Senior Cost Planner / Estimator

Key Responsibilities

• Bidding and Strategy: A champion of transparency must seek to understand the broader development/project context and bring design and build solutions that help achieve successful outcomes for Bovis. Responsible for setting and establishing the cost planning strategy and timeframes and assessing resource requirements for agreement by Management. Ensure that other disciplines such as Project Management, Procurement, Design Management, Planning, Legal, Insurance, Construction and Commercial Management are providing the appropriate input into the cost planning process. Ensure cost plan compliance with the brief/authority/financiers/customer requirements during the conversion stage.
• Governance: Ensure all required peer and manager reviews are completed prior to Bovis governance gateways. Attain cost plan endorsement by Cost Planning Director. Responsible for all inputs into the cost sections of the relevant governance review documentation. Ensure internal governance process is robust with independent input on cost management. Production of documents for Management reviews at required milestones in accordance with Bovis Governance. Present cost plans at Commitment/Business Unit Reviews.
• Cost Planning: Able to accurately quantify and price cost plans from Development Briefs/Feasibility stage through to Contract Price with preferred contractor. In collaboration with the commercial team, secure market prices for trade packages and analyse against cost plan allowances. Ability to price on a Labour, Plant and Materials basis from first principles is desirable but not essential. Accurate forecasting of current trade rates. Preparation, review and analysis of Preliminaries for first and second stage bids including producing standard preliminaries in accordance with the proposed bid strategy. Incorporate implications of programming requirements, methodology, phasing, logistics etc. Take off quantities using information ranging from RIBA Stage 0/1 to RIBA Stage 4. Management of external consultants (EQ Bill of Quants Consultancy), including initial engagement, appointment, issue of information, quality control, and ensuring submission and return in line with the programme. Negotiate with sub-contractors/assess sub-contractor proposals.
• Design and Cost Control: Manage and input into the developing design in accordance with the cost plan. Responsible for proactively participating in design workshops to develop the concept through particular design challenges or value engineering to ensure there is consistent appreciation for the priorities of needs vs wants and challenging the status quo. Support project teams with change control and major variations (during conversion and delivery). Maintain a “Running Sheet” of changes to inform cost shifts between design milestones. “Design to Cost” - Challenge the project and design teams to design efficiently and within the cost plan. Continually analyse the design against the cost plan assumptions, design brief/target design metrics and benchmark projects. Assess design options and provide guidance on their viability to the project team. Act early in identifying opportunities to optimise the design to minimise abortive design work. Support project teams in the evaluation of commercial risks. Make an assessment of the risk and opportunity within the design to allow you to include an appropriate allowance for contingency. Take into account the contract conditions together with their impact, i.e. warranties, insurance, bonding, design and construction implications etc. Actively contribute to the team’s delivery to the Bovis Global Minimum Requirements (GMRs) of safety during conversion including active contributions to the Risk.