Construction cost and commercial management system in the UK and China : professional body and business comparison

![CDATA[Cost and commercial management processes and practices in different parts of the world vary significantly. UK-China cooperation agreements foster greater economic cooperation and professional mobility. Therefore, UK Cost and Commercial Management (CCM) Systems are mapped against Chinese Engineering Cost (EC) Systems to promote better understanding through this research. The research was conducted in three phases: detailed literature review of both systems, review of the professional bodies in both countries – Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and China Engineering Cost Association (CECA) and business comparisons through questionnaire survey and case studies. Main focus of the paper will be survey findings. In addition to that professional body comparison will also be presented briefly. Findings indicate that EC service profile looks significantly different from cost management profile of the UK firms. In terms of usage of tools and documents, both countries have some common as well as distinct set of tools and documents. Both the UK firms and Chinese firms agreed that internationalisation is challenging for construction business though internationalisation can increase profit margin. Further, BIM is identified as most relevant trend in both the countries while internationalism, e-business, green buildings and carbon estimating are considered to be less significant trends.]]