Quantity surveyor to installation engineer
A quantity surveyor already meets 25% of what the installation engineer role asks for. The move turns on 12 required skills not yet in the profile.
72.9/ 100
1 How much of what an installation engineer is expected to do is already part of a quantity surveyor’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the installation engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An installation engineer role treats 6 of its required skills as things a quantity surveyor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- construction industry
- cost management
- ensure compliance with construction project deadline
- oversee construction project
- project management
- quality standards
What stands in the way is 12 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 7 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An installation engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a quantity surveyor background worth leading with.
- already held construction industry engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held oversee construction project management skills
- already held ensure compliance with construction project deadline management skills
- already held cost management business, administration and law
- already held project management business, administration and law
- already held quality standards business, administration and law
All 7 carried skills, including the 6 the installation engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 32 missing skills fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn engineering processes required
- still to learn construction methods required
- still to learn engineering principles required
- optional, not held components of air conditioning systems optional
- optional, not held domestic heating systems optional
- optional, not held heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration parts optional
- optional, not held industrial heating systems optional
- optional, not held technical drawings optional
- optional, not held ventilation systems optional
- still to learn perform risk analysis required
- still to learn perform scientific research required
- still to learn record test data required
- optional, not held assess project resource needs optional
- optional, not held report test findings optional
- still to learn work in a construction team required
- still to learn troubleshoot required
- optional, not held design process optional
- optional, not held react to events in time-critical environments optional
- still to learn construction product regulation required
- still to learn project management principles required
- optional, not held continuous improvement philosophies optional
- still to learn follow health and safety procedures in construction required
- optional, not held manage health and safety standards optional
- optional, not held use safety equipment in construction optional
- still to learn perform project management required
- optional, not held provide improvement strategies optional
- optional, not held supervise staff optional
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an installation engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 construction product regulation study this
- 02 engineering processes study this
- 03 work in a construction team practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 7 skills that carry over
- already held construction industry knowledge
- already held cost management knowledge
- already held ensure compliance with construction project deadline skill
- already held oversee construction project skill
- already held project management knowledge
- already held quality standards knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held use technical drawing software optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held communication optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
20 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assess project resource needs optional
- optional, not held components of air conditioning systems optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
- optional, not held communication optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held continuous improvement philosophies optional
- optional, not held design process optional
- optional, not held domestic heating systems optional
- optional, not held heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration parts optional
- optional, not held industrial heating systems optional
- optional, not held manage health and safety standards optional
- optional, not held provide improvement strategies optional
- optional, not held react to events in time-critical environments optional
- optional, not held report test findings optional
- optional, not held supervise staff optional
- optional, not held technical drawings optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held use safety equipment in construction optional
- optional, not held use technical drawing software optional
- optional, not held ventilation systems optional
34 held skills the installation engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role Monte Carlo simulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role advise architects skill
- not needed by the target role advise on construction materials skill
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role audit contractors skill
- not needed by the target role building codes knowledge
- not needed by the target role building construction principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role calculate needs for construction supplies skill
- not needed by the target role carry out tendering skill
- not needed by the target role check construction compliance skill
- not needed by the target role civil engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role civil law knowledge
- not needed by the target role communicate with construction crews skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role contract law knowledge
- not needed by the target role control of expenses skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate construction activities skill
- not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow the statutory obligations skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer objectives skill
- not needed by the target role keep records of work progress skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with financiers skill
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role monitor construction site skill
- not needed by the target role monitor contractor performance skill
- not needed by the target role monitor parameters' compliance in construction projects skill
- not needed by the target role order construction supplies skill
- not needed by the target role perform cost accounting activities skill
- not needed by the target role prepare construction documents skill
- not needed by the target role provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
- not needed by the target role quantity surveying knowledge
- not needed by the target role real estate market knowledge
- not needed by the target role urban planning law knowledge
14 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn construction product regulation required
- still to learn engineering processes required
- still to learn construction methods required
- still to learn engineering principles required
- still to learn project management principles required
- optional, not held components of air conditioning systems optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
- optional, not held communication optional
- optional, not held continuous improvement philosophies optional
- optional, not held domestic heating systems optional
- optional, not held heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration parts optional
- optional, not held industrial heating systems optional
- optional, not held technical drawings optional
- optional, not held ventilation systems optional
Other moves recorded from quantity surveyor
- construction general contractor 57% covered · moderate
- construction manager 43% covered · substantial
- property developer 33% covered · substantial
- contract engineer 25% covered · substantial
- construction general supervisor 24% covered · career change
- cost analyst 24% covered · substantial
- civil engineering technician 22% covered · career change
- construction engineer 20% covered · career change
Common questions about this move
Can a quantity surveyor become an installation engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A quantity surveyor already covers 25% of what an installation engineer is expected to do: 7 skills carry over, 6 of which the installation engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a quantity surveyor need to become an installation engineer?
12 required skills are missing, plus 20 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is construction product regulation.
How hard is the move from quantity surveyor to installation engineer?
Its learning distance is 72.9 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.