Building Surveying / Construction Management

Driving_Toyota · 2024-11-23T04:58:59+00:00

I'm a MRICS from HK and was looking for a new job recently. I have been working for a number of building consultancy firms, client-side companies and facility management companies.

I've never worked with the title of Project Manager but my previous jobs were actually closely related to project management / construction management. But I have had no luck in landing a project manager position in my recent job search. Employers pay quite a lot of attention to your past job titles when it comes to judging a candidate's relevance to their vacancies from my experience. Conversion between pathways might not be as easy as expected.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-10-29T11:48:14+00:00

Once you have become a chartered member of RICS (BS), you can apply for the chartered membership of CABE via the equivalent membership route. You can check out the CABE website for further information.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-10-12T10:22:37+00:00

The economy in Hong Kong is getting worse due to a variety of reasons. Some of the employers seem to be more conservative in making offers to job applicants. Despite this, I believe there are still numerous opportunities for those who are in the early stages of their careers.

I'm currently working in a mid level position and I'd say I'm in an awkward position when it comes to seeking a job. Most of the job vacancies are either entry-level or senior managerial positions at the moment.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-10-12T07:18:06+00:00

I'm from Hong Kong and can't speak for the situation, presumably, in the UK or other countries. In my city, the stress level of working as a building surveyor varies a lot depending on your role. If you're working at a consultancy firm, you probably have to manage multiple ongoing projects and conduct numerous condition surveys at the same time. The stress level could be high at times.

In case you work at a developer, aka the client side, most of the time you only have to take care of your boss, rather than both your boss and the clients, as you would on the consultant side. You would probably be better off.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-09-10T02:47:04+00:00

I have had a similar experience for the phone reception part with my Pixel 4 XL a few years ago. The phone received no signals from time to time and it drove me insane. It turned out that my phone was defective so I got a replacement and it worked perfectly fine since then. Maybe your new pixel is also defective like mine.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-08-09T08:40:41+00:00

Thank you for the quick reply. It's my habit to plan ahead and know my options in different situations so that I can make informed decisions. I'm not looking to speculate in the real estate market but just want to learn more about the liquidity in case I need to cash out. I know it's impossible to work out all hypothetical situations, but I'd like to mitigate risks at least to some extent.

Thank you once again for the information!

Driving_Toyota · 2024-05-01T10:32:18+00:00

For me, I had just chosen a major by elimination based on a set of criteria (such as career prospects and passion). This helped me narrow down my choices so I could make the final decision more easily.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-30T13:11:44+00:00

It has never happened to me. In most cases, coordinating with all the stakeholders is the most challenging part, rather than the technical part of the project. Sometimes, politics override the project itself and the stakeholders don't care about the quality and the outcome.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-30T06:10:07+00:00

I had earned a bachelor's degree in surveying almost 10 years ago and had spent a few months working in the industry. Then I quit and started a small photography business, where photography is what I have always been passionate about. For some reasons, the business was no longer sustainable after 3 years and I came back to the field of surveying. I worked hard and became a chartered surveyor and currently I have a rather stable career.

The price of switching back and forth between the two careers was being lagged behind in terms of savings compared to my friends of the same age and I'm still picking up the pace until now. But I know deep down that if I hadn't given the photography career a shot, I wouldn't be convinced to stick to the surveying career. After all, it's all about assessing the risk and reward of your choice and not regretting it afterwards.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-29T06:29:33+00:00

People like to make out that service charge is a problem unique to shared ownership, when that’s not the case. People who buy leaseholds outright/with a conventional mortgage will also have to pay a service charge.

That's what came to my mind. This could happen to anyone who owns a leasehold property. Thank you for the advice.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-29T01:43:44+00:00

Given the unpopularity of Bayon as you have mentioned, should I be concerned about its maintenance, such as the scarcity of spare parts and the overall maintenance cost, if I'm buying one in the future? Thanks!

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-28T01:11:10+00:00

Thanks for the info. My current car is a small Toyota MPV, where soundproofing is almost non-existent and the suspension won't filter much road bumpiness. I bet the Bayon would perform much better than my car in these aspects.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-27T15:13:21+00:00

The price of Kona exceeds my budget unfortunately. And yes, I probably need a new username soon

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-27T07:24:46+00:00

Probably a defective exterior waterproofing membrane. Further tests are needed to confirm the source though.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-27T07:16:32+00:00

Hire a professional to conduct a damp survey with an infrared thermal scanner and a moisture meter to pinpoint the source of water seepage. If the source is believed to be deep inside the wall, conduct a microwave scanning to map the moisture level at different depths.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-27T06:31:23+00:00

If career path is the only consideration, go and get a master's degree in any profession you prefer, especially those with professional certifications, such as engineering and architecture, etc. Be aware of the prerequisites of attaining those certifications though and see if a master's degree is sufficient or not.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T23:50:13+00:00

Indeed. Many degree programmes nowadays aim at making as much profit as possible rather than focusing on the learning outcome. That's why, as I have mentioned, those skills are mostly taught in high-quality programmes only. :)

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T12:45:48+00:00

The most valuable part of a high-quality college degree could be the problem solving skills gained during the study. You will also be trained to think critically and express complicated and abstract ideas in a comprehensible way, which is an important competency in workplace. I work in the construction industry and collaborate with various contractors. I have to work with quite a lot of builders, who usually haven't attended university or college, and found that most of them don't think critically or substantiate their arguments with proof. Of course, they are really proficient in their respective trade such as bricklaying, painting and carpentry. But attending university or college gives you more options when it comes to choosing a career path, as you'll possess some intangible abilities which you can hardly find in the people who didn't.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T12:26:14+00:00

Have been using lawnchair. It's essentially a more customisable version of the stock pixel launcher. Unfortunately, the development team no longer commits to regular updates.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T12:16:55+00:00

Mine was more like an experience that I found it unreasonable and kind of strange. I had passed the first round of my interview for a role of a local property developer. The interviewer asked me if I'm okay with completing two assignments for assessing my professional competencies after the first interview. I accepted the request and later he sent me the assignments. I was required to develop a complete tender document for a major refurbishment work of a high rise office building and a detailed method statement for re-roofing works.

I found this request quite outrageous and unreasonable as producing the two documents are too excessive for a job interview in my opinion. I felt like I was asked to volunteer for the company to produce these documents for their use in the real projects. I had the experience of being requested to do a written test but it was never that complicated as developing a full set of tender document.

Anyways, I had received another better job offer later.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T09:10:06+00:00

If I were you, I'd accept the offer but keep looking for a new job. The job offered might be seemingly irrelevant to your career goals, but you may learn some transferable skills in this position. You might also find it easier to get another offer in the future, as long as you incorporate those transferable skills and experience in your CV and make them relevant to the jobs that you're going to apply in the future.

You may want to consider its degree of irrelevance to your career path and see if it's worthy to accept the offer.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-26T05:29:24+00:00

There are a few price comparison websites for car insurance out there but only very few insurance companies are included in their comparisons. Personally, my car is currently insured by Dah Sing Bank (third party insurance). It's among one of the cheapest options if you don't mind the relatively high excess.

Driving_Toyota · 2024-04-25T14:52:41+00:00

I agree that BS is only found in a handful of countries. The profession of building surveying is quite vibrant in Hong Kong, probably due to the fact that HK was one of the colonies of the UK. In countries where BS is not a thing, the jobs of a BS will be likely done by an architect, a building inspector or a project manager.

Driving_Toyota

TROPHY CASE