INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT-CONSTRUCTION

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

ECM 743

CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT

NAME: AHMEDNUR MOHAMED ABDIRAHMAN

STUDENT ID: 2021924271

LECTURER: PROFESOR MADYA DR SHEILA A/P

DATE: 4/FEB/2022

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1.0 Introduction

Project managers play the lead role in planning, executing, monitoring, controlling, and
closing out projects. They are accountable for the entire project scope, the project team
and resources, the project budget, and the success or failure of the project. A project
manager, with the help of their team, is charged with multiple responsibilities that span
the five project phases of a project life cycle (initiating, planning, executing, monitoring,
and closing)

Based on my own experience and involvement in a project, the project that I select is to
construct two Storley building house that I experience during construction. In this case
we had five stages to follow so that our project finishes smoothly without any additional
cost and also any additional time.

2.0 Background of the Project

The project is two Storley building house that is located inside the Mogadishu Airport,
Somalia. This consists total of 15 rooms together and 6 washrooms. Each floor consists
5 rooms including the ground floor. The construction of the house started in July 2019
and lasted till February 2020. It took seven months to complete the project. The overall
cost that was spent to the project was estimated $500000 which is RM2050000. The
contractor of the project was Somtech construction company and the clients of the project
was European Union Embassy and the United Nation office in Mogadishu. The purpose
of the project was to accommodate the guest officials who want to visit the country. As
we know there are some concerns regarding the peace in Mogadishu as they can be
targeted by unknown people those are outside the airport, in other words inside the airport
is safe that they cannot move outside the airport.

During house construction project, there were several stages that we had to consider so
that there would be good possibility of finishing on time and also on budget. Those stages
are: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closing.

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 Figure 1.0: Location of the Project site

3.0 Initiation Stage

During the initiation stage of the home construction, there are several things that had
been done that includes like conducting soil tests, figuring out permit requirements, and
determining if the public and the neighborhood has any restrictive covenants that we
needed to follow.

In other words, that would be thinking of as the groundwork phase — where the project
manager was ensuring that a project is actually worth the team’s time before to invest too
much energy into planning or actual related tasks. Thinking about this in a work context,
this stage was including things like defining the project that means it was to describe
exactly the nature and the scope of the project, also identifying the key stakeholders, and
getting it approved by the appropriate parties.

Collectively, the team decided whether the project is not feasible and if they could
realistically complete it within the desired timeframe. This means the project manager
gathered a team of trusted partners together to do meticulous research to determine the
scope and cost of a project.
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The team evaluated and determined this was through a feasibility study and/or business
case document. A feasibility study was to look the goals, costs, and timeline of the project
and to determine if the project manager thinks they have enough resources to pursue the
project.

Figure 3.1: The process of the project initiation

A business case document was defining the reasoning for starting a new project and the
financial benefits. After further research and discussion, the project was found to pass
these evaluation tests, the project moved on to create a project charter or Project Initiation
Document (PID). On that situation, the team deems the project profitable or achievable,
then the project started because of the decision that the teams made after all the
discussions that happened in the initial stage of the project. The major deliverables and
the participating work groups were identified, and the project team began to take shape.
Approval was then sought by the project manager to move onto the detailed planning
phase.

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4.0 Planning Stage

The next stage was the planning phase, was where the project solution was further
developed in as much detail as possible and the steps necessary to meet the project’s
objective were planned. In this step, the team identified all of the work to be done. The
project’s tasks and resource requirements were also identified, along with the strategy for
producing them. This is also referred to as “scope management.” A project plan was
created outlining the activities, tasks, dependencies, and timeframes. The project
manager coordinated the preparation of a project budget by providing cost estimates for
the labor, equipment, and materials costs. The budget was used to monitor and control
cost expenditures during project implementation.

During the planning stage, the project team developed an integrated project schedule that
coordinated the activities of the design, procurement, and construction teams. The project
controls team also developed a detailed budget that enabled the project team to track
project expenditures against the expected expenses. The project design team built on the
conceptual design and developed detailed drawings for use by the procurement team.
The procurement team used the drawings to begin ordering equipment and materials for
the construction team; develop labor projections; refine the construction schedule; and
set up the construction site. Although planning is a never-ending process on a project,
the planning phase focused on developing sufficient details to allow various parts of the
project team to coordinate their work and allow the project management team to make
priority decisions.

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 Figure 4.1: Work Break-down of the construction site

Once the project team has identified the work, prepared the schedule, and estimated the
costs, the three fundamental components of the planning process were completed. This
was an excellent time to identify and try to deal with anything that might pose a threat to
the successful completion of the project. This is called risk management. In risk
management, “high-threat” potential problems were identified along with the action that
was to be taken on each high-threat potential problem, either to reduce the probability
that the problem will occur or to reduce the impact on the project if it was to occur. This
was also a good time to identify all project stakeholders and establish a communication
plan describing the information needed and the delivery method to be used to keep the
stakeholders informed.

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 Figure 4.2: Critical path of the Project

Finally, it was needed document of a quality plan, providing quality targets, assurance,
and control measures, along with an acceptance plan, listing the criteria to be met to gain
customer acceptance. At this point, the project would have been planned in detail and
was ready to be executed.

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5.0 Execution Stage/Implementation

This was where most of the time was spent. A project plan was put into practice. Effective
communication was playing a huge role during execution. To ensure that the budget
stipulated in the planning stage was followed. As to watch the progress of the project, it
was recorded any variations from the initial plan.

Figure 5.1: project execution process

A successful implementation stage was characterized during the construction project by:

• A well-developed team
• Allocation of resources
• Task assignments
• Implementation of project management plans
• Status meetings
• Updated project schedule
• Tracking systems in place
• Modification of project plans

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The implementation phase represents the work done to meet the requirements of the
scope of work and fulfill the charter. During the implementation phase, the project team
accomplished the work defined in the plan and made adjustments when the project
factors changed. Equipment and materials were delivered to the work site, labor was hired
and trained, a construction site was built, and all the construction activities, from the arrival
of the first dozer to the installation of the final light switch, were accomplished.

During the third phase or stage, the implementation stage which also called the execution
stage, the project plan was put into motion and the work of the project was performed. It
was important to maintain control and communicate as needed during implementation.
Progress was continuously monitored and appropriate adjustments were made and
recorded as variances from the original plan. In any project, a project manager spends
most of the time in this step. During project execution, the teams were carrying out the
tasks, and progress information was being reported through regular team meetings. The
project manager used this information to maintain control over the direction of the project
by comparing the progress reports with the project plan to measure the performance of
the project activities and take corrective action as needed. The first course of action was
always to bring the project back on course that was to return it to the original plan. If that
did not happen, the team recorded variations from the original plan and published
modifications to the plan. Throughout this step, project sponsors and other key
stakeholders were informed of the project’s status according to the agreed-on frequency
and format of communication. The plan was updated and published on a regular basis.

Status reports always emphasizes the anticipated end point in terms of cost, schedule,
and quality of deliverables. Each project deliverable produced were reviewed for quality
and measured against the acceptance criteria. Once all of the deliverables have been
produced and the customer has accepted the final solution, the project is ready to monitor
and control.

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6.0 Monitoring and Controlling Stage

This stage was happening simultaneously with the implementation process. Monitoring
and control was to ensure that every item aligns with the project schedule. It was,
therefore, a regular phase that was ought to be revisited during execution.

Monitoring and control kept the project on track. The right control played a major part in
completing the project on time. The data gathered also let the project manager make
informed decisions. The project manager took advantage of opportunities, he also made
changes and avoided crisis management issues.

Once the project has begun in earnest comes the project monitoring and control stage.
In this stage, the project's performance was measured to ensure that it was running on
schedule and within budget. This phase was requiring daily supervision and a dedicated
team of project and construction managers to track progress. Their job was to ensure that
initial plans were up to snuff and to make any ongoing adjustments as needed.
Information was also vital in this stage, and it was up to the project leaders to maintain
project alignment.

A Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) was used to break a project down into small units of
work, or sub-tasks. This made the work easier to manage and evaluate. This also enabled
easier detection of issues, kept the project under control and allowed for easier progress
verification. It also helped prevent team members from feeling overwhelmed.

The project monitoring and control phase was all about measuring the performance of the
project and tracking progress. It was implemented during the execution phase. The main
goal of this phase was to check whether everything aligns with the Project Management
plan, especially concerning financial parameters and timelines. It was the responsibility
of the project manager to make necessary adjustments related to resource allocation and
ensure that everything was on track. To aid this, a project manager conducted review
meetings and got regular performance reports. Monitoring project activity after the project
execution phase allowed the project manager to take corrective actions. Meanwhile,

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considering the quality of work also helped to make the necessary improvements.
Keeping an eye on the budget also helped to avoid unnecessary expenses resources.

7.0 Closing Stage

Once the team has completed work on a project, the project entered the closure phase.
In the closure phase, the project manager provided final deliverables, released project
resources, and determined the success of the project. That mean the major project work
is over. There were still important things to do, including evaluating what did and did not
work with the project.

During the final closure, or completion phase, the emphasis was on releasing the final
deliverables to the client which was the EU Embassy in Mogadishu, handing over project
documentation to the client, terminating supplier contracts, releasing project resources,
and communicating the closure of the project to all stakeholders.

7.1 Project steps for the closure phase

Steps for the project closure phase may include the following:

• Analyzing project performance: it was determined whether the project's goals were
met (tasks completed, on time and on budget) and the initial problem solved using
a prepared checklist. So, it was determined the project goal were met and the tasks
completed on time and also on budget. That means the project was completed
within seven months and the cost that was planned was $500000, the project was
completed and used the budget of 475000 which is less than $25000 planned
budged.

• Analyzing team performance: Evaluate how team members performed, including

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• Documenting project closure: Make sure that all aspects of the project are
completed with no loose ends remaining and providing reports to key stakeholders.
The project was completed with no loose end remaining and the project manager
provided reports to key stakeholders.

• Conducting post-implementation reviews: Conduct a final analysis of the project,

• Accounting for used and unused budget: Allocate remaining resources for future
projects. The unused budged for the project was $25000 and the unused budget
and the remaining resources was allocated and were used for future projects.

The closeout phase included turning over the newly constructed house to the
operations team of the client. A punch list of a few remaining construction items was
developed and those items completed. The office in the construction was closed, the
main office of Somtech that is the company who took the contract is archived all the
project documents, and the company was already working on the next project. The
accounting books were reconciled and closed, final reports written and distributed,
and the project manager started on a new project.

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8.0 Summary

In any project that may take place will not survive if there is no plan in the project.
Planning is like road map that the project managers follow. The planning stage was
the most critical, as it set the foundation of the entire project. At this point in the project,
the team was tasked to define the project itself, identify timelines and uncover the
project's scope from beginning to end.

The most part of the house that was constructed was on execution was stage because
that is where the most work will happen. The project manager used to assign some
individual supervisors and team members that will try to eliminate any obstacles that
may cause the work to stop. In this stage there was another stage that was to consider
and that is project control and Monitor. During the implementation of the project the
project manager and supervisors had to check every work that was done on site so
that there will be no mistakes that happen during implementation phase.

Initiation stage was also important on the project because it was where the project
will start, that means the project manager takes the information provided and creates
a project character. The project character authorizes the project and documents the
initial requirements for the project, it generally includes project purpose, vision and
mission or measurable objectives and success criteria high level project descriptive,
requirements and risks summary milestone schedule.

In conclusion the project ended on time that was seven months and also return some
budget that will be used in the next project. There was small issue that arise during
finishing phase and the project manager solved the issues that arise. Finally, the client
(EU) was happy and satisfied the way that the contractor company done the job
without any major defects happened during construction stages.

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Construction projects are complex which makes project management in construction
equally complex. Project manager was the critical piece of this complex puzzle.
Therefore, understanding the different construction project phases helped to ensure
the process is much easier and efficient. The most important thing was to include the
primary stakeholders including subcontractors as early in the project as possible.
While each phase served an important function, the most thoroughly planned project
was often the easiest and fastest to execute.

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