INTERVIEW Trimline’s project surveyors study detailed ship plans before preparing estimates What about surveyors and estimators? Alice Chambers asks three project surveyors from Trimline about the crucial role they play during the different stages of outfitting jobs onboard passenger ships Mostly, we hear about the designers involved in a marine interior project or about the individuals that work in drydock to turn those designs into reality but it’s often the work by surveyors and estimators that is critical to making a project successful. Before starting a project, marine interior refit firm Trimline asks its surveyors to source a brief from the customer – either by way of a conversation, some outline drawings, or a fully developed scope. “Our initial job is to get a thorough understanding of what the customer needs and help develop a detailed scope document,” says Mike Denton (pictured), project surveyor at Trimline. After establishing the customer’s needs, a surveyor then visits the ship to survey the proposed project. “Taking detailed plans is vital for a successful project,” says Marc Forder, another project surveyor at Trimline. “There’s often no substitute for a walkaround with the customer and seeing things with your own eyes. It enables us to suggest alternative methods or solutions, which is where our experience comes in.” Next, a surveyor will help to make quality estimates, which can often take weeks to put together, particularly for large projects that might involve hundreds of different suppliers. For Trimline to create a quotation, it needs to specify materials and products, check measurements and quantities, and estimate prices from each supplier, which is a time-consuming process. “We pride ourselves on attention to detail,” says Forder. “It’s one of the differences in using Trimline – we would rather spend extra time putting as much detail into the quote as possible to ensure that we’re transparent from the start of the process and can avoid nasty surprises for the customer later.” As part of its detailed planning process, Trimline sets aside plenty of time to source customised items that can often have long lead times. “We can often save the customer money if decisions are made quickly and if more time is allowed between request for quote and drydock,” agreed all the surveyors. “Finding ways to achieve our customer’s goals, using our experience and knowledge to deliver solutions that fit the budget available is what I love about being an estimator,” adds Alan Mattingly, an estimator and project surveyor at Trimline who has 22 years of experience. “Also, working well alongside the ship’s onboard team is just as important as collaborating with project managers and designers to get the most successful outcome.” 105
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