Vol. 67 No. 1 (2021): QS Journal Vol. 67 No. 1
In Nigeria, the menace of quackery has created several problems in professional practices particularly quantity surveying practice. Quackery entails a person pretending publicly or professionally to possess knowledge, skill, credentials or qualifications they do not have. Bamigboye and Dada identified and categorised the parties involved in quackery of quantity surveying services in Nigeria and revealed that the allied construction professionals (such as engineers, architects, builders and estate surveyors), accountants and contractors are the parties involved in the quackery of quantity surveying services. They recommended that licensed professionals and established professional governing bodies such as the Quantity Surveying Registration Board of Nigeria (QSRBN) and Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) should proactively blow the whistle against unethical practices encountered within the profession, and this will guide against quackery and protect the reputation of the profession.
Arowoiya andAkinradewo examined the training of Quantity Surveyors in cost management of Mechanical and Electrical (M&E) services to uncover the areas of shortcomings. They discovered that four out of the fifteen knowledge areas investigated were not well captured in the curricula of a number of the public tertiary institutions sampled in Nigeria. Thus they counselled academic institutions and the professional body (NIQS) to take into serious consideration these insufficiently captured areas of M&E when reviewing the academic program of Quantity Surveying.
The dearth of trust between Quantity Surveyors (QSs) and other project stakeholders is inhibiting their ability to mitigate wastes and create value in construction processes. Also, the existence of harsh conditions between the contractor's QSs, the other key stakeholders and the client has encouraged the promotion of 'selfinterest' to the level of hampering effective cost management of construction projects through collaborative efforts. Therefore, Mobolaji studied how to achieve effective cost management of construction project through collaborative efforts of the Quantity Surveyors and other stakeholders in design and production processes. The study revealed some of the barriers and opportunities for the Quantity Surveyors, and other construction stakeholders going into collaborative practice, and also recommended a new integrated model that can be harnessed by Quantity Surveyors to overcome their relational challenges.
The implementation of risk management strategies permits effective management of anticipated outcome which can positively or negatively impact the decision maker. Leo-Olagbaye and Odeyinka assessed the risk management strategies adopted in the delivery of road projects in Osun State. They disclosed that project managers employ different risk management strategies in road projects and highlighted these strategies.Also, they identified the risk management strategy which project managers least preferred. They recommended that risk management vocational training and workshops be organised regularly because this will impart upcoming professionals with the knowledge that will assist in the management of risk in the study area.
Salla, Musa-Haddary, Kolo and Gandu appraised the mediating role of project environment on the Influence of construction firms' attributes on project success. Their results indicated fitness for an established model and also uncovered how the impact of the intrinsic attribute of firms on project success is mediated by the project environment. They recommended that the competitive intelligence and social networks of construction firms should be prioritized by front-end decision makers on public construction projects when carrying out due diligence on potential firms at tender.
Payment for goods, works and services have remained a combative issue in commercial contracts globally. To a great extent, this can be explained as a consequence of problems surrounding untimely payment and their resultant effect on cash flow. Olatunji, Ogunsemi, Odeyinka and Ogunlana surveyed the challenges linked to untimely payment to develop a framework that will facilitate effective payment and subsequently improve construction project performance. They appraised the effectiveness of the developed framework to resolve the untimely payment problem such as cost and time overruns, unnecessary claims, etc. The study admonished government participants to adopt this framework as it will enhance the delivery of public projects through the satisfaction of contractors.
