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Thu March 28 2024

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New route to RICS membership

26 Nov 13 The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has launched a new professional qualification for infrastructure professionals.

The new assessment of professional competence (APC) pathway is the first route to membership and chartered surveyor status for those in the infrastructure sector looking for specific recognition of their skills in delivery of infrastructure projects.

Vinci Construction UK is among the first companies to back the qualification and is encouraging all its quantity surveyors to enrol.

It is also RICS’ first APC pathway to be launched since January 2011 when the valuation of business and intangible assets pathway was introduced.

The new professional qualification is intended to provide a seal of quality to employers and clients, indicating that holders of the qualification are certified as having the standards and skills required to deliver infrastructure projects. 

RICS director of built environment Alan Muse said: “There is growing pressure on governments and private companies to deliver an increasing number of crucial infrastructure projects on time and in budget. This is particularly true in the UK where much of the existing transport, energy, water and wastage services are in dire need of addressing, not to mention the mounting pressure on the government to successfully deliver HS2.

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“It is vital that professionals with the correct specialised skills are employed on infrastructure projects if these targets are to be reached. We have therefore launched the Built Infrastructure Pathway to assess the ability of practitioners at any career stage working in this discipline. It will provide a clear indication of skill-level for both private and public sector bodies through the achievement of an RICS professional qualification. This will in turn provide those qualified with a competitive advantage when applying for infrastructure roles.”

The competencies and core skills covered by RICS’ built infrastructure pathway include general project and cost management from project inception to completion, including project finance, building information modelling (BIM), infrastructure technology and asset management.

Jim McCluskey FRICS, senior commercial manager at Taylor Woodrow Construction, part of Vinci Construction UK, said: “Through its new qualification, RICS offers infrastructure professionals a much needed culmination of the latest sector knowledge and techniques, filling a gap in the market. This is the primary reason why I, as senior commercial manager and APC panel chair, actively encourage our QS employees to enrol in the programme.”

Turner & Townsend Infrastructure managing director Murray Rowden added: “Through this pathway, RICS is proactively recognising the need for professionals to have a specific route for the sector. The launch of this pathway will support both the professional development of the individual practicing in an asset management and major projects environment, but also the profession as a whole in developing opportunities in the vast global infrastructure market.”

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