Danie Hoffman, senior lecturer and quantity surveying programme leader in the Department of Construction Economics, University of Pretoria (UP), was nominated by the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors (ASAQS) for the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors (PAQS) Academic Excellence Award. This award recognises individuals or institutions that excel in the area of academic performance or research and development.  The result should have beneficial application to the Profession and should transcend national boundaries. The ASAQS nomination was supported by the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) and the Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM).   PAQS is a Quantity Surveying Association of fifteen different countries including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and representing 134,000 quantity surveyors.

Mr. Hoffman was nominated for his work on the Costs and Trends of Green Buildings.  The GBCSA, ASAQS and UP started a combined research study in 2014 to describe the cost premium of certified green office buildings in South Africa. This study is still ongoing and three industry publications have been published in 2016, 2019 and 2022.  Mr. Hoffman is the academic researcher on this study and his PhD thesis is based on the data from this study. This study has provided the built environment and GBCSA’s members with valuable local data that can inform decision making in a more sustainable direction. It has been incredibly useful, benefiting from academic rigor and industry collaboration. 

At the September 2023 PAQS conference in Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Hoffman was awarded with the PAQS Academic Excellence Award.  Karl Trusler, executive director of the ASAQS, received the award on Mr. Hoffman’s behalf.  Upon his return, Mr. Trusler visited the Department of Construction Economics to celebrate this wonderful achievement with Mr. Hoffman at an internal award ceremony arranged by the Department of Construction Economics."