Project Management Techniques: Construction of an Event Centre for Corporate and Social Events - Case Study Example

PROJECT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES: CONSTRUCTION OF AN EVENT CENTRE FOR CORPORATE AND SOCIAL EVENTS Executive Summary The paper focuses on evaluating a project management activity related to the creation of an event centre in Leeds. The creation of Stardust, the event centre is taken to largely help in attracting both corporate and individual people for the generation of different types of events like conferences, workshops and also other social functions. The client identified for the above project is the Leeds City Council. The paper focuses on breaking down the project activity along different activities such that a specific activity is chosen for further research. Further analysis is generated relating to the scheduling and in budgeting the different activities while also focusing on identification of potential risks related to the conducting of the project. An effective mitigation plan is suggested relating to a specific risk factor to contribute in the potential accomplishment of the project operation. Table of Contents The paper focuses on evaluating a project management activity related to the creation of an event centre in Leeds. The creation of Stardust, the event centre is taken to largely help in attracting both corporate and individual people for the generation of different types of events like conferences, workshops and also other social functions. The client identified for the above project is the Leeds City Council. The paper focuses on breaking down the project activity along different activities such that a specific activity is chosen for further research. Further analysis is generated relating to the scheduling and in budgeting the different activities while also focusing on identification of potential risks related to the conducting of the project. An effective mitigation plan is suggested relating to a specific risk factor to contribute in the potential accomplishment of the project operation. 2 Table of Contents 3 Project Overview: 4 Work Breakdown Structure: 6 Estimate of Sources for one work package 10 Schedule for each activity in the selected work package 11 Budget detailing the associated costs in the selected work package 13 Risk identification, risk assessment and filtering techniques in the selected work package 15 Risk Mitigation action plan for one risk 19 Reference List 21 Appendix 23 Project Overview: Project management techniques and processes are selected based on the nature and aims of a project. The concept of project management aims to evaluate suitable techniques for accomplishing the project objectives within the given time and resources (Carmichael, 2010). Project management also helps to ensure that the requirements of the clients have been met in the project process. The following section provides the project overview of this study: Project Name: Stardust Author: __________ Project Manager: ________________ Project Business Case: This particular project is based on construction of an event centre at Stanningley Road, Bramley, Leeds and the client group is Leeds City Council. The name of the project is Stardust and will be completed over a period of three years. The event centre will be used for corporate and social gatherings mainly. The primary aim of project Stardust is to help the local residents and business houses in organizing their events in a comfortable manner. Stardust will accommodate all the modern technology for event organizing and also reflect the cultural attachment with the history of Leeds. The resources requirements of project Stardust will include all the construction raw materials, the architecture software, vehicles for transportation of goods, decoration artifacts, etc. Project opportunity: The construction of the event centre Stardust will help in promoting the local businesses within the Stanningley Road and also help in improving the economy of Leeds. Leeds mostly known for its greenery and environmental beauty can add the aspect of science with this technical equipped modern building. The local authorities believe that developing an event centre will attract people from nearby counties and will promote the business of the local retailers of Leeds. Project Goals and Objectives: The goal of the project Stardust is to help in promoting the business sector of Leeds by using Stardust as a central attraction spot for visitors. Completion of Stardust will also help in developing mutual respect, collaboration and communication among the social spheres of Leeds. Stardust will also enhance the earning opportunities for Leeds City Council. Project Deliverables: The primary project deliverable is the completed event centre called Stardust. The project sub-deliverables will include the completed segments of internal, external and foundation of the building. The total project will be completed in a period of three years and each of the sub-deliverables of the project will be delivered to the client (Leeds City Council) in accordance to the completion date mentioned in the project scheduling process of the project plan. Project Risks and Uncertainties: The first and foremost project challenge is meeting the deadline of 3 years which will be tough based on the existing resource availability of the client and the project team. However, the project team will try to reduce the human errors during the initial stage of the construction and project planning process to prevent any future hindrances. The spot for construction is spread around .46 acres of which the area consumed by the proposed building is around .42 acres. This reduces the space for external constrictions such as gardens, parking lots, and the pool. Managing the space for internal constructions can also hamper the design of the external building. The area selected for the constriction is river facing and the distance of the hall from the river will be approximately 600 yards. Unexpected soil damage due to rain or snowfall can hamper the progress of the project. Apart from these, reducing the risk elements in the planning process will be the priority activity of the project manager. Work Breakdown Structure: Work breakdown structures helps in categorizing the various aspects of a project and arrange them according to their suitability of the project planning process. The work breakdown structure helps in developing a clear direction for project completion process (Atkinson, 2009). The work break down structure for Project Stardust will be based on the segmentation of the project deliverable. The entire project will have three levels namely internal foundation and internal and external activities. These divisions will again be segmented on the basis of work packages which will have specific deadlines for completion of the project. The work breakdown structure of Stardust is given below: Figure 1: Work Breakdown Structure for Project Stardust (Source: Created by Author) The above work breakdown structure reflects the various sub-activities and the work packages within them. The primary deliverable is the completion of the project and delivering it within the given deadline to Leeds City Council. The work breakdown structure has been created on the basis of the client requirements. The work packages have been kept to a minimum to reduce the complexity in activity management and work allocation to the project team. For instance, the work package of electrical under internal sub-activity includes all the electrical requirements of the building and even external segments such as the pool, garden and the parking lot. The project team will also be segmented according to the work breakdown structure. The teams will consist of architects, interior decoration, internal and external engineers, procurement team, base workers, facilities team, technicians and the assimilation team. The role of each of these teams will be strictly be related with their area of expertise. The structure of the project team will be matrix that will enable the project manager to accomplish multiple work packages at the same time. For instance, the role of assimilation team will be to super vise the activities of each work package and analyze the progress and problems faced by the respective teams. Also the assimilation team will focus on assessing the risks and threats that may arise in the process of project completion. The project will begin with the foundation activity. The total budget estimated for the Foundation Activity is GBP 200,000. The excavation process will be started once the blue print for the overall structure has been finalized by the client. Different tools like spade, pick axe, crow bar, sledge hammer, basket and iron pan among others would be used for conducting the excavation activities. Drawings related to centerline and a layout plan need to be prepared for effectively meeting the objectives related to foundation. Main walls and Partition walls of depths around 4 and 2 feet respectively would be constructed in the foundation phase. The use of iron and steel rods earns needed significance related to foundation activities in that the erections made of steel help in absorbing the loads and stress of the casting made above them. Steel columns created contribute in transmission and sharing of pressures of the architectural loads thereby helping in sustaining the architecture created. Architectural activities in the foundation phase relate to the development of different types of walls. Interior walls are created using metal studs to help in generating effective partitions in the building. Exterior walls are created to create the external surface of the building while Retaining Walls are made to retain the soil and rock structures. The foundation wall is built of 12 inches which serves as the basis for the building architecture. Other walls like arc and curtain walls are also created to generate needed dimensions and shapes to the project (Sturgis and Davis, 2013). The foundation activity is followed by the internal activities that consist of different activities related to electrical and plumbing works. Internal Activities also reflect in the creation of doors and windows in the building coupled with other activities related to painting and decorations. Use of specialized manpower related to electricians and plumbers need to be made in this phase for the development of electrical and plumbing installations along the building. Plastering of the internal walls of the building are also carried out with the painting and internal construction works to sustain the design elements in the building. Plumbers and electricians arranged in the construction phase carry out their tasks along the middle floors while the painters and plasterers are installed in the lower floors of the building (Golland, 2011). Finally the external activities in the construction phase relate to the conducting of masonry work, development of the roof, garden, parking space and an internal swimming pool. The roofing activities are conducted with cladding the roof of the building using materials like tile slates and also based on the use of metal sheets. Masonry works are carried out in two types like block masonry and brick masonry with also the laying down of asbestos sheets. Similarly gardening activities relate to the planting of large number of tress, while also preparing the soil and the site where the gardening activity is to be conducted. Development of facilities for parking of cars and designing of roads and foundations need to be generated in terms of the external activities. The above activities contribute in beautifying the external surroundings of the construction site related to the building. The meeting of the above activities in specific schedules would contribute in accomplishing the total project activity of constructing the Event Centre (Kogent Learning Solutions Inc., 2009). Estimate of Sources for one work package The work package related to Foundation Activities is selected for which the estimation activities relating to the different sources would be carried out. The estimation of resources would be carried out pertaining to three different parameters like time required in accomplishing the task, key resources and infrastructures and also the costs related to employing the different resources. Different types of estimation methods like the historical approach, parametric modeling, and bottom-up approach and also simulation exercises are available. For the sake of simplicity the use of the bottom-up approach would be undertaken to make the estimates related to the Foundation Activities work package. The use of the bottom-up estimate focuses on evaluating the cost of individual items or different resources required relating to the selected work package. Totaling of the individual costs of the different resources contribute to understanding of the total cost incurred in the specified work package (Milosevic, 2003). For the different types of resources like material, equipments and labor specific rates like prices of materials and equipments and labor rates are estimated. These rates multiplied with the individual units of labor, materials and equipments contribute in discerning the individual costs related to the different elements. Costs related to overheads are also recorded in the bottom-up approach which helps in generating a holistic picture of the total cost required in fulfilling the stated task. Relating to the Foundation Activities in the construction of the event centre the costs and units of manpower, materials and equipments would be analyzed relating to the Excavation, Steel Erection and Architectural tasks. The use of the Bottom-Up approach to analyze the cost related to the above parameters is generated in the Appendix. The above table reflects the different estimates made for the different sub-tasks like excavation, steel erection and architecture. The estimates are made in terms of the number of equipments and materials deployed against the different activities along with the number of manpower required in fulfilling the different tasks. Specific rates are allocated against each of the different elements to help in generating the total cost required to accomplish the tasks relating to the different sub-tasks and also against the specific work package. It is observed that the total cost relating to the work package amounts to GBP 103,130. Materials and Equipments tend to incur the highest cost relating to GBP 101,600 while the total manpower cost pertaining to the different sub-tasks amount to GBP 1230. Owing to the use of machinery, equipments, materials and also labor estimates are also carried out relating to overheads. The total overhead cost amounts to GBP 300. Schedule for each activity in the selected work package The schedule for the different activities relating to the Foundation Activity work package can be generated based on the use of the Gantt chart. Use of the Gantt chart technique is made owing to its simplicity and commonality of use relating to the fixation of schedules pertaining to different types of tasks. Construction of the Gantt chart is made by reflecting the duration of conducting the different tasks in terms of days, weeks or even months on the X-Axis while the sub-tasks carried out pertaining to the Work Package on the Y-Axis. The inception and completion of the different tasks are indicated based on the starting and ending points of the different bars created against the different tasks. The depiction of the Gantt chart for the sub-tasks related to the selected work package is produced as follows. The above chart reflects the different sub-tasks like excavation, steel erection and architecture on the left hand column or the Y-Axis while the duration in meeting of the different tasks are reflected along the bottom of the chart or the X-Axis. Starting and completion of the different events are indicated by the beginning and end points of the different colored bars. Use of different colored bars is used to help in indicating the different tasks or events that are carried out relating to the work package. The development of the Gantt chart is observed to be carried out after the generation of the Work Breakdown Structure which contributes in the identification of the different tasks or events constituting the specific work package, Foundation Activities. The time taken to complete the different tasks or events in the work package is anticipated in advance by the works or the functional manager. This feature helps in standardizing the different functions and in evaluating the performances related to the different tasks involved. After assuming or anticipating the time taken for completion of the different tasks the same is effectively recorded by the functional manager to help in preparing the different schedules. Scheduling the activities based on the sequence identified contributes in identifying the tasks that needs to be completed earlier and tasks that can be completed in the later half. Sequencing of the tasks or production of the different schedules rightly contributes in development of the Gantt chart (Valerie, Cook and Ali, 2010). Rather it can be observed that the Gantt chart works as the graphical illustration of the sequences identified relating to the different tasks pertaining to the specific work package. The construction of the Gantt chart reflects that the excavation activity is conducted along the first three weeks (Nicholas and Steyn, 2012). Following the excavation activity, the steel erection activity is accomplished along the three week period ranging from 3rd to the 4th week. Finally the architectural activities are scheduled to be completed in the final three week period ranging from 5th to the 7th week. This sequence is followed in that the activities relating to excavation and steel erection generate the basis for the construction following which the architectural activities are generated as a final touch to the foundation task. The Gantt chart developed on the above basis contributes in monitoring the progress of the different tasks to help in accomplishing the stated work package within a period of total 7 weeks. Budget detailing the associated costs in the selected work package Different types of costs, direct and indirect are incorporated for accomplishing the different tasks related to fulfillment of the selected work package. Direct expenditures are categorized to be those costs that are incurred directly relating to the conducting of the different tasks. Indirect costs relate to the administrative and other non-operational expenditures that are countered in terms of fulfilling the stated tasks and work package as a whole. Preparation of the operational and administrative or non-operational budgets contributes in standardizing and evaluating the costs related to the conducting of the different tasks. It thus helps in the generation of effective control on the spending and investment activities related to the different tasks. The generation of the budget detailing the different costs pertaining to the sub-activities based on the Foundation Activities is produced as follows. Budget Category (GBP) Excavation Activity Steel Erection Activity Architectural Activity         Direct Costs       Labour 500 600 700 Materials and Equipments 10,000 70,000 40,000 Other Expenses 1000 3000 2500         Indirect Costs (GBP)       Indirect Manpower Costs 1000 800 750 Indirect Materials and Equipment Costs 16,000 10,000 15,000 Administration Expenses 4,000 3,000 2,000 Overhead Expenses 100 200 300 Total 32600 87600 61250 The above table reflects the different direct and indirect costs relating to the different activities like excavation, steel erection and architectural. Costs related to labor, materials and equipments are evaluated based along both the direct and indirect levels. The indirect expenses also reflect the existence of administrative and other overhead expenses in terms of the depreciation incurred relating to the employment of the material and equipments used in the different activities. The total budgeted cost relating to the different tasks reflects that the highest cost is anticipated pertaining to the Steel Erection activity compared to the other activities like Excavation and Architectural. Non-operational expenditures relate to the payment of salaries to the different administrative staffs while the indirect expenditures related to materials and equipments pertain to the procurement of such to help in meeting the administrative duties. Other costs relating to electricity, recruitment and selection costs and also costs incurred on manpower development and training also constitute the different indirect costs (Chitkara, 2010). Risk identification, risk assessment and filtering techniques in the selected work package The risk register relates to the identification of the different types of risks and also the mode in assessing the different risks involved. This activity contributes in generating control over the different types of risks to help in generating needed efficiency in accomplishing the stated tasks and the work package on a whole. The risk register related to the accomplishment of the Foundation Activities in Project Management can be generated as follows. The different types of risks relating to the increase in the price of the structural steel and also in the shortage of labor relating to the completion of the pipelining activities can be effectively identified. Occurrence of such risks would tend to affect the sub-tasks related to erection of steel rods and also the different architectural activities. Other types of risks that are identifiable relate to the failure in meeting the designing tasks within the scheduled period and also the emergence of rainy season. The occurrence of rainfall in a prolonged fashion is taken to potentially affect the strength of the foundation installation. The probability of the occurrence of such events tends to constitute the significance of the different risks identified. Assessment of the different risks is made based on evaluating the reasons or the factors involved behind the occurrence of the different types of risks. The increase in the demand for the structural steels while the closing down of a large number of factories relating to the production of the steel ingots accounts for the problems pertaining to the increase in the price of the steel rods. Similarly the employment of pipe fitting labor relating to other projects accounts for a major problem relating to the reduction of the skilled labor force for meeting the architectural activities. Changes in the production schedules and also alterations in the different marketing and demand conditions would tend to make the product designs generated in earlier occasion to be rejected. The emergence of the rainy season to generate potential impediment to the construction activity counts as a potential risks in that the project activity is scheduled to start from the rainy season. The risks identification activities can be further enhanced through the generation of a probability matrix where zero percent reflect a chance of no-occurrence of the risks while a 100 percent probability relates to the significant occurrence of the risk. The above risk table generated though shorter in nature tends to generate a sample size of the different risks that tend to occur on a global plane (McCarthy, 2010). The assessment of the potential of the different risks can be made based on designing of a risk matrix based on two-factor evaluation relating to severity and the probability of occurrence. The same is generated as follows. The above risk matrix reflects that the shortage of pipefitting labor and also the failure in meeting and completion of required designs tends to counter high risk for the Foundation activities. These risks thus have reflects larger impacts. The increase in the level of steel price and also the emergence of the rainy season tends to generate medium risk to the accomplishment of the Foundation activities. Identification of the different types of risks further requires an understanding of the scope of the different types of risks in generating potential impacts to the completion of Foundation Activities. Filtering techniques also tend to identify the rate of occurrence of the above risks thereby helping in understanding their needed significance in affecting the completion of the identified task. The significance of the risks based on the level of occurrence and their impacts would be identified by rating the risks on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 denotes ‘no significance’ while 5 denote ‘very high significance’ (Grisham, 2011).   Scoring Range Actual Score Increase in the Steel Price 1 to 5 4 Shortage of Pipefitting Labour 1 to 5 5 Failure in completion of designs 1 to 5 2 Emergence of Rainy Season 1 to 5 3 Total Score 4 to 20 14 The above table indicates that Shortage in the availability of pipefitting labor and increase in the price of steel tends to generate the highest impacts compared to other risks like the failure in meeting of designs and the emergence of the rainy season. On the whole the different risks tend to generate more than an average impact in affecting the activities relating to Foundation Activities. Risk Mitigation action plan for one risk In terms of countering the issue related to the unavailability of the required manpower for conducting the pipelining activities the functional or the operations manager is required to plan in advance the number of workers to be constituted in generation of an effective team. Planning of an effective team in a previous case thus would effectively contribute in recruiting and hiring the required number of workers in meeting the objectives of the needed tasks. The functional manager can also focus on the development of training and manpower development functions to help in generating a skilled workforce in meeting of the different tasks. This strategy would contribute in reducing the dependency of the organization on the needed manpower from the market. The use of the social networking platform like Facebook can be effectively incorporated to help in the generation of large scale awareness for the construction of the event centre in the region. This would help in attracting potential labor forces relating to different sectors to help in meeting the objectives of the project activity. Work related advertisements and tenders need to be generated through use of different media channels like broadcasting, print and online. The same would contribute in helping the company gain adequate amount of skilled laborers beforehand to rightly meet the objectives of the different tasks. Generation of project leader with setting of different standards would contribute in enhancing the level of operations pertaining to the selected task. The organization can also focus on developing involvement with different human resource consultancies that would help them in pooling adequate and expert human resources for meeting of the foundation activities (Ribeiro, 2011). Use of electronic human resource practices can also be generated through the registration of its recruiting functions with online recruitment portals. This activity would contribute in meeting of the human resources gaps relating to the accomplishment of the foundation activities in the project operations. Internal development of staffs also needs to be carried out through training the people on multi-tasking skills. The above function would help the company in maintaining an adequate number of staffs in periods of potential contingencies like shortage of staffs. Similarly the business organizations can also focus on the development of training schools which would help in creating an adequate pool of trained workers from the larger society. The above strategies would thereby rightly help the concern in sustaining required number of workers to meet the objectives of the foundation tasks. Reference List Atkinson, R., 2009. Project management: cost, time and quality, two best guesses and a phenomenon, it’s time to accept other success criteria, International Journal of Project Management, 17 (6), pp. 337–342. Carmichael, D. G., 2010. Project planning, and control. 5/e. Canada, New York: Taylor & Francls. Chitkara, K.K., 2010. Construction Project Management, 2/eplanning, Scheduling And Controlling. 2nd ed. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Education. Golland, D., 2011. Constructing Affirmative Action: The Struggle for Equal Employment Opportunity. United States : University Press of Kentucky. Grisham, T.W., 2011. International Project Management: Leadership in Complex Environments. United Kingdom : John Wiley & Sons. Kogent Learning Solutions Inc., 2009. Autodesk® Revit® Architecture 2010 in Practice. United Kingdom : Jones & Bartlett Learning. McCarthy, J.F., 2010. Construction Project Management: A Managerial Approach. United States : Pareto. Milosevic, D. Z., 2003. Project Management ToolBox: Tools and Techniques for the Practicing Project Manager. United Kingdom : John Wiley and Sons. Nicholas, J.M. and Steyn, H., 2012. Project Management for Engineering, Business, and Technology. New York : Routledge. Ribeiro, J.M., 2011. International Development Project Appraisal, Execution Planning and Monitoring. United States : Presses inter Polytechnique. Sturgis, R. and Davis, F.A., 2013. Sturgis Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture and Building: An Unabridged Reprint of the 1901-2 Edition. United States : Courier Dover Publications. Valerie, G., Cook, C. and Ali, A., 2010. Using net present value methods to evaluate quality improvement projects. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 27(3), pp.333 – 350 Appendix Bottom-Up Approach Read More