Methods and rules of measurement, including the Standard Method of Measurement (SMM) and the New Rules of Measurement (NRM2), have been developed to address the continual need to describe and quantify building works in the UK and revised to adapt to changes in industry practices and materials, yet not all changes have been adequately addressed. Currently, surveyors often work directly for clients and, as a result, have lost the knowledge relating to some aspects of construction cost, which was historically provided by builders, including labour, plant, waste, and complexity of building works, and merely describe the material content of elemental building designs produced by architects. A research gap exists in the credence that the current methods are the most efficient and effective methods possible to achieve in practice (i.e., produce the fullest descriptions of building works possible). Although SSM and NRM2 are largely based on UK practice, the underlying philosophy behind the rules is applicable globally. This paper identifies key issues with these methods and develops the main criteria for a superior solution that can be used as the basis for more accurate software-based cost-estimating models. The research method includes the analysis and evaluation of twelve documents, which represent the evolution of the rules of measurement in the UK since 1922. An improved system based on describing 'workpieces' of work on-site, including the key criteria required to produce an enhanced standard method of description of building works that can be used globally, is offered.
Vasil Atanasov (Fri,) studied this question.