Student Name: Anas Khalid Abdeslalam

Student ID: 7E3A1579/17651563

Group: 3
Reflective Journal No. 01 Date: 14th August 2017

______________________________________________________________________________________________
Lecture Topic: Project Management EPCC Project
Presenter: Ir. Dr. Edwin NT Jong
Organization:

About the presenter:

Ir. Dr. Edwin NT Jong is an associate professor in Petroleum engineering, he is a registered professional engineer in Malaysia with
board of Engineers Malaysia besides being recognized as a Charted Engineer of Engineering Council, United Kingdom. Ir. Dr.
Edwin NT Jong is Fellow member of the following professional institutions: Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM); Institute of
Materials, Mineral and Mining (IOM3) UK; Institute of Materials Malaysia (IMM). In addition to that, Ir. Dr. Edwin NT Jong is an
authorized assessor to conduct Professional Review Interviews and act as a Professional Scrutineer/Mentor on behalf of IOM3, UK
(Curtin University Malaysia 2017).

1.0 Overview
Project is defined as a nonpermanent sequence of tasks with a charted plan consist of a starting and finishing point for the purpose
of creating a distinctive product, service or results (What is a Project n.d.). Each activity executed to achieve a desired purpose or a
product is considered a project. For example, if a project is less than three month old and consist of no more than 20 workers with
no timeframe it will not be consider a project According to Management study guide (What is a Project n.d.).
The term nonpermanent does not however, include the results or services obtained from the project. For instance, to construct a
highway between two destinations a construction plan must be plotted with a start and end date for the project. However, the new
constructed highway is used to unrestricted period of time. In order to complete the project life cycle, each project must go through
many phases. Dividing the project into multiple phases makes it easier and more covenant to execute. The names and objectives of
each phase or also known as millstone may differ according to the type of the project. For instance, in a construction project the
phases is perhaps divided into survey the location, draw the site plan and start the construction.
The combination of all the phases in the project must complete the life cycle of the proposed project. The process of completing a
project go through many difficulties and challenges which need to be overcame in order to assure the successfulness of the project.
The customer requirements, time and budget limits beside the lack of resources are all factors which can lead to the failure of the
project if no proper project managements exist. According to the Project Management Institute, project management is define as
the “The application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to a broad range of activities in order to meet the requirements of a
particular project” (What is Project Management? 2017). In other words, project management is to effectively achieve the desired
objective of a project with the allocated budget, within the time limit and according to the specified quality. The term ‘management’
is different from ‘project management’ as it is not restricted to certain timeframe or final objective as the project management. In
order to manage a project there are many stages needs to be considered.
The first stage is known as the project conception and initiation, during this phase a decision making team will study and examine
the idea of the project in order to determine if the project can be successfully completed. For example, in a project of building a
chemical plant, the chemical engineers team needs to identify if the proposed production technology is able to generate the desired
amount or not. The term BOSCARD is used in the conceptual phase which stand for “B-Background, O-Objectives, S-Scope, C-
Constraints, A-Assumption, R-Risk and D-Deliverable”.
The second stage is the definition and planning of the project, whereby a project scope is plotted besides calculating the required
budget and resources for the project. The distribution of the tasks and responsibilities among the teams is the third stage of managing
a project. Software development project for example, is subjected to a limited time and budget. Moreover, the project may face
several constraints such as the produced product might be imperceptible and the development process of the software is not
standardized. Therefore, project management is important to ensure that the project will accomplish it objectives within the time
frame and allocated budget.

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 Student Name: Anas Khalid Abdeslalam
Student ID: 7E3A1579/17651563
Group: 3
Reflective Journal No. 01 Date: 14th August 2017

The fourth stage of project management is known as project performance and control. In this stage the progress of the project is
assessed and evaluated by the project manager in order to identify any flaws in the progress of the project. For instance, the project
manager may require to make the necessary changes in the project plan to achieve the initial aim of the project. Tools such SMART
objectives table and Gantt chart are used to analyses the performance of the teams in the project. The SMART table for instance
divide the process into objectives, activities, targets and individual performance of each member or group. Gantt chart on the other
hand defines the activities preformed, task names and start dates into cascading horizontal bar chart (Esposito 2013). The final stage
of project management (Wind-down phase) is to evaluate the entire process to identify that all the proposed tasks are successfully
completed and the client is satisfied with the project outcomes. To successfully manage a project and obtain the desired product or
result, the following constrains needs to be considered:

1- Time: A tight deadline for the project completion forces the manager to reduce the scope of work and increases the cost of the
project in order to finish on time. The quality of the project might become at risk if time is not managed properly. To effectively
manage the time in the project the time spent against the time planned to be spent needs to be recorded. This process helps
monitor the progress of the project ( Time Management Process n.d.). Network logic Diagram is used to manage the time in
the project. The diagram uses a series of blocks connected with arrows consist of a starting and ending point.

2- Cost: Each project requires a specific budget to assure its completion, however the limitation of the funds increases the pressure
on the project manager to complete the project without exceeding the budget. To achieve this target the manager might needs
to reduce the scope of the project and increase the time. The manager also might needs to lower the quality of the project by
reducing the number of qualified worker in the project and ignore some of the possible risks resulted from the project. Cost
management process involves cost estimating, resources planning, cost control and cost budgeting.

3- Scope: The complicity and size of the project govern the scope plan. For example, building a skyscraper 500 meter high requires
a more completed scope to finish, in comparison to a smaller family house. However, the larger the project scope the more time
and resources are required to complete the project. To successfully manage the scope of the project the requirements of the
project needs to be clearly defined and recognized by the project teams to avoid including unnecessary parameters in the project.

4- Quality: Quality in project management refers to quality assurance of the project which is defined as “the planned and
systematic activities implemented in a quality system so that quality requirements for a product or service will be fulfilled.”
(What is Quality in Project Management? n.d.). In order to increase the quality of the project the manager needs to increases
the qualification of the worker in the project and increase the allocated budget. Quality control, Quality assurance and quality
planning are the ways utilized by project quality management to deliver the desired requirements of the project. For example
Savola Edible oil factory consist of two quality departments, Quality control and Quality assurance. The quality control
department objective is to test the oil samples from the production line to insure that the oil is produced according to the
company specifications. The purpose of the quality assurance department is to insure that all the packages and oil bottles are
correctly sealed and packed before leaving the plant site (Savola n.d.). The Deming Cycle is a tool used for quality management
starts with Plan, Do, Check and ends in Act.

5- Human resources: Humans are a fundamental resources in the project, each project must consist of Human resources
department (HR) which responsible for the recruitment and managements of the employees evolves in the project. In order to
fully utilize the human factor in the project, the right people should be allocated in the right place. The higher the qualification
or the number of workers in the project increase the budget and the risk of the project.

6- Communications: Communication in general is an important process in everyday life, according to Lasswell's Maxim
communication is defined as “who says what to whom in what channel with what effect” (Rajkumar 2010). The successful of
each project depends on the efficiency of communications between the project manager and the teams or between the teams
themselves. Less than 10% of the project manager’s time is spent in something other than communicating with his team
members (Rajkumar 2010). Project communication management is important to secure the time, collection and storage of
project information. For example if a project lack the communication skills, incorrect information might get passed through the
execution teams as a result time and resources will get wasted.
 Student Name: Anas Khalid Abdeslalam
Student ID: 7E3A1579/17651563
Group: 3
Reflective Journal No. 01 Date: 14th August 2017

In order to make the communication process effective, there are several factors each project manager is required to fulfil. The
manager needs to ensure a clear and active connection between the stakeholder and the project team. By understanding the
objectives and goals of the stakeholder, the project manager and his team will be able to deliver the stakeholder objectives.

7- Risk management: Each project consist of a risk despite the size and the objectives of the project. However, projects such
chemical plant construction contains a high risk due to the amount of chemicals required to be dealt with during the project. If
the risk is not assessed and contained in the correct methods it may lead to loss in life and properties. Risk management aim is
to minimize the impact of the threats on the project and seize the probabilities of it occurrence. The initial step on project risk
management is to identify the possible risks exist in the project. To identify the risks two fundamental sources are used, people
and paper. People represents the human resources in the project, each individual bring a unique personal experience which
might help spotting the risks and the flaws in the project.

People outside the project can also share some of their experiences and hidden opportunities which might help improve the
project outcomes and avoid any risks of failure. Risks can also be identified by carefully reading and going thrown the project
plan beside older projects which contain a similar aim (Jutte 2016). For further improving the project risk identification
methods, the management may implement the feedback system in which each individual involves in the project is able to give
his opinion in a particular matter. There are many software risks which might affect the project as well as the product, such as
Staff turnover, change in management, change in requirements and product completion.

2.0 Members of engineering project:

Engineering projects involves many people with different tasks and objectives. However the people who can influence the
project the most are:

2.1 Project manager:

Project manager is a person with a passion and experience who is able to manage and guide the project to the desired result.
Project managers are able to sustain the work pressure and withstand the changes during the project. The project manager
is responsible in just about everything in the project. For instance, the project manager is required to participate in the
concept development of the project in order to obtain a clear understanding of the project objectives. The manager is also
required to meet the clients and review the contract documents. In addition to that, the project manager needs to ensure
that all the teams involve in the project are working together effectively and safely to achieve the project goal.

2.2 Project engineer:

Project engineer is a project manager with qualification in engineering or construction. Construction project engineer, filed
engineer and construction engineer are all titles used for the project engineer. Project engineer is the responsible individual
for schedule preparation, pre-planning, resources and budget monitoring (HowlingPixel 2017). The project engineers are
also responsible for keeping the project managers and clients up to date with the progress of the project. In case of any
nonconformance found in the project the engineer is required to make a report stating the issue. The project engineer is
required to be fully aware of the project aim and it commercial aspect.

4.0 EPCC Project:

The term EPCC stand for Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commission. The EPCC project goes through many
stages as shown in the following orders, the pre-conceptual design stage, conceptual design, Front End Engineering Design
(FEED), the detailed design stage, the procurement stage, Construction and installation stage, the commission stage and
finally the production and maintenance stage.

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 Student Name: Anas Khalid Abdeslalam
Student ID: 7E3A1579/17651563
Group: 3
Reflective Journal No. 01 Date: 14th August 2017

Conclusions:

Project management is important and essential for the successful of each project. As it enables the project to achieve its initial goal
within the given time frame and budget allocated. Moreover, project management helps reduce the risks of project failure and create
the proper ways to improve in the project. The lack of proper project management will lead to delays, budget overshoot, and waste
of valuable resources.

References

n.d. " Time Management Process." METHOD123. Accessed August 13, 2017. http://www.method123.com/time-
management.php.

2017. Curtin University Malaysia. February 20. Accessed August 14, 2017. http://engsci.curtin.edu.my/departments/petroleum-
engineering/people-2/edwin-jong/.

Esposito, Emily. 2013. "How to Create a Gantt Chart in Excel." smartsheet. July 8. Accessed August 13, 2017.
https://www.smartsheet.com/blog/gantt-chart-excel01.

2017. HowlingPixel. August 14. Accessed December 1, 2016. https://howlingpixel.com/wiki/Project_engineering.

Jutte, Bart. 2016. "10 GOLDEN RULES OF PROJECT RISK MANAGEMENT." Project Smart. Accessed August 13, 2017.
https://www.projectsmart.co.uk/10-golden-rules-of-project-risk-management.php.

Rajkumar, Sivasankari. 2010. Art of communication in project management. Washington, DC. Newtown Square: Project
Management Institute.

n.d. Savola. Accessed August 13, 2017. https://www.savola.com/en/investments/food-investments/savola-foods.

n.d. "What is a Project ." MANAGEMENT STUDY GUIDE. Accessed August 12, 2017.
http://www.managementstudyguide.com/what-is-project.htm.

2017. "What is Project Management?" Project Management Institute. Accessed August 12, 2017.
https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-pmi/what-is-project-management.

n.d. "What is Quality in Project Management?" Project Management Guide. Accessed August 12, 2017.
https://www.wrike.com/project-management-guide/faq/what-is-quality-in-project-management/.