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Headshot of Apprentice Joseph Helm.

Meet Joseph, apprentice Quantity Surveyor

Joseph is currently completing a part-time apprenticeship at Ecogee as part of his Construction and the Built Environment course at Liverpool City College. We sat down with Joe to chat with him about what he’s learnt so far…

“Before I came to Ecogee, I had worked as an assistant labourer after I finished school. I was helping the Site Manager with tasks like plastering and whatever needed doing; every day was different. In September last year, I started the Construction and the Built Environment course at Liverpool City College where I started my placement with Ecogee two days a week.”

“Working in Quantity Surveying appealed to me because there is a real mix of office and on-site work and the placement here at Ecogee allows me to gain hands-on experience. Quantity surveying involves pricing up jobs, ensuring projects stay on budget, photographing sites, negotiating costs and working with architect plans to assess things like EWI (external wall insulation).”

“My communication skills have improved a lot since starting the placement, and I’ve also learnt a lot about what goes into the pricing and valuation of properties..”

“A highlight of the role for me has been working on a big tender for housing in Walton and getting the opportunity to go out on site to assess the fixtures of the property. I spent time identifying what needed to be done before the EWI could be undertaken.”

“Day to day I am visiting sites with the Site Manager Jamie in the morning checking up on what’s happening on site. Working with Jamie has helped me learn about Project Management too and has given me an understanding of where things could go wrong, how to identify them and how to resolve them. I’ve also been working together with Sophie and Josh on tenders. The thing I’ve learnt about tenders is that each one varies a lot, which can sometimes be hard to understand when you are new.”

“One of the best pieces of advice I have been given is to always have my notebook at the ready! There’s always important information that needs to be made note of.”

“In the future, I am going to study Quantity Surveying at University, and hope to stay at Ecogee throughout the degree. I’m excited to see where Quantity Surveying will take me and build on the skills and contacts I have gained during my placement at Ecogee!”

Joseph looks at EWI materials