Lauren Meldrum has been with Doig+Smith since 2012 after she graduated with a first class honours degree in Quantity Surveying from Glasgow Caledonian University. Fast forward to 2021 and Lauren is flying high in the role of Associate, following her promotion to the senior post last summer.
We invited Lauren to share some insight on her career journey so far and of course we made sure to ask for some career advice too!
Can you tell us a little bit about how you got into Quantity Surveying?
Honestly, it was a bit of a strange one. My dad worked in the petrochemical industry which opened the door to consider careers in engineering and construction however, my schools advisor at school said “women should not work in construction” and I never considered quantity surveying until I started to read University Prospectus.
I always knew that I didn’t want to be based in an office all day long, so I was searching for a career that offered variety in the working day, and that involved dealing with money. It was also important for me to see an output of my work and ultimately Quantity Surveying came up as the top choice. I must admit there was also a part of me of me that wanted to prove the careers advisor wrong and show that women can succeed in a ‘mans world’ and so a career in construction began.
My first challenge in pursuing this career came early on, when at the end of fifth year, I decided too late that I wanted to go to Uni and not return to school. At this point there were no spaces left on the BSc (Hons) QS course at GCU however, trying my luck (as I usually do) I contacted the University directly to see if there was any way I could get a place. This was successful and my first career thanks really goes to Halbert Mills (QS Lead in GCU at the time) for giving me an opportunity to enrol on the course in 2008… and then the rest is history!
What advice would you give to someone just starting out as a QS?
I would encourage all students to get practical experience while studying as experience is invaluable. I started with site experience in my second year at Uni working for Jacobs Engineering on a chemical processing project in Grangemouth. This gave me experience in contracting, site measurement, contracts, health and safety and generally all things construction.
I then undertook a placement which turned into a part time job with Sir Robert McAlpine on the Sir Hoy Velodrome for the Commonwealth games where I gained vast commercial experience. This was a great team to work for and learn from and they always encouraged me to ask question after question to understand and learn. I would stress this to anyone starting their career – questions are good! It shows you are thinking, challenging what’s happening, what’s being asked and ultimately helps you learn and develop.
Huge Congratulations on achieving Associate in just 8 years. Can you share some insight on your journey to get here?
Thanks and a big thanks to my colleagues Gordon, Ian and William for their support to get me there. It was Gordon who interviewed me back in 2012 and ultimately, I wouldn’t be here if he didn’t give me the graduate job. I will always remember him saying ‘there are no glass ceilings at D+S’ and that really motivated me.
In my early days at Doig+Smith I was part of William’s team and I think it would be fair to say I was a handful at times with my desire to succeed quickly! However, William really supported my APC studies (we both annoyed each other with it for 2 years) and I passed in 2014. Thereafter I continued to work hard across the business on a variety of projects. In the last 5 years I’ve built up a lot of experience in the Education Sector, working alongside Ian Bowd who has been a great teacher and leader.
What is the most memorable project you’ve worked on to-date?
Throughout my career I have been lucky to work on lots of different projects and with different clients which makes it difficult to name just one!
Omega West, Warrington was my first significant infrastructure and commercial distribution unit project where I provided QS services for the delivery of 761,000 sq/ft of accommodation and for a number of high-profile tenants including Royal Mail. This was a significant private development project and it’s great to see our team still working on a host of great projects in Warrington today.
In 2013 I enjoyed providing cost management services for the refurbishment of a Castle which featured on BBC 2 Restoration Homes with Caroline Quentin, it was cool to be able to tell friends and family to tune in and see what I had been working on.
More recently I was involved in Hampden Park works for the Euro 2020 and I was really proud to say I had worked on the National Stadium.
Finally, I can’t forget all of my education projects. Over the last 5 years this has been a focus sector for me in the business and I have had great experience working on the NLC Schools Bundle, Wallyford High School as well as private sector schools including St Aloysisus and St Columbas.
What do you consider as your greatest strength as a Quantity Surveyor?
Forming trusted relationships with Clients, Contractors and the Design Teams. Projects succeed when we all work together for the same successful outcome.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
No day is the same – there is always a new challenge, opportunity, something new to learn, new teams to meet and exciting projects to works on.
After chatting with Lauren, we can understand why she loves being a Quantity Surveyor and can clearly see why she has progressed so quickly through the ranks! We are excited to see where the next 8 years at Doig+Smith take her…