Consultants on construction projects

In the construction industry, the term ‘professional consultant’ is used to describe the large number of professionals who provide services on or in connection with construction projects. See Practice Note: Roles of professional consultants—construction projects. These consultants are involved at all stages of the construction process, from inception to completion and beyond. Many are involved in design whereas others provide other professional services such as supervision, monitoring and testing. Some are heavily involved from start to finish and others only have a limited role at a particular stage of a project. On most large construction projects, the same principal consultants will be engaged:

•
architect
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structural or civil engineer
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building services engineer or mechanical and electrical engineer
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quantity surveyor or cost consultant
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project manager or employer's agent

There are usually also a number of other consultants who will be appointed to carry out more minor roles, such as landscape architects, highways engineers, acoustic engineers etc. However, as these consultants provide specialist services they will not be required on every project.

The professional team is usually initially appointed by the

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