Definition of the Role
Cost Control Engineering is the application of engineering competencies to the analysis and communication of cost and timing outcomes on engineered assets, programs, projects, products and services. Practitioners of cost engineering require the skill sets to analyse time, cost and change on projects and asset management programs, and support management team decision making to enable control of cost and time.
Description of Role & Typical Responsibilities
Cost Control engineers work in project teams to establish budgets, coordinate plans, and then manage change and risks, and forecast results so that project teams can measure progress, report status, communicate with stakeholders, and plan to achieve with no surprises.
In the many other areas of engineering endeavour, Cost control engineers also work with money, scope and time across diverse fields and activities covering all aspects of cost control including asset operations and management, business and project modelling, estimating, planning and scheduling, risk management, value engineering and claims analysis.
Typical roles and responsibilities include Project Controls, Cost Analyst, Trend engineer, Risk Manager, Value Engineering, Asset manager, and forecasting.
How to become a Practitioner
On the job training is where many cost engineers obtained the opportunity to acquire the required skills and knowledge. And this can be enhanced by developing excellent spreadsheet and analytical skills early in your career to improve your reliability and productivity.
Training is also available and a good start are the AACE International certifications based on self-study and an examination. Begin with the Cost Engineering Technologist certificate and once you obtain sufficient experience, progress to the Certified Cost Professional (CCP) certification which includes an exam, a professional paper and significant CPD requirements. See the links and descriptions under Education and certifications. The CCP qualification is also recognised in the Chartered cost engineer evidence of technical competence.
