Paul G Williams 19 June 2013 Houston, TX THE IMPACT MEGA
PROJECTS HAVE ON IN-PLANT PROJECT EXECUTION
Slide 2
Owners in todays chemical and hydrocarbon process industries
have aggressive expansion plans Incorporates additional yearly
capital spending and several mega-scale expansions Resurgence
driven by low energy costs contributes to over 50% of production
cost for most facilities INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE
Slide 3
Major expansions, new facilities and increased maintenance are
draining available engineering, construction and fabrication
resources Mega projects draw resources from small in-plant projects
and plant based technical/operational organizations Large projects
also suffer from lack of skilled resources from project management
level to craft worker BACKGROUND
Slide 4
Problem deepens when project drivers are defined by business
goals to achieve completion date during high price cycles Forces
organizations to implement execution strategies without
understanding complications that would occur (compared to
conventional execution) Example: the fast track execution Requires
level of organizational maturity and rigid and detailed planning
from early project phase to completion BACKGROUND
Slide 5
Plant based project resources must plan and manage projects out
of range of their experience level Concepts are similar Volume of
data & complex interfaces is overwhelming Traditional
decision-making processes /communication lines not structured to
address managements need for decision-making details required on
mega projects PROJECT IMPACT
Slide 6
Plant based practice of going to local alliance contractors
does not always work Typically focus on small, in-plant, project
workload and do an excellent job When overstretched, they struggle
to execute quality deliverables in a timely manner Pricing is also
an issue PROJECT IMPACT
Slide 7
Resources experienced in planning /executing complex projects
tend to cost 12% to 17% more per man hour than plant-based
counterparts Large-sized projects warrant experienced team members
Typically comes with high price Needs to be planned for accordingly
REALITY
Slide 8
Good time to become a Project Manager (PM) from a demand
standpoint OPPORTUNITY
Slide 9
Unfavorable time to become a PM from a guidance standpoint
Minimal mentorship Thrown into a plant-based PM role soon after
being hired No time for honing skills through execution of various
day-to-day roles /responsibilities Expected to manage with 1 - 3
years experience rather than 1015 year maturation process that once
existed Can be excellent plant-based project PMs, but with limited
battle wounds and lessons learned, may have difficulty being
successful on major projects PITFALLS
Slide 10
Owners sometimes hire Project Management Contractors (PMC) as
Owner representatives Not always a successful tactic They believe
this addresses lack of owner personnel in key project positions
PMCs are usually EPC contractors who are unfamiliar with Owner role
TRENDS
Slide 11
Effectively executing mega-scale project in a plant- based
environment can be achieved As in any project, planning is key
Knowing what skills are available Identifying gaps that exist
Understanding what drives our projects Identifying how success is
measured These plans will NOT look similar to those of 10 years
ago! ADDRESSING THE ISSUE
Slide 12
Innovative methodologies need to be developed to allow
execution of projects in resource-constrained environments
Innovative contract strategies are required to capture best
available resources Pricing realities need to be built into
baselines Realistic schedules are necessary to communicate
achievable results Validated cost estimates are required to assure
cost expectations are able to be met Resource plans need to be
better defined (but may not match traditional organization charts)
ADDRESSING THE ISSUE
Slide 13
CONTACT INFORMATION Stephen L. Cabano Pathfinder, LLC
[email protected] www.pathfinderinc.com Corporate Office
11 Allison Drive Cherry Hill, NJ 08003 P: (856) 424 7100 F: (856)
424 6414 Gulf-Coast Office 16225 Park Ten Place Suite 500 Houston,
TX 77084 P: (281) 292 5655 F: (281) 419 9977 Calgary Cherry Hill
Houston Mexico City