1.

5 Services Quantity Surveying

Quantity Surveyor is known as a Construction Economist, or Cost Manager which is
one of a team of professional advisers to the construction industry. They estimate construction
costs from the beginning stage of a project through to the completion of the construction period.
This is measured from architectural drawings, to be used by contractors for tendering. At
feasibility stage quantity surveyors use their knowledge of construction methods and costs to
advise the owner on the most economical way of achieving their requirements. Quantity
surveyors may use techniques such as Cost Planning, Cost Estimating, Cost Analysis and Value
Management to calculate a project budget. In construction industry, a cost plan is used as a way
of controlling estimated costs during the design and construction period of a project. Cost
estimate is the estimated cost of a project. The cost estimate is the important process in
construction process because it give an approximation cost to clients so that they know how
much it cost. Cost analysis is a critical process in construction projects. Cost analysis is far
more important as effectiveness of cost analysis in the contract will determine not only the
budget of the project but also the profitability for an organization. Value Management is a
structured framework that facilitates effective decision making the Best Value (Aiqs, 2010)

Market Structure: Pure competition

Justification: Quantity surveyors firm has provide services such as cost analysis, cost
estimate, value management, cost planning and others. Example for the Quantity Surveying
firm is Unitech QS Consultancy Sdn. Bhd, Kuantibina Sdn. Bhd, Northcroft Sdn. Bhd, JUB
Qs Sdn Bhd and others.(Study, 2013)
These firm have same similarity which is categories as pure competition. Pure
competition is a term that describes a market that has a broad range of competitors who are
selling the same products or giving the same services. According to Board of Quantity
Surveyors Malaysia, in 2016 there is more than 1000 Quantity Surveyors firm provide services
in Malaysia. This show that QS firm is a pure competition as it has more than 100 firm in
Malaysia.According to my research Qs firm is a price taker as they have to follow the market
price and can exert no influence on price.Each firm has to follow the professional fee fix by
professional body when provide services to clients.If they do not follow the market price,
clients will go to another Qs firm which is follow the market price. In pure competition, each
firm have standardizes services or product. They also provide the same services to clients such
as value determination, cost consulting, risk management and calculation, tender analysis and
agreement of the contract sum and others. If they don't have standardized services or product,
they might change from pure competition to oligopoly or they will lose some clients. According
to the Broad Of Quantity surveyors Malaysia, Qs firm has no legal barrier. Therefore, these
firm can free entry and exit. If there is legal barrier, government is the one that give license to
company. There are no significant barriers that prevent firms from entering or leaving the
industry. So that new companies can easily enter or leaving the market. (Investopia, 2009)
Reference:
Study, 2013.Pure Competition Definition Characteristics Examples [Online]
Available at: http://study.com/academy/lesson/pure-competition-definition-
characteristics-examples.html [Accessed 24 Mar 2017]
Aiqs, 2010. What Is Qs [Online] Available at:
http://www.aiqs.com.au/imis/aiqs_website/about/what_is_a_qs_/aiqs_website/about/
what_is_a_qs_.aspx?hkey=75 [Accessed 24 Mar 2017]
Designing building, 2012 What Is Qs [online] Available at:
https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/w/index.php?title=Special%3ASearch&search
=what+is+qs&title=Special%3ASearch&redirs=1[Accessed 24 Mar 2017]
Investopia, 2009 [online]
Available at: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/perfectcompetition.asp [Accessed
24 Mar 2017]