The Practitioner Handbook of Project Controls

PART I: GETTING STARTED

　

1. Project fundamentals

Dennis Lock

Different types of project

Stakeholders

Multiple projects and programmes

Professional organizations

 

2. Introducing project controls

Dennis Lock

The project controls environment

Questions of priority

Project specification and scope

Contract administration

Purchasing and materials control

Cash flow

Progress against schedule

Controlling risk

Project people

Health and safety

Quality and reliability

 

3. Project authorization

Shane Forth and Dennis Lock

Internal projects

Project authorization

Project registration and numbering

Conclusion

 

4. Control principles

Dennis Lock

Control cycles

Principles of planning and scheduling

Controlling progress

Controlling project costs

 

5. Essential Coding Structures

Dennis Lock

An introduction to codes

Coding consistency throughout an organization

Organizational breakdown structures and codes

Resource codes

Project identifier codes

Coded work breakdown structure

Cost breakdown structure

Avoiding unnecessary complication

Part numbers

　

PART II: PROJECT ORGANIZATION

6 Organization structures

Dennis Lock

Introduction to organizations and management control

Coordinated project matrix organizations

Balanced matrix organizations

Team organizations

Conclusion

 

7. More complex organizations

Shane Forth

Hybrid organizations

Contract matrix organizations

Joint venture and consortium organizations

Joint venture integrated team organizations – what can go wrong?

 

8. The project management office

Shane Forth

What’s in a name?

PMO organizational structures

Different types of PMO

Essential PMO services

Staffing a PMO

Conclusion: challenges for the PMO manager

　

PART III: COST CONTROL

9 Introduction to cost accounting

Dennis Lock

The finance department

Costs

Direct labour costs

Accounting for project materials costs

Credit control

Conclusion

 

10 Introduction to cost estimating

Dennis Lock

Relevance of cost estimating to project controls

Reliability and accuracy of project cost estimates

Project definition

Documenting the project cost estimate

Overhead costs

Below the line costs

 

11 Cost estimating for construction

Shane Forth

Optimism and risk

The importance of project scope definition

Foreign currency exchange rates

Lang and Hand factors

Predicting labour hours: use of norms at composite and elemental levels

International location factors

 

12 Cost estimating accuracy

Shane Forth

The myth of accuracy in cost

Degree of confidence in cost estimates

Rating the project definition

Estimate scorecard

Reference class forecasting

Documenting the estimate basis

Meetings during cost estimating

Reviews and checks

 

13 Project cost accounting and control 1

Dennis Lock

Introduction

Cost control interfaces

Cash flow

Levels of authority for project expenditure

Timesheet management

Conclusion

 

14 Project cost accounting and control 2

Dennis Lock

Overhead costs

Cost reporting

Debtors

Close out

 

PART IV: SCHEDULING

15 Basic planning methods

Dennis Lock

Identifying and listing the project tasks

Estimating task durations

Elementary planning methods

Gantt charts

Project milestones and their implications for project control

 

16 Critical path planning

Dennis Lock

Introduction to critical path methods for project planning

Activity-on-arrow networks

Different kinds of float

Activity-on-node (precedence) network diagrams

More detailed descriptions of float and slack

Sketching an initial network diagram for a new project

Calendars and calendar dates

Schedule errors

A case example of planning to rescue a project in distress

 

17 Accelerating the project

Tony Marks

Reviewing the duration estimates and project milestones

Accelerating project tasks

Compensation factors for the costs of accelerating work

Conclusion

 

18 Scheduling project resources 1

Dennis Lock and Tony Marks

Introduction

Scheduling people with specific skills for project tasks

Threshold resource levels

Scheduling cash flows

 

19 Scheduling project resources 2

Tony Marks

Introduction

Resourcing the plan

Resource planning and aggregation

Levelling the resource schedule

A simulation example

Predicting expenditure and cash outflows using the project schedule

The schedule baseline

Software options

Conclusion

 

20 Schedule technical integrity

Shane Forth

Introduction

The human factor

Review of good practice

Documenting the schedule basis

Maintaining technical schedule integrity throughout the project lifecycle

References and further reading

 

21 Controlling project manufacturing

Aydin Nassehi

The P:D ratio

Sequencing

Production management strategies

Material requirements planning

Manufacturing resource planning

Lean production

Interfacing production management and project management

 

22 More specialized scheduling

Dennis Lock

Standard project start-up plans

Rolling wave planning

Line of balance techniques for construction projects

Critical path network modules and templates

Conclusion

　

PART V: RISK MANAGEMENT

23 Introduction to risk management

Tony Marks

Introduction

Insuring against risk

Introduction to project risk management methods

Risk cultures

Risk management and opportunity

Costs and benefits of risk management

 

24 Qualitative risk management

Tony Marks

Introduction to risk management processes

Stage 1: Risk identification

Stage 2: Risk impact analysis

Stage 3: Risk probability analysis

Stage 4: Calculating and using risk exposure values

Stage 5: Risk mitigation

Stage 6: Risk monitoring and review

The important role of risk registers

　

25 Quantitative risk management

Tony Marks

Introduction

Monte Carlo simulation

Mapping the risks

 

26 Useful risk management tools

Tony Marks

Introduction

Brainstorming

Evaluating risk and reliability using cause and effect diagrams

The Ishikawa fishbone diagram

Check sheets

Problem analysis using the ’5 ‘Why’ method

Concentration diagrams

Pareto charts

Risk breakdown structures

Decision-making risks

Decision tree analysis

Delphi technique

SWOT analysis

　

PART VI: PURCHASING AND CONTRACTS

27 Controlling purchasing

Dennis Lock

Introduction to the law of contract

Local small value purchases made informally

Enquiry and purchase schedules

Purchasing lifecycles

Communications between the project engineering and purchasing functions

Monitoring project purchasing costs

Shortage lists

Inspection and expediting

Transport arrangements

Audit and fraud prevention

　

28 Project contracts

Shane Forth and Dennis Lock

Maintenance and service contracts

Composition of contract documents for project operations

Contract terms and payment structures

Contract variations

Contract administration

　

PART VII: MONITORING AND MEASURING FOR CONTROL

29 The integrated baseline

Alan McDougald

Individual project baselines

Creating initial baselines

The integrated baseline

 

30 Reviewing the integrated project baseline

Shane Forth

Preparation

Overview of the IBR process

Typical IBR questions in structured and semi-structured interviews

IBR closeout

 

31 Managing progress

Dennis Lock

General observations

Relevant management styles

Progress measurement methods

Corrective measures

When the news is bad

Updating schedules and records

Managing the progress and quality of purchased materials and equipment

Priority allocation in manufacturing projects

Progress meetings

Progress reports

 

32 Controlling changes

Dennis Lock

Change factors in relation to project control and performance

Design freeze

Change requests and documentation

The change decision process

Emergency procedures

Documentation

Actions after a project change has been requested

Build schedules and traceability

When project changes are welcome

Effect of changes on earned value analysis

 

33 Performance measurement and analysis

Tony Marks

Introduction

Measuring earned value

Benefits of earned value analysis

Key performance indicators used in earned value analysis

An earned value case example

Earned value analysis reliability

What if the prediction is bad?

 

34 Forecasts and corrective actions

Dennis Lock and Shane Forth

Forecasting

Warning signs

Methods for accelerating progress

Unconventional rescue methods

Desperate measures

Calling in the doctor

Keeping the stakeholders informed

　

PART VIII: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS

35 Communications and documentation

Dennis Lock

Communicating work instructions

The push-pull nature of project communications

Project communication standards

Escalating issues

Document ownership and retention

Registers and schedules

 

36 Controlling archives

Dennis Lock

Data handling and storage policy

Reasons for retaining project documents

Coding data for filing and retrieval

Storage media

Care of documents in transit

Disposal

　

37 Meetings

Dennis Lock

General

Too many meetings?

Project meetings room

Conduct of formal meetings

Kick off meetings for new projects

Initial meetings for in-house management change projects

Project progress meetings

 

38 Giving controls high visibility

Shane Forth and Dennis Lock

Flip charts, whiteboards and blackboards

Bar charts and Gantt charts

Histograms

S curves

Pie charts

Sticky notes

Flow charts

Likert charts

Line of balance charts

Matrix charts

Bubble diagrams

RAG indicators

Photography

Dashboards

4D building information management

 

PART IX: ASSURANCE AND GOVERNANCE

39 Project reviews and audits

Alison Lawman

Introduction

Purpose of reviews

Types of reviews

Audits

Project audit

Challenges

 

40 Governance of controls

Tony Marks

Introduction

The OGC and P3M3

Maturity levels

Conclusion

　

PART X: PEOPLE

41 Managing project people

Nigel Hibberd

Communication

Motivation

The project team

People affected by management change projects

 

42 Performance improvement methods

Dennis Lock

Communities of practice

Action learning

Benchmarking

 

43 Managing yourself and your career

Lindsay Scott

Introduction

Bodies of knowledge: professional associations

Continuing professional development

Taking time to reflect

Relevant skills

Work-based behaviours

Managing your career

Future careers in project controls　

 

PART XI: CASE EXAMPLES

Case A: The Herbert-Ingersoll Tragedy

Dennis Lock

The owners

The start-up plan

The downward spiral to disaster

 

Case B: The Channel Tunnel Project

Dennis Lock

Outline project description

Flaws in the business plan

Success or failure?

 

Case C: Losing and regaining control

Dennis Lock

Background and organization

The important relationship between organizational structure and ability to control

Biography

Dennis Lock began his career as an electronics engineer in a research laboratory, but has since served many years in project and administration management in the heavy machine tool and non-ferrous mining industries. Dennis has also carried out successful consultancy assignments in Europe and the United States, and was for eight years an external lecturer in project management to master’s degree students at two British universities. He is a fellow of the Association for Project Management and a member of the Chartered Management Institute. As a best-selling author, he has written or edited well over 50 books, many published in multiple languages.

 

Shane Forth is a Fellow of the Association for Project Management and the Association of Cost Engineers with over 40 years’ experience in the oil, gas, nuclear power and other industries. As ‘GO FORTH’ he provides consultancy services to help organizations develop the skills of their project management people. Shane sits on working groups and lectures at universities and events. For his MSc he won the Stephen Wearne Award for best overall performance. He also won APM’s Geoffrey Trimble Award for best master’s post-graduate dissertation. Shane has been honoured twice by the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (including a national award for individual leadership and significant contribution to training and development).

"I have been working in the project controls industry for over 30 years now and personally, I’ve always struggled to find an expert-based all-in-one book that could confidently tackle in-depth project controls topics. Thankfully, today, the current project controls professionals are blessed to have this wonderful handbook; The Practitioner Handbook of Project Controls. Shane Forth and Dennis Lock unveil the secrets of decades worth of project controls experience across many industries and mega projects; not only with the ambitious project controls professionals who needs to excel in their careers, but also within all levels of project and construction management individuals. This unprecedented project controls ‘Practitioner Handbook’ is an indispensable and a must-have reference to guide projects teams. This book ensures the successful delivery of projects throughout all the project stages from pre-initiation all the way to construction completion, operation and maintenance… Additionally, the authors share this invaluable knowledge along with some practical case examples from real-life projects. I would highly recommend this book to all my colleagues within project controls, construction management, project management and construction contracts admission practitioners. The Practitioner Handbook of Project Controls is simply an essential roadmap for any project’s success!" -- Dr Monir Moustafa, Senior Project Controls and Governance Director