costing also give us details of materials, reinforcements, etc., which helps in the smooth procurement of materials.
• It gives an approximate timeline of which work is necessary and urgent.
• Estimation and costing or Valuation helps in understanding market rates and estimating the market value of a particular property.

Conclusion

Adopting an approach, as per the principles of financial management is a must. Where assets get the design as per the reliability in estimation and costing, it proves beneficial in future.

Hence, using estimation and costing methods of whole life cycle costing, ensuring accuracy in assessment of quantities, efficiency in the prediction of rates can make significant savings over the life of the assets and making a correct decision, should be adopted by all quality surveyors.

Evolution of 5D BIM For Quantity Surveyors

Quantity Surveyors are the construction industry professional’s expertise in construction costs and contracts. Are you one of them? Do you have a skill of Quantity Surveying? Or Estimating? Want to upgrade your knowledge in this evolving construction industry? Well, all your answers are with us. Read the complete article, and we are sure it will lead towards your career path. 

Introduction

In this ever-changing disruptive world of construction, BIM also known as Building Information Modeling has marked its presence and is evolving with new construction trends each passing day. The Designers, Architects, and many construction professionals have embraced BIM and are successfully generating 3D models by using the BIM process. Also, the Quantity Surveyors/ Estimators are hearing about BIM more and more but are not aware of how BIM is relevant to them? What is 5D in BIM process and how it is going to be beneficial for Quantity Surveyors? Let’s gets started with what 5D BIM is and what are its benefits?

Before that let’s take a quick look on: 

Who are Quantity, Surveyors?

While completing the building project, there needs the help from many construction professionals including Architects, Designers, Contractors, Estimators, etc. The person who is responsible for figuring out what a construction project is going to cost is known as Quantity Surveyors (QS). These experts have other roles too, especially making sure about the overall management of complete construction cost of a project. 

Quantity Surveyors prepare a ‘schedule of quantities’ that is, they develop the estimation of material and labor costs.

The other names for peoples employed with quantity surveying qualifications are an estimator, Cost Engineer, Cost Manager, Cost Analyst, Project Coordinator and Cost Planner. 

Are you passionate to become a Quantity Surveyor? Let’s overview the role of Quantity Surveyor:

•   Managing and scheduling the overall construction cost.
•  Working to keep the project in time within the budget.
•   Making sure the construction costs and production are efficiently managed.
•    Help to resolve disputes between contracting parties 

Let’s visualize how 5D BIM would help Quantity Surveyors in the BIM process

Initially, there has been a massive void in the preconstruction and general design process in the construction industry including the cost estimation. While with the onset of new technologies like BIM, the AEC industry has been in the boom. BIM is a brand new way of working, and yes, 5D BIM is helping to fill the void adequately.

What is 5D BIM in construction?

In the BIM process, when you create information, you can add the scheduling data to a different component. Creating the particular program information and visualization showing how your project will develop is termed as 4D BIM modeling. The next step is to develop accurate cost evaluation from the components of the information model termed as 5D BIM.

The 5D BIM is helpful in generating proper budget tracking as well as cost analysis. The fifth dimension (5D BIM) is associated with the 3D and 4D (time) recognizes the stakeholders and participants to envision the progress of their operations and related cost-over-time.

Benefits of 5D BIM

•  Helps people to work in collaboration to make the model productive and thus improve the quality of the project.
•  Helps in pointing out the design details with more clarity and facilitates the analysis capability of the model.
• Increases the ability to resolve RFI’s in real-time.
• 5D BIM boosts the visualization of projects such as construction details.
•   Helps in diagnosing potential risks at an earlier phase so that the team can improve clashes in design stage itself.

With the application of 5D BIM in the construction, users can notice greater accuracy and predictability of project estimates, changes in scope, equipment or workforce changes. 5D BIM provides various methods for extracting and determining costs and evaluating scenarios.

So, if you are planning to enhance your skills and want to get upgraded then here is a fantastic course designed especially for the Engineering students and construction professionals and for those who have the knack of management techniques in various phases of the project. 

NIBT eLearning

With NIBT (National Institute of Building technology) have recognized the need of Quantity Surveyors and has come up with an excellent course where you can learn and understand the benefits of 5D BIM and how 5D is helpful to the quantity surveyors during the preconstruction phase.

The primary objective of this course is:

• Understanding of 5D BIM
•  Learn various tools for 5D BIM
• Benefits of 5D BIM

After completing this course, you will have opportunities as BIM Modelers, Cost Estimator, Consultant, Architectural/Construction Professional.

Sounds interesting? 

Hurry up! Enroll at NIBT eLearning, an excellent portal to learn 5D BIM for quantity surveyors. 

Dive into the sea of knowledge at NIBT, explore various construction trends and become an expert professional by learning 5D BIM for quantity surveyors!