Quantification and costing (measurement) questions
Measurement is the competency assessors probe most methodically, because it is checkable. Expect specifics: which rules you used, what you did at the edges of them, and how you know your quantities were right. Be ready to be asked why, twice, on the same answer.
Quantification & costing of construction works (measurement)
Measure and quantify works using recognised rules (e.g. NRM2); prepare, issue, price and analyse pricing documents; advise on the method suited to the project. Core to Level 3.
What the assessor is listening for
- That you name the rules you measured under and can say why those rather than others.
- That you can describe what you did where the rules ran out or the design was not there yet.
- That you check your own work, and can say how. A stated checking method is worth more than a claim of accuracy.
- That you understand what the quantities are FOR downstream: pricing, valuation, change, and the final account.
Level 1
Knowledge & understanding - you can explain the principle.
- Which rules of measurement have you worked to, and what do they govern?A strong answer covers: The rules by name, what stage of the cost plan or bill each is written for, and the difference between measuring for an estimate and measuring for a bill of quantities.
- What is a bill of quantities for, and who benefits from it?A strong answer covers: A common basis for competitive tenders, a mechanism for valuing change and interim payments, and a document the contract itself may rely on. Then who carries the risk if it is wrong.
Level 2
Application - you have done it yourself and can describe how.
- Talk me through how you measured a recent element from first principles.A strong answer covers: The information you had, the rule you applied, the units, what you included and deliberately excluded, and the sense-check you ran at the end. Your own work, described in order.
- How do you deal with measuring from an incomplete design?A strong answer covers: Recording the assumption, quantifying the allowance separately so it is visible, flagging it to the design team, and revisiting it as information arrives. The audit trail is the answer.
- How do you check your quantities before they go out?A strong answer covers: The specific checks: an independent take-off on a sample, a benchmark against a comparable rate or ratio, an areas or volumes reconciliation, and a second pair of eyes. Then what you found the last time you did it.
Level 3
Reasoned advice & depth of judgement - you have advised others and can justify decisions and trade-offs.
- You find an error in a bill after tenders have been returned. What do you advise?A strong answer covers: What the tender documents and the contract say happens to errors, the fairness of the process to all tenderers, the options open to the client, and the recommendation with its consequences.
- When would you advise a client against a fully measured bill of quantities?A strong answer covers: The conditions that make it poor value (design maturity, programme, scale, procurement route) and the alternative you would recommend instead, with the risk that moves as a result.
- How does the way you measure change what happens later on change and the final account?A strong answer covers: That the measurement basis fixes how variations get valued and how disputes resolve. A worked instance where a measurement decision made a later valuation straightforward or difficult.
How candidates lose this one
Describing the software rather than the method. The panel is testing your judgement, not your model.
Quantities asserted in a case study that cannot be justified under questioning. Assessors go straight to the figures you put in writing.
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