Assistant Quantity Surveyor (AQS)

Ready to Take Ownership of Your Own Projects?

Cube are looking for an ambitious Assistant Quantity Surveyor to join our growing commercial team.

This isn’t a role where you’ll simply spend your time assisting a Senior QS.

We’re looking for someone who already has a solid grounding in construction commercial management and is ready to take commercial ownership of their own projects, while continuing their professional development towards RICS Chartered status (MRICS).

As a specialist joinery subcontractor working with leading UK main contractors, CUBE offers the opportunity to experience the complete commercial lifecycle of a project – from contract award and procurement through manufacture, installation, valuation and final account.

The Role

Working closely with our Commercial, Operations, Project Management, Design and Production teams, you’ll be responsible for ensuring your projects remain commercially controlled, cash-positive and profitable.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Commercially managing allocated projects from contract award through to final account.
• Reviewing subcontract orders, scopes of work and contractual requirements.
• Establishing project budgets and commercial controls.
• Preparing and submitting monthly applications for payment.
• Reviewing payment notices and challenging incorrect deductions.
• Identifying, recording, pricing and submitting variations.
• Maintaining accurate variation and change-control registers.
• Ensuring additional works and changes are commercially captured.
• Preparing contractual notices and maintaining appropriate project records.
• Monitoring project costs, commitments and forecast final costs.
• Supporting monthly CVR and WIP reporting.
• Monitoring project gross margin and identifying risks and opportunities.
• Managing subcontractor and labour-package procurement where required.
• Assessing subcontractor applications and payments.
• Managing subcontractor variations and final accounts.
• Challenging inappropriate contra-charges, set-offs and deductions.
• Monitoring outstanding applications, payments and retentions.
• Supporting the management of commercial debt and cash collection.
• Working with Project Managers and Site Supervisors to commercially manage site activities.
• Identifying the commercial impact of programme changes, delays and disruption.
• Liaising with Design and Production teams to capture the cost impact of design or manufacturing changes.
• Attending client commercial and project meetings.
• Building strong relationships with main-contractor Quantity Surveyors and commercial teams.
• Negotiating and agreeing client final accounts.
• Providing clear commercial reporting to CUBE’s senior management team.

About You

We’re looking for someone who is commercially minded, confident and ready for increased responsibility.

Ideally, you’ll have:

- 2–4+ years’ construction commercial experience.

- Experience as an Assistant QS, Graduate QS or similar commercial role.

- Experience within a specialist subcontractor, subcontractor or main-contractor environment.

- A Quantity Surveying, Commercial Management or construction-related qualification.

- Experience preparing applications for payment.

- Good knowledge of variations and change management.

- Experience dealing with subcontractor accounts.

- An understanding of CVRs, WIP, forecasting and project profitability.

- Knowledge of JCT and/or NEC contracts.

- Strong numerical and Excel skills.

- Good commercial awareness and attention to detail.

- Confidence communicating and negotiating with clients and main-contractor commercial teams.

- The ability to manage multiple projects and competing priorities.

- A proactive approach to identifying commercial risks and opportunities.

You should also be comfortable getting out onto projects and understanding how the work is actually being delivered, rather than managing everything from a spreadsheet.

What We Offer

- £32,000 – £42,000 basic salary + Package, depending on experience.

- Clear progression to Quantity Surveyor.

- Regular performance and salary reviews.

- Responsibility for managing your own projects.

- Exposure to the complete commercial project lifecycle.

- Direct involvement with CUBE’s senior management team.

- Opportunity to help shape our growing commercial function.

- Pension and company benefits.

- A growing specialist construction business where strong performers have genuine opportunities to progress.