Table of Contents

1. INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................1

1.1. Description of Our Business Idea...........................................................................2

1.1.1. The Needs It satisfy. (How Our Product Will Ease a Pain, Fulfil a Dream And
Makes Life Easier and Better For South Africans).....................................................4

1.1.2. Skills to Produce Our Product..........................................................................7

1.1.3. How Accessible The Resources Needed For Our Product Start Up...............7

2. THE WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE AND GANT CHART..................................8

2.1 The work breakdown structure of our ethanol project.............................................8

2.2. The Gantt chart.......................................................................................................8

Diagram 2.1 .Work breakdown Structure.........................................................................9

Figure 2.2.Gant chart...............................................................................................10

3. PROJECT SUPPORTING PLANS...............................................................................11

3.1 Risk management plan with a medium or high weighting......................................11

3.1.1 Contingency plan for Risks with a medium or high weighting................................12

3.2. Quality Management plan.....................................................................................13

Quality planning:.......................................................................................................13

Quality Management Approach................................................................................14

Quality Requirements and Standards......................................................................14

Quality Assurance.....................................................................................................14

Quality Control..........................................................................................................15

4. CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................17

5. Referencing.................................................................................................................18

1
1. INTRODUCTION

Entrepreneurship is the activity of setting up a business or businesses, taking on

financial risks in the hope of making profit. Entrepreneurship is the process of designing,
launching and running a new business, come up with a business idea of our choice and
provide a detail description of the business. Therefore we decide to produce ethanol
fuel. Ethanol fuel is ethyl alcohol, the very same type of alcohol found in beverages.
Used as fuel. It is often used as a motor fuel. Ethanol is commonly made from biomass
such as corn or sugarcane. We are also required to provide information about our
business that our products/or services operates, does it ease pain, make life easier, fulfil
a dream or what needs does it satisfy. To add on top of what we have to provide in the
work breakdown structure to show activities that we must do when starting the
business, we are also required to post it on the Gantt chart that will show the flow of the
tasks. Furthermore we must have the risk management plan of our business ethanol
management plan must be created to determine quality policies and procedures
relevant to the project for both project deliverables and project procedures.

2
1.1. Description of Our Business Idea

We are raising R500, 000 to start an ethanol fuel production company to substitute fuel
and we will call this business idea Ethanol bio fuel. In this recent economy with
increasing gas prices, ethanol production is both cost effective and a smart alternative
to more traditional forms of fuel.(Encyclopedia.com,2019). This business focuses on the
production of ethanol to substitute the use of gasoline and it is a relatively low-cost
alternative fuel that boasts less pollution and more availability compared to unblended
gasoline. Ethanol is a clear, colorless alcohol made from a variety of biomass materials
called feedstock’s (the raw materials used to make a product). Fuel ethanol feed stocks
include grains and crops with high starch and sugar content such as corn, sorghum,
barley, sugar cane, and sugar beets. Ethanol can also be made from grasses, trees,
and agricultural and forestry residues such as corn cobs and stocks, rice straw,
sawdust, and wood chips. (Eia, 2019).

Benefits of our new product.

 Ethanol can be more powerful fuel than gasoline, if the engine is designed for
ethanol fuels.

 Ethanol will not damage any parts of your car as long as it is a late model vehicle
that specifies that the use of ethanol is compatible (refer to the owner's manual to
be sure). In fact, ethanol fuels have been shown to promote cleaner fuel injectors
and have a higher octane rating, less prone to knocking and run-on.

 Ethanol make a car run cleaner because as an effective oxygenate, ethanol

promotes more complete combustion. Gasoline chemicals contain a lot of carbon
resulting in emissions of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. Ethanol contains
very little carbon and also contains oxygen, so it burns a lot cleaner.
(Encyclopedia.com,2019)

Target market.
We will be selling ethanol fuel for consumers such as automobiles and other small
engines like those used in lawn mowers, rototillers, and the like, because ethanol does

3
not burn as clean as higher-end gasoline, we will not be targeting the high-end cars and
SUVs that require high octane gasoline. Also, our product does not work in any
motorcycles or mopeds, and we will therefore not be targeting those markets.

The type of vehicles which our product covers are as follows:

 Trucks—Quarter, half, three-quarter and 1 ton

 Vans—Half, three-quarter and 1 ton

 Nissan

 GMC

 Chevy

 Ford

 Dodge

 Honda

 Hyundai

 Toyota

 All two and four cycle engines

 Garden trackers

 Competitors

Who are your target market customers?

 Consumers

 Manufactures

 Retailers

4
What will motivate their buying decisions?
 The Product quality

 The Price

1.1.1. The Needs It satisfy. (How Our Product Will Ease a Pain, Fulfil a Dream And
Makes Life Easier and Better For South Africans)
Increase in fuel prices at the pump and the forecasted continued rise, has result in
consumers looking for alternatives to gasoline, our product will be filling that need.

The varieties of needs that our product will satisfy and make life easier and better
include:
 Employment creation: Much of the ethanol that will be made will use corn and
other renewable crops raised by our South Africa farmers, thereby creating employment
for the unemployed in the agricultural sector.

 Increasing National Security: Decreasing our dependence on foreign oil has also
become a critical matter of national security. It is in our best interests to be as energy-
independent as possible, Ethanol will help keep more rinds in South Africa as there will
be less dependence on imported light crude oil used for gasoline production in South
Africa.

 By producing Ethanol, it provide support to the farmers and create more

domestic jobs. Due to Ethanol being produces domestically, from crops which are grown
domestically, it will reduce the South African dependence on foreign oil and improve the
nation’s energy independence.

 Biological renew ability. Ethanol is made from growing crops, not fossil energy
sources. The sun is the source of most energy used to make fuel ethanol.

 Being able to grow ethanol-producing crops reduces the pressure to drill in

environmental-sensitive places.

 Cleaner environment. When ethanol is used as an automotive fuel, either by itself

or in an ethanol gasoline blend, the result is less carbon monoxide, lower emissions of

5
hydrocarbons into the air, and less dependence on toxic compounds used to increase
the octane level of automotive fuels.

 Environmental friendly: Ethanol is environmentally friendly, so we can enjoy

cleaner air because cleaner burning engines equals less carbon build-up. Ethanol is
less harmful than unblended gasoline.

 Lower net carbon dioxide emissions caused by the combustion of automotive

fuels; this means less potential for global warming.

 Expanded market opportunity for South African farmers, without hampering

South African food production capabilities.

 Economic opportunities for rural South Africa.

     How does ethanol fulfil a dream

Ethanol have a genuine impact on fuel bill, you spend less on fuel than paying the
normal price of fuel    it decrease the rate of unemployment by employing employees
who will be planting sugar in the farms , watering and packaging. Therefore we will need
Logistics Company, the transportation to move the sugar from farms to the storage and
the process. This means lot of people will be employed to do all this duties. Another
thing ethanol is also considered a renewable energy. It will be easy to get ethanol as we
will produce it and it is cheaper and less costly, unlike fetching it from Botswana to
South Africa which is expensive and is more costly.
The pain ethanol eases.
Ethanol fuel is the least expensive energy source since virtually every country has the
capability to produce it. Corn, sugar cane or grain grows in almost every country which
makes the production economical compared to fossil fuels. Fossils fuels can play
against the economy of most countries, especially, developing countries that have no
capacity to explore them. It, thus, makes sense for these growing economies to dwell on
the production of ethanol fuel to dial back on the dependence of fossil fuel in order to
save revenue.

6
 Ecologically effective: One striking advantage of ethanol over other fuel sources
is that it does not cause pollution to the environment. Using ethanol fuel to power
automobiles results in significantly low levels of toxins in the environment. On
numerous occasions, ethanol is converted to fuel by blending with gasoline.
Specifically, ethanol to gasoline ration of 85:15. The little composition of gasoline
acts as an igniter, while ethanol takes up the rest of the tasks. This ratio of
ethanol to gasoline minimizes the emission of greenhouse gases to the
environment since it burns cleanly compared to pure gasoline.

 Minimizes global warming: Global warming is caused by relentless emission of

dangerous greenhouse gases emanation from use of fossil fuels (oil, natural gas,
and coal). The effects of global warming are catastrophic including changes in
weather patterns, rising sea levels, and excessive heat. Combustion of ethanol
fuel only releases carbon dioxide and water. The carbon dioxide released is
ineffective regarding environment degradation.

 Easily accessible: Since ethanol is a biofuel, it is easily accessible to virtually

everyone. Biofuel means energy derived from plants like sugarcane, grains, and
corn. All tropical climates support growth of sugarcane. Grain and corn grow in
every country. In fact, corn is a staple food in most countries in Africa.

 Ethanol fuel is cost effective compared to other biofuels: It’s not enough to make
sure you get a project done on time and under budget. You need to be sure you
make the right product to suit your stakeholders’ needs. Quality means making
sure that you build what you said you would and that you do it as efficiently as
you can. And that means trying not to make too many mistakes and always
keeping your project working toward the goal of creating the right product.
Everybody “knows” what quality is. But the way the word is used in everyday life
is a little different from how it is used in project management. Just like the scope,
cost, and schedule, you manage quality on a project by setting goals and taking

7
 measurements. That’s why you must understand the quality levels your
stakeholders believe are acceptable, and ensure that your project meets those
targets, just like it needs to meet their budget and schedule goals. Customer
satisfaction is about making sure that the people who are paying for the end
product are happy with what they get. When the team gathers requirements for
the specification, they try to write down all of the things that the customers want
in the product so that you know how to make them happy. Some requirements
can be left unstated. Those are the ones that are implied by the customer’s
explicit needs

1.1.2. Skills to Produce Our Product.

Yes we have the skills to produce ethanol. Our team of seven has four qualified and
experienced Bio-Technology professionals, two qualified Project managers and one
human resource manager.

Also the technology available today allows for the ability for almost anyone to produce
ethanol. The process include four stages which are explained below:

Ethanol production process.

Stage 1: The ethanol feedstock (crops or plants) are ground up for easier processing;

Stage 2: Sugar is dissolved from the ground material, or the starch or cellulose is
converted into sugar. This is done through a cooking process.

Stage 3: Microbes such as yeast or bacteria feed on the sugar, producing ethanol in a
process called fermentation, essentially the same way beer and wine are made. Carbon
dioxide is a byproduct of this fermentation;

Stage 4: The ethanol is distilled to achieve a high concentration. Gasoline or another

additive is added so it cannot be consumed by humans - a process called denaturation.
This way, the ethanol also avoids a tax on beverage alcohol. (E.education, 2019)

1.1.3. How Accessible The Resources Needed For Our Product Start Up.
The resources that are needed for the production of our product will include, land to
plant our sugarcane, land to build our plants, a store to keep our harvested crops,

8
equipment to process the transformation of the harvested corn to ethanol.

All these resources are easily accessible to our team as Mr. Deron Manyaka has
inherited a land from his grandfather and he is willing to let the team use the land for the
execution of our idea, Mrs. Elizabeth who was once a human resources manager is
retiring and she will be donating her pension fund towards the execution of this great
idea and the other team members are willing to bring forward their savings to purchase
the equipment needed the project execution.

2. THE WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE AND GANT CHART

The work breakdown structure will show all activities needed to be done to start up our
business and it will also be posted on the Gantt chart indicating all the deliverables and
milestones of the activities that will be done.
2.1 The work breakdown structure of our ethanol project
Work breakdown structure is the most important method of organising project task, it is
a kind of organisational chart for project. The Work breakdown structure uses a top-
down method of planning whereby a structured view of project is created, starting from
the top with the overall project goal, moving to the clarification of objectives and
milestones, and thereafter planning the details of activities, resources and
assignment(Waldt et al.,2015:60) .

With the aid of the Work Breakdown Structure, All the activities needed to start up the
production of our product will be illustrated. This WBS will help us to manage the
present and plan the future of our project. Figure 2.1 shows how the milestones (larger
task) are divided into individual components.

2.2. The Gantt chart

A Gantt chart originate from Henry Gantt (1861-1919), it is a visual portrayal of all the

milestones of project. A Gantt chart is a graphical representation used in project

management that will show the length of time tasks in the project should take, as
measured against real time. Gantt chart will help our project to run more smoothly
because:

9
 We can easily see the order of tasks.

 We can see project progress in terms of where you are and where you should
be, because each task is given a time allotment.

 We see any dependencies that may exist between tasks. (Bright hub project
management, 2019)

10
 Diagram 2.1 .Work breakdown Structure of Ethanol Production Project start up

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov

Market research

Registration of business
Gathering of information

Obta
Filling paper work
ining
Obtaining fund and raw material

Purchase

Claiming
Setting up of ethanol farm and
plant

Designing
Ethanol Project Finalised

Allocating the other half for plant

Allocating half of the land for crops

Figure 2.2.Gantt chart

The duration of the milestone is indicated on the x-axis and the milestones are indicated
11
on the y-axis
3. PROJECT SUPPORTING PLANS
The key to successful project execution is in its planning. Planning provides the means
to translate the specifications of the project into action and Project supporting plan helps
to design intervention into project plan to prevent potential problems.
3.1 Risk management plan with a medium or high weighting
Risk
What is Risk? A short definition of risk would be :The estimated extent of uncertainty
(Bisschoff et al. 2004:86).Our Project need Risk management plan because in any
project there is always an element of risk and uncertainty such as event that have not
be foreseen and information that had not been available. (Waldt et al., 2007:131).
There will be element of risk and uncertainty in any project, risk management plan will
help us to reduce or limit the influence that risk exert on our project.
Risk management
Risk management is the process of identifying, assessing and controlling threats to an
organization's capital and earnings. These threats, or risks, could stem from a wide
variety of sources, including financial uncertainty, legal liabilities, strategic management
errors, accidents and natural disasters. Security threats and data-related risks, and the
risk management strategies to alleviate them, have become a top priority for
companies. As a result, a risk management plan increasingly includes companies'
processes for identifying and controlling threats to its digital assets, including proprietary
corporate data, a customer's personally identifiable information and intellectual property.

Risk Element Likelihood value Impact value Weighting of risk

Fire hazards 7 10 70
Earthquake 1 10 10
Pesticide 8 7 56
Heavy rain 10 10 100

Table 3.1. Risk register

12
There are events that will ruin our project (For example; earthquakes) but are not likely
to happen at that particular sight, while there are event that are very likely (For example;
pesticides eating our crops) but their effect will be small and alternatives could be found.
Table 3.1 list all risk in order of greatest hazard.
3.1.1 Contingency plan for Risks with a medium or high weighting.
Contingency planning can be regarded as an alternative plan that will be used if a
possible foreseen risk event becomes a reality.
The basic element of contingency planning in relation to our ethanol project production.
 WBS identification number: Number 5.2 indicated in the work breakdown structure
(ensuring availability of land) is a foreseeable risk that we need to plan an alternative
for in case if Mr Deron Manyaka land is not accessible due to any problems. If we
don’t have access to the availability of land, we cannot harvest all the necessary
crops to produce the ethanol fuel. The alternative plan could be that we buy the
crops from other local farmers or have them imported to us.
 The nature of the risk: Our contingency planning here will be to identify the nature of
the risk is it natural disaster or human made disaster then introduce a solution to
solve it promptly. For example; when the natural disasters occur, we will have
alternatives by having extra raw materials, and crops elsewhere to be able to
continue with our ethanol production.
 Trigger events: The trigger event will be prediction of a possible risk when designing
the project objectives and quality standards. For example; we will be using pro-
active control measures that is we would have a routine check of all our raw
materials and predict the foreseeable problems and attempt to solve them.
 Contingency actions: If a foreseen risk event becomes a reality our contingency
action will be to mitigate the negative impact of the risk event. For example if the
season for harvesting corn is long-gone this phenomenon is going to affect the
ethanol production therefore our contingency action in this situation would be to opt
for alternative which will be the usage of sugarcane.
 Responsible person(s): Project managers will be responsible to check the quality of
the product to ensure that it meets the quality standards.

13
 Cost implications: If we are unable to continue with the ethanol production due to our
low quality of previously produced ethanol, our cost implication will rise. The action
that will be put in place to reduce this is having a quality management plan in place.
 Time implications: A storage has been put in place to store all excess raw materials
to make up for the time that might be wasted in our product production should in
case the required materials are not delivered on time.
 Tasks affected: if the pesticides destroy our crops the process of transforming the
crops to ethanol production will be affected.
 Influence on the critical path: If most important job that must be done on time was
postponed it will affect the overall production processes therefore a team will be
appointed to ensure that all important tasks are done promptly to avoid delays

3.2. Quality Management plan

Quality management is a discipline for ensuring that outputs, benefits, and the
processes by which they are delivered, meet stakeholder requirements and are fit for
purpose. Quality management has four very important components: quality planning,
quality assurance, quality control and continual improvement. These include
procedures, tools and techniques that are used to ensure that the outputs and benefits
meet customer requirements.

The Quality Management Plan is an integral part of any project management plan.    The
purpose of the Quality Management Plan is to describe how quality will be managed
throughout the lifecycle of the project. It also includes the processes and procedures for
ensuring quality planning, assurance, and control are all conducted.
Imagine a business that fails to acknowledge the quality of products and services
offered to consumers, Could this business continue to operate despite garnering
negative feedback from the buying market? Regardless of whatever marketing strategy
is employed to keep this business running, without a proper quality management plan, it
becomes nothing more than a loss cause.
Quality planning
The quality planning will be focusing on taking all of the information available to us at
the beginning of the project and figuring out how we will measure quality and prevent

14
defects. The company will have quality policies that states how it measures quality
across the organization as whole, and it’ll make sure that the project follows the
company policies and any government rules or regulations on how to plan quality for
any project at hand. Activities such as the measurement of the quality of the project’s
product will be in place. Guidelines, test runs, or any activity related to project will take
place, and will be tested.

Quality Management Approach

This section describes the approach that our team will use for managing quality
throughout the project’s life cycle.    For our ethanol production project quality will always
be planned into a project in order to prevent unnecessary rework, waste, cost, and time.
Also quality will be considered from both a product and process perspective.
Quality Requirements and Standards
This section will describe how the project team or the quality group will identify and
document the quality requirements and standards.    Additionally, there will also be an
explanation of how the project will demonstrate compliance with quality standards.    The
quality standards and requirements should include both the product and processes.
Quality Assurance
Quality assurance will help our company to meet its clients’ demands and expectations.
High quality will build trust with our customers, which, in turn, makes us competitive in
the market. It’ll saves costs and fixes issues before problems become larger, and will
helps to set and maintain quality standards by preventing problems to begin with.
Investing in quality assurance is indispensable in many industries today. It is most
effective when it’s in place from the start. If our quality assurance is done right as a
company, it’ll provide confidence, tests the product and let the company market the
product with few worries. Having quality assurance in place is especially helpful to any
businesses or companies. It allows businesses or companies to reduce extra costs that
come with retesting, replacing and reselling faulty goods. When customers aren’t
satisfied with a company’s products, the backlash can damage the company’s
reputation, and negatively affect future products and even the entire company. Quality
assurance might also save a company money in legal expenses, especially if its product
isn’t up to industry standards.

15
Process Action Acceptable Process Process Phase Assessment
Standards Interval
Drying corn 60% of harvested corn Production phase Quality check
should be dried before moving to
another activity

Quality Control
Quality control involves the monitoring of the specific project result in order to evaluate
compliance with quality standard and to eliminate unsatisfactory performance processes
and product. Quality control maybe be internally or externally managed.   

Product Physical/Performance Quality Assessment Intervals

Standards Assessment
Activities
Ethanol bio-fuel 100 gallon a day Filling a form after Report to senior
completing daily manager after fulfilling
objective objectives hourly.

Quality Control Measurements

This section contain a sample or useable table used in taking quality measurements
and comparing them against standards or requirements. The most important aspect of
this table is to provide documentation of the findings. If actual measurements do not
meet the standards or requirements then some action must be taken. This may be done
in regularly scheduled project status meetings or as necessary throughout the project
lifecycle.

16
Quality Assurance Log
Tria Date Process Required Actual Acceptable Recommendati Date
l# Measured Value Measure ? (Y/N) on Resolve
d d
4th Fermentati Fermentin 120 kilo No Scheme to 30th
Januar on of sugar g 160 kilo liters recruit more January
y 2021 liters of staff 2021
sugar

Quality Control Log

Cabl Date Item Require Actual Acceptable Recommendatio Date
e# Measure d Value Measure ? (Y/N) n Resolve
d d d
5th Ethanol 100 100 Yes Required value 4th April
Februar productio gallons gallons will be re set to 2021
y n of of 70 gallons pf
2021 ethanol ethanol ethanol bio fuel
per day per day as the
previously goal
is not
achievable or
feasible

17
4. CONCLUSION

Based on our research the ethanol project will greatly change the economic and
environment positively. The project will help to promote the agricultural development
and it also reduce the emissions of greenhouse. The ethanol project will allow a safe
and risk free in environment in which people won’t be affected by pollution or any harm,
unlike fuel which causes pollution and can cause diseases.   
The project on the promotion of agriculture it helps in reducing the country’s
unemployment rate. While some studies think if it threatens the food security or land,
water and biodiversity. The project won’t threatens any of this things as it will have its
own farms for the food security issue and for land, water and bio diversity the more
vegetation we have the eco-friendly environment.

18
5. Referencing

Bisschoff, T., Govender, C. & Oosthuizen, P. 2004. Project Management in Education

and Trianing. Pretoria: Van Shaik.

Bright hub project management. 2019. The gantt chart explained.

https://www.brighthubpm.com/project-planning/6550-what-is-a-gantt-chart Date of
access: 28 Sept. 2019.

E-education.2019. alternatives fuels from biomass sources. https://www.e-

education.gov/alternativefuelsfrombiomasssources Date of access: 1 Oct. 2019.

Eia.2019. biofuels explained ethanol.

https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/biofuels/ethanol.php Date of access: 29 Sept.
2019.

Enclopedia.com.2019. ethanol fuel production.

https://www.enclopedia.com./enterprenures//news.wires-whitepapers-ana-books/
ethanol-fuel-production Date of acces: 26 Sept. 2019.

Waldt, G. V. & W. Fox.2015. A Guide to Project Management 2e.    Cape Town, South
Africa/Juta and Company (Pty) Ltd PO Box 14373, Landowne 7779, Cape Town, South
Africa.

19