About QBFS
QBFS is an Australian construction consultancy and forensic building services firm. The work covers two arcs: protecting active projects with inspection test plans, QA programs, sub-contractor audits, and ongoing on-site support; and resolving issues after handover with post-completion defect investigations and expert-witness reports.
Paul Marko founded the practice with the working theory that good construction outcomes don't happen by accident. They come from a defensible quality regime, applied consistently, with someone independent watching the inspection points that matter. QBFS exists to do that watching.
What we believe
A few principles that shape how we work:
- Independence matters. A consultant who's neutral between the parties produces reports that hold up. A consultant who's perceived as advocating for the engaging party loses weight where it counts.
- Plain language wins. A report that needs an engineer to read isn't doing its job. The audience is usually a builder, a developer, an owner, an insurer, or a lawyer. The report has to work for them.
- Construction knowledge sits underneath everything. Forensic discipline and report craft don't substitute for actually knowing how the work gets built. We hire (and stay sharp) on the trade-level construction side.
- Quality is cheap when it's designed in. A defect caught at hold-point is a same-day fix. The same defect after handover is a major rectification. QA programs are an investment, not an overhead.
Who we work with
The core clients are builders and head contractors managing real construction risk on residential, multi-residential, and commercial projects. We also work with:
- Developers running multi-project portfolios
- Property owners and body corporates dealing with post-completion defects
- Legal teams running building defects and construction quality matters
- Funders and lenders requiring independent construction monitoring
What we don't do
A few things we deliberately don't take on:
- Fire engineering and passive fire protection design. Outside our scope. We refer that work to specialists.
- Statutory certification. Building certifier appointments stay with appropriately qualified certifiers.
- Trade work. We investigate, audit, and advise. We don't run rectification trades, keeping that separation is part of how the consultancy stays independent.
- Generic templates dressed as bespoke advice. Every engagement is scoped to the actual project.
Where we work
QBFS is based on the Brisbane northside (Brendale) with most active engagements in Queensland and northern NSW where site visit logistics keep frequency feasible. Commercial work, expert-witness engagements, and forensic investigations run nationally with travel built into the engagement scope. The methodology doesn't change between states.
How to engage QBFS
The fastest way to start is a phone call. Tell Paul what you're dealing with: the project, the issue, where you sit on the build life cycle. The next step gets sorted on the call.
Call Paul on 0407 146 737.
Tell Paul the project. The next step gets sorted on the call.
Common questions, answered.
- How long has QBFS been operating?
The practice has been delivering construction consultancy and forensic services for over a decade. Paul has decades of construction experience underneath that.
- What's your professional indemnity position?
QBFS maintains current professional indemnity insurance appropriate to the work undertaken, with cover available for review by engaging parties prior to material engagements.
- Are you accredited or registered?
Paul holds the relevant construction qualifications and registrations for the work undertaken. Specific accreditations and registrations are available for review at engagement.
- Who does the actual work, Paul or a team?
Paul leads every engagement and conducts the site inspections personally on most matters. Sub-consultants such as structural engineers, hydraulic engineers, and materials labs are coordinated where the scope requires specialist input, and their findings are integrated into the QBFS report.
- Can QBFS work on a project where you've previously been engaged by the other side?
Conflicts are managed strictly. Every new engagement triggers a conflicts check; QBFS declines engagements where the conflict can’t be cleanly managed.
- What does an engagement cost?
Fees scale with scope. Investigations and reports are quoted per matter. Consultancy and audit work runs on retainer or hourly. Call Paul on 0407 146 737 to scope an engagement and a fee proposal follows.
