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About PAQS

The Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors (PAQS) is an international association of national organizations representing Quantity Surveyors in the Asia and Western Pacific region.

The Mission of the PAQS is: The promotion of the practice of quantity Surveying (QS) in the region.
The promotion of “best practice” for QS in the region.
The promotion of dialogue between member organizations.
Encouragement of regional co-operation in the practice of QS.
Fostering of research appropriate to the better understanding of building practice in the region.
Rendering of assistance to members of member organizations working in each other’s countries.

 

History of the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors

In the early 1990s a number of professional QS and academics in various countries of the Pan Pacific region started to discuss the feasibility and benefits of closer co-operation between members of the profession in different countries.  On the invitation of the AIQS and the NZIQS, a number of professional organizations representing QS in their countries, attended a regional Co-operation Workshop in Fremantle, Western Australia on 20 May 1994.   The outcome of that Workshop was the signing of a Letter Of Understanding by the attendees, which set in progress the formation of a regional QS organization.

The original signatories to that Letter were:
Mr Michael Langley for the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (AIQS),
Mr Adrian Smith for the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors (HKIS),
Mr Isao Tokunaga for the Building Surveyors Institute of  Japan (BSIJ),
Mr Theo Marlow for the New Zealand Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NZIQS), and
Mr Andrew Heng for the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers (SISV),
A copy of this letter is shown elsewhere on this page.

 

Following the 1994 Workshop, the AIQS hosted a Pan Pacific Congress at the Gold Coast in Queensland in May 1995 and all the signatories to the 1994 Letter were invited to attend.  At this meeting it was agreed to form the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors and to establish various working groups to prepare for the formal establishment of the new body.  Approximately 250 delegates attended the technical program which followed the representatives meeting.

 

In May 1996 another PAQS meeting and professional seminar were held in Hong Kong, during which the Chairman was appointed and a draft Constitution prepared by the NZIQS was formally accepted for the establishment of the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors (PAQS).  Professor Dennis Lenard from the AIQS, who had chaired the meeting in 1995, was confirmed as the first Chairman of the PAQS and the AIQS accepted the role of the PAQS Secretariat.  The AIQS General Manager Mr. Terry L Sanders became the PAQS Secretary/Treasurer and Newsletter Editor.  In December 1996 the first issue of the PAQS Newsletter was published and 10,000 copies were distributed throughout the region. 

 

The 1st PAQS Congress was held in Singapore in June 1997 and this included the PAQS Annual Board meeting and a technical and social program.  The Congress was opened to delegates from all the PAQS member countries and approx 160 attended the program.  At this meeting the Institution of Surveyors Malaysia attended officially for the first time as a full member and Mr. Edward Tang from the SISV was elected as the PAQS Chairman and he assumed the Chair at the conclusion of the Congress.   At this meeting the member countries agreed to support a research project by the HKIS into Professional Ethics in the Region and also established the annual rotation of the PAQS Congress between the member countries.  The AIQS continued as the PAQS Secretariat and Mr. Peter Smith of the University of Technology Sydney was appointed as the new Editor of the PAQS Newsletter.  Mr. Trevor Main of the AIQS presented a report on the QS Professional Services Survey conducted in the previous year and noted the commonality of services between most countries.

 

New Zealand hosted the 2nd PAQS Congress and Board meeting at Queenstown in June 1998 and some of the delegates experienced snow for the first time.  Approximately 120 delegates attended the Congress program.  During this meeting it was agreed that there be amendments to the PAQS Constitution to establish Associate and Observer categories of membership.  The Association of South African Quantity Surveyors was then admitted as an Observer Member and the ASAQS representative Dr Solly Preller was formally welcomed to the meeting. Also at this meeting the PAQS logo presented by Mr. Edward Tang was accepted and the Minimum Conditions for PAQS Membership as prepared by the SISV were presented for acceptance by Mr. Khoo Boon Keng.  The AIQS presented a draft set of QS Competency Standards for the region which was based on the results of the Professional Services Survey.  A discussion paper on a regional accreditation scheme for university courses was also discussed.

 

In August 1999, the ISM hosted the 3rd PAQS Congress and Board meeting at the Sunway Lagoon Resort Hotel.  Approximately 180 delegates attended the Congress program.  The Congress was preceded by a PAQS Workshop on QS Competency Standards and Accreditation System for the region, chaired by Prof Dennis Lenard.  The meeting resolved to circulate the Workshop results to the PAQS members for consideration.  The Fiji Institute of Quantity Surveyors (FIQS) attended the meeting for the first time as Associate Members.  At the meeting the NZIQS representative Mr. Peter Beddek presented a proposal to introduce a PAQS Awards system to recognize significant international contributions to the profession by individuals within PAQS members. Mr. Beddek was elected PAQS Chairman and assumed the appointment at the conclusion of the Congress.  The NZIQS also accepted responsibility for the PAQS Secretariat and the NZIQS Executive Director Mr. Kale Bale was appointed Secretary.  Following the PAQS Congress, a delegation of PAQS members visited China at the invitation of the China Engineering Cost Association.

 

The AIQS hosted the 4th PAQS Congress and Board meeting at Cairns in June 2000.  129 delegates attended the Congress and the PAQS Board meeting was attended by the Institute of Quantity Surveyors Sri Lanka (IQSSL) for the first time as Associate Members.  Upon his resignation from the NZIQS, Mr. Bale was replaced as PAQS Secretary by Mr. John Granville.  Mr. Bale’s contribution to the formation of the PAQS was acknowledged at the meeting.  The regional competency standards for QS and the possible accreditation of university degree courses were again considered by the PAQS Board.  A delegation from China attended and observed the Board meeting and Congress, having been invited by the PAQS Chair Mr. Beddek and AIQS President Mr. Main in Beijing the previous year.  At the Congress Dinner, the inaugural PAQS Medal was presented by the PAQS Chairman to Mr. Michael Langley (see the PAQS Award page for details of this award).  A 4th PAQS Congress presentation was also made to the 84 year old Mr. Toshiyuki Iwata of the BSIJ for his excellent record of attendance at all the PAQS Congresses held to date.

 

The 2001 PAQS Board meeting was hosted by the HKIS and held in May in Hong Kong.  It was followed by a half day PAQS professional seminar at which over 100 attended, after which delegates moved to Beijing for the International Conference on Project Cost Management attended by approx 300 delegates.   At the PAQS Board meeting the ten QS competencies were confirmed as accepted by the members and a further commitment to establishing a regional accreditation scheme was made but only after individual members had completed their own initial assessment procedures and visits as necessary.  Dr Anita Liu and Ellen Lau from the HKIS presented the findings on the Ethics Research project (see the PAQS Activities page for this report).  At this meeting Mr. TT Cheung of the HKIS was elected the new Chairman of the PAQS and the HKIS accepted responsibility for the PAQS Secretariat with Ellen Lau being appointed the Secretary and Margaret Yung managing the Secretariat.  TT Cheung presented the second PAQS Medal to Prof Dennis Lenard and the PAQS Education Award to Dr Anita Liu, during the closing session of the Beijing Conference.
 

In April 2002 the AIQS hosted in conjunction with the NZIQS and the Australian Society of Cost Engineers, the 17th ICEC and 6th PAQS Congresses in Melbourne. The joint world Congress was a great success with some 300 delegates attending. During the Congress the Chairman TT Cheung presented the PAQS Medal to Mr. Edward Tang from Singapore and the inaugural PAQS Service Award to Mr. Terry Sanders from Australia. At the PAQS Board meeting it was agreed that PAQS should publish a regional Members' Business Register for QS firms. A delegation from China also attended the Congress and confirmed China's position as an Observer member while their application for further Membership was processed.

 

The 2003 PAQS Annual Board meeting and the 7th PAQS Congress were hosted by the BSIJ in Tokyo from 30 October to 3 November. The SARS outbreak had caused the postponement of the Congress from mid June until early November. At the meeting the CECA was formally welcomed as a full member and the CIQS later also admitted as a new full member. Mr. Ong See Lian from Malaysia was elected as the new PAQS Chairman with Mr. K Sato from Japan as first Vice Chair and Mr. Trevor Main from Australia as second Vice Chair. The Board also resolved that it strongly supported the concept of local national Institutes co-operating in a United Nations style association, rather than a single dominant global body for the development of the profession. Prior to the Board meeting, the PAQS Education Committee continued its work on regional competency standards and an accreditation scheme. The Board later approved PAQS accreditation to any university that had all of the Australian, Hong Kong, and Malaysian and Singaporean accreditations.

 

On 17 April 2004 the PAQS Board met in Cape Town in conjunction with the ICEC meeting. The 8th PAQS Congress was concurrently held with the ICEC Congress as in 2002. Being only 6 months since the Tokyo meeting, the PAQS Board was able to continue the work agreed in 2003 and a time table was set for the revision of the competency standards and the introduction of the proposed joint accreditation scheme for university courses. The PAQS members once again confirmed their belief in the "United Nations" approach to global co-operation and standardization of professional practice, rather than the RICS global domination strategy. It was also agreed that PAQS should support Malaysia’s attempts to have the professional category of QS recognized in the United Nations catalogue of occupations. Such recognition could open up UN project work in areas which currently need but do not recognize the QS profession.