Planning and Scheduling During Detailed Engineering

Engineering Encyclopedia Saudi Aramco DeskTop Standards

PLANNING AND SCHEDULING DURING DETAILED ENGINEERING

Note: The source of the technical material in this volume is the Professional Engineering Development Program (PEDP) of Engineering Services. Warning: The material contained in this document was developed for Saudi Aramco and is intended for the exclusive use of Saudi Aramco’s employees. Any material contained in this document which is not already in the public domain may not be copied, reproduced, sold, given, or disclosed to third parties, or otherwise used in whole, or in part, without the written permission of the Vice President, Engineering Services, Saudi Aramco.

Chapter : Project Management File Reference: PMT-104.03

For additional information on this subject, contact PEDD Coordinator on 874-6556

Engineering Encyclopedia

Management of Detailed Engineering Planning and Scheduling during Detailed Engineering

CONTENT

PAGE

APPROVING A CONTRACTOR'S DETAILED ENGINEERING SCHEDULE ................. 3 Introduction........................................................................................................... 3 Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedules ...................................................... 3 Approval Criteria for Contractor's Schedule ............................................... 4 Contractor's Planning and Scheduling Organization............................................. 6 Review of Contractor's Scheduling Procedures.................................................... 7 DEVELOPING A PROJECT COMPLETION SCHEDULE (PCS) REPORT .................... 8 Project Completion Schedule (PCS) Report ......................................................... 8 Projects to be Reported ............................................................................ 8 Frequency & Report Period ....................................................................... 8 Approvals and Responsibilities .................................................................. 9 Information Required for the PCS Report........................................................... 10 Project Execution Plan (PEP) .................................................................. 11 Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedule............................................ 13 MONITORING THE PROJECT SCHEDULE PERFORMANCE .................................... 17 Introduction......................................................................................................... 17 Schedule Performance Criteria........................................................................... 18 Intermediate Milestone Method................................................................ 18 Percent Complete Method ....................................................................... 20 Unit Complete Method ............................................................................. 21 Information Required to Monitor Schedule Performance.................................... 23 Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedule............................................ 23 Procurement Tracking Reports ................................................................ 24 Overall Project Schedule ......................................................................... 25 WORK AID 1: GUIDELINES IN THE EVALUATION OF AN ENGINEERING CONTRACTOR'S SCHEDULE PERFORMANCE................................. 26

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GLOSSARY .................................................................................................................. 28 ADDENDUM ................................................................................................................. 29 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Progress Percent Complete Curve................................................................ 20 Figure 2: Piping Isometric Release Curve .................................................................... 22

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APPROVING A CONTRACTOR'S DETAILED ENGINEERING SCHEDULE Introduction Although the planning and scheduling responsibility for Saudi Aramco projects lies with the detailed engineering contractor, the Saudi Aramco Project Management Team (SAPMT) is ultimately responsible for the successful completion of the project. The SAPMT's role is to ensure that the terms and conditions of the contract are met with regards to scheduling, quality and safety. The SAPMT responsibility for schedule control during the detailed Engineering Phase of the project is primarily to protect the Company from schedule delays, poor performance and claims. To avoid any adverse situations, the SAPMT has to assume a proactive role to ensure the contractor's plans will meet Saudi Aramco's project objectives and that the work will be performed efficiently and cost effectively. The SAPMT plays an important role in providing the contractor specific scheduling guidelines and then reviewing the contractor's schedules prior to their implementation. Before the contractor's schedules can be finalized, the SAPMT ensures that Saudi Aramco's comments have been incorporated and the schedules reflect the agreement of all parties involved. Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedules Schedule "A", General Terms and Conditions of the contract, requires the contractor to prepare a detailed engineering schedule for the project. This schedule must be sufficiently detailed to identify all activities that are critical in establishing the schedule milestone and detailed engineering completion dates. Also, it should ensure development of cost-effective schedule, which reflects optimum utilization of the company and contractor's manpower resources. In addition, the contractor should prepare design logic diagrams that define the sequence to be followed in executing the project and completing physical deliverables to support the construction plan.

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Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedules, cont'd. The contractor must provide a design logic diagram showing relevant scheduling information for the start and completion of detailed engineering physical deliverables. The detailed engineering schedules should also incorporate all the procurement activities that take place during this phase. It is essential to identify and show the relationship of procurement and engineering activities and their impact on each other's schedule performance. Approval Criteria for Contractor's Schedule

Upon receipt of the contractor's detailed equipment schedules and work plans, the Project Engineer with the assistance from Planning/Scheduling Engineer should review these documents to ensure that these are viable, reasonable, and cost-effective plans. The Project Engineer should ensure that the schedules reflect the complete workscope and clearly identify the logical completion of all physical deliverables. Being close to the project, the Project Engineer has more knowledge of all project facets than the contractor. He should make sure that this knowledge is provided to the contractor in the development of his schedule plans. The next thing to check is the design logic and sequence of work activities. The Project Engineer should check if the basic approaches in handling activity relationships are correct Can there be reasonable confidence in what the contractor has determined to be the critical or near critical paths? A sampling of durations in different parts of the network and a review of the procedures for establishing durations will help in these judgments. Some of the issues that should be considered during the review and approval process include the following: •

Consistency of milestones with PEP

•

Sound design logic in activity relationships

•

Correct phase-completion sequence

•

Critical and subcritical paths verification

•

Input sources and their reliability

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Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedules, cont'd. •

Compatibility with resource requirements

•

Subcontract work scope - included in the schedules

•

Interface with other groups

•

Constraints such as material vendors

The SAPMT should analyze the schedule plan to test its compatibility with: •

Project objectives & contractual requirements

•

Contractor's execution approach

•

Project's unique characteristics

•

Project work scope

•

Physical deliverables

•

Construction start and project completion dates

•

Existing work environment This is an essential exercise to ensure that the schedule reflects realistic project conditions. As with other review functions performed by the SAPMT, appraisal of the contractor's work plans and schedules is carried out by sampling techniques. The contractor is responsible for the development and maintenance of detailed engineering work plans and schedules. It is the Saudi Aramco Project Engineer's responsibility to check the contractor's schedules only in sufficient depth to ensure that the logic and data used are reasonable and the schedule completion dates are realistic. The level of detail shown on the network should also be reviewed. Critical and Subcritical Paths. In checking the critical and sub-critical

paths activities, PE should review the design logic to verify the following: •

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Are relationships of activities in proper sequence?

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Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedules, cont'd. •

Do the activities have to be done in the specified sequence as opposed to a mix of parallel and sequential activities?

•

Do all the activities have to be 100 percent complete before the start of the next activity or is overlap possible and realistic?

•

Are activity durations reasonable?

•

Are critical path material delivery dates consistent with the construction required dates?

The contractor then should develop a modified schedule plan which incorporates the SAPMT comments. After a formal review, the SAPMT should accept the schedule plan and use it to monitor the contractor's schedule performance. Contractor's Planning and Scheduling Organization In order to get good quality schedule plans from the detailed engineering contractor, the SAPMT must ensure that the contractor has a qualified planning and scheduling function in their organization. The SAPMT should screen, interview and approve the contractor's planning and scheduling staff to be assigned on the project. The Project Engineer should review the contractor's planning and scheduling approach and determine if the proposed scheduling system meets the needs of the detailed Engineering Phase. The contractor's planning and scheduling staff should have prior project scheduling experience. If the contractor's scheduling staff lacks project experience, there may be potential problems in implementing effective schedule controls. The SAPMT must take into consideration some of the following points in reviewing the contractor's planning and scheduling capabilities: •

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Ensure the contractor has a viable scheduling function to support the project needs

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•

Ensure qualified scheduling staff on the project

Review of Contractor's Scheduling Procedures In order to achieve effective schedule controls during the Detailed Engineering Phase, it is essential that SAPMT and the contractors should agree on the schedule development and implementation approach. There should be an agreement on the following key issues: •

The level of detailed scheduling

•

Responsibilities for the approval of schedules

•

Scheduling system to be used in the development of schedule plans

•

Frequency of schedule updates, analysis and reports

development,

review

and

By ensuring early resolution of these issues, and following scheduled guidelines, both the SAPMT and the contractors can concentrate on implementing effective schedule. Without such an understanding, the projects tend to get bogged down in conflicts, pertaining to schedule approaches and their effectiveness in achieving project goals.

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DEVELOPING A PROJECT COMPLETION SCHEDULE (PCS) REPORT Project Completion Schedule (PCS) Report A Project Completion Schedule (PCS) Report is a monthly progress plan for the detailed engineering, material procurement and construction and is prepared on Saudi Aramco Form 6974. (See Addendum 1) During the Project Proposal Phase, a PCS is usually developed in support of the Budget Brief. The PCS is prepared immediately after approval of Prior Approval Expenditure Request (PAER) funds or full Expenditure Request Approval (ERA), since the milestone dates are required for Monthly Progress Update (MPU) and Budget Item Summary Report (BISR) reporting. Projects to be Reported

The SAPMT prepares a PCS for all projects under the control of Engineering & Project Management that have approved PAER or full Expenditure Request (ER) funding. The Job Orders (JO) within a Budget Item (BI) that fall under a single project manager normally constitute the scope of work covered by one PCS. When the JO is assigned to another department or Project Manager, a separate PCS is prepared and updated by the assigned Project Manager. All such PCS's are submitted to the BI responsible Project Manager to be incorporated into the total Project PCS. The overall progress plan for total BI scope is reflected on one PCS and approved by the responsible General Manager. Frequency & Report Period

The initial PCS (revision 0) should be submitted with the first MPU. If the original PCS completion dates for detail engineering, material procurement or construction slip, but have no impact on the BI on stream date, then a revised PCS may be prepared at the discretion of the BI responsible Project Manager.

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Project Completion Schedule (PCS) Report, cont'd. A Project Change Request Form 3000 (G.I. 20.520) and a revised PCS must be prepared and submitted as soon as it becomes apparent that the BI on stream date will be impacted by one month or more. A revised PCS should be prepared in support of the Project Change Request (PCR). Upon approval of the PCR by Project Management and Proponent the responsible Project Manager should submit the revised PCS along with the approved PCR for approval. When a PCS is revised, the SAPMT should include the following information: •

An explanation in the Comments section of reasons for revision

•

A copy of the previous PCS

•

If BI on stream date changes, a copy of the approved PCR

Distribution is per instructions of the Department Manager. Forward a copy to the Supervisor, Financial Analysis Unit, and Resources Planning Department. Approvals and Responsibilities

All PCS's submitted should be approved at the appropriate level. Approvals are required as follows: •

The General Manager will approve the original PCS and revisions to the PCS that affect the BI on-stream date of dependent BI/JO on-stream dates by one month. Should the position of General Manager not exist, then the Department Manager shall be the approving authority.

•

The Department Manager will approve any revisions to the PCS that does not affect BI on-stream date or dependent BI/JO on stream dates.

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Information Required for the PCS Report After the approval of ER funds, the Project Completion Schedule (PCS) report is developed by the SAPMT to establish project milestone dates. It is imperative that the information contained in the PCS is accurate and realistic, because, PCS in fact establishes the project schedule baseline. The project status reports such as Monthly Project Update (MPU) reports compare the actual performance to the information established in the original PCS unless it has been revised. The PCS contains projected percent completions in the following three major work categories of a project: •

Detailed Engineering

•

Material Procurement

•

Construction

In addition, the SAPMT must identify major project milestone dates to track the project performance. The following major project milestones are common to most projects. Some projects may differ in the order that the milestones occur. The following acronyms are used to facilitate input into the PCS. The Project Engineer can add additional milestones, if appropriate, on the PCS form and assign an acronym to them. ERA

Expenditure Request Approval

DE-CA

Design Engineering - Contract Award

LSTK-BPC

Lump Sum Turnkey - Bid Package Complete

PB-BPC

Procure Build - Bid Package Complete

PB-CA

Procure Build - Contract Award

LSTK-CA

Lump Sum Turnkey - Contract Award

CONST-BPC

Construction Bid Package Complete

CONST-CA

Construction Contract Award

CS

Construction Start

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. MC

Mechanical Completion

OS

On stream Date

To complete the information related to planned progress and actual status, the SAPMT relies on following principal sources for project information: •

Project Execution Plan (PEP)

•

Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedule

Project Execution Plan (PEP)

The PEP provides key project milestones that are identified in a PCS. The PEP reflects the SAPMT's plan to execute the project. The PEP becomes the guideline document for the detailed planning and scheduling. It is essential that the schedule baseline and important milestones should be established to compare the project's schedule performance. Most of the project milestones identified in the previous section can be assigned completion dates by using the PEP for a Saudi Aramco project. All Saudi Aramco projects with ERA of $50 million or more are required to have a PEP. Saudi Aramco's project procedures do not mandate that projects with ERA of less than 50 million must have a PEP. It is left to the discretion of the Project Manager to make the decision to have a PEP on a project. However, recognizing its significant benefits in managing a project, it is recommended that a PEP should be developed, irrespective of the ER amount or project complexity. If the project ERA is less than $50 million, then the PEP format and contents can be modified to meet the projects specific requirements. In such cases the PEP does not need the approval signature of Vice President of Project Management.

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. The PEP includes key schedules which helps to establish milestones. These schedule milestones then provide basis to monitor detailed engineering contractor's schedule performance. The PEP typically includes following scheduling information: •

Project Execution Sequence

•

Project Milestone Schedule

Although the above two schedule documents (See Addendum 2) are at a summary level, these do represent the major activities and overall sequence of project execution through various project phases. In the absence of a detailed construction schedule and SAMS procurement plan from a detailed engineering contractor, the planned progress for these two functions can be developed from the schedule information in a PEP. Planned Materials Procurement Percent Completion per month is

calculated by the Project Engineer for input in a PCS report. Material procurement percentage includes both the SAMS and DC procured materials and are reported separately in the PCS report. Detailed for procurement progress calculations are covered in the later modules of this training course. Addendum 3, Procurement Progress Calculations shows an example to calculate progress for SAMS and DC materials. Planned Construction Percent Completion is calculated by the

Project Engineer by using the PEP scheduling information and planned construction percentages. During the initial stages of the project, the construction schedule information is relatively scarce. Although the major construction milestones have been established, the Project Engineer relies on the PEP to develop construction percent completions to complete the construction section of the PCS. The cumulative monthly progress for construction activity is indicated in terms of cumulative percentage complete. In a PCS, all percentages are stated in whole numbers and all dates in numeric month and year.

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. For an initial PCS, the cumulative monthly progress percentages are entered in the Original line in the appropriate month. Revised cumulative monthly progress percentages are entered in the Current line when updating the PCS. Both original and current cumulative progress percentages are shown in the revised PCS. As appropriate, when issuing a revised PCS, actual cumulative percentages complete are shown with an "(A)" notation. The construction percent complete is a weighted physical measurement of construction progress. The method of measuring progress varies depending on the type of project and construction discipline. Nevertheless, the percent complete must be accurate and quantified, i.e., based on the quantity of equipment and or material actually installed at the construction jobsite. The actual progress reporting for construction is covered in the later modules of this training course. Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedule

To complete the detailed engineering section of the PCS, the Project Engineer should enter the planned cumulative monthly progress for detailed engineering, i.e., all engineering accomplished under the ER approved funds. Detailed engineering includes all design office activities to be accomplished with ER approved funds required to achieve mechanical completion. The PCS starting point for progress measurement of detailed engineering will be zero and will begin the month following ER approval. Both original and current progress percentages must be shown on revised PCS. After the award of the detailed engineering contract, the contractor is expected to develop detailed engineering schedules. Based on the SAPMT approved engineering schedules and associated progress curves, information related to detailed engineering planned percent completions can be incorporated in the PCS.

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. The Project Engineer relies on the contractor's progress data to update the PCS with actual detailed engineering status. The SAPMT should verify the sources and accuracy of contractor's detailed engineering progress information. The Project Engineer with the assistance of Saudi Aramco's Cost Analyst & Planning Scheduling Engineer must analyze and approve the progress information prior to its incorporation in the PCS report. Typically the detailed engineering contractor's schedules are used to get the following information for input into the PCS report: •

Planned and actual progress for detailed engineering

•

Planned and procurement

actual

progress

for

DC

materials

Detailed Engineering Progress is provided by the engineering contractor. The SAPMT and the contractor must agree on a progress reporting criteria for the Detailed Engineering Phase of the Project. To calculate accurate detailed engineering progress status, both the SAPMT and the contractor should be in agreement as it relates to following issues:

•

Design logic diagram

•

Number of physical deliverables

•

Schedule milestones

•

Progress reporting criteria

•

Timing and frequency of progress reporting

•

Availability of actual information after progress cut-off date

•

Progress development, responsibilities

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review

and

approval

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. Based on the above information, the Project Engineer with the assistance of the detailed engineering contractor can determine the physical deliverables and their completion schedules to facilitate development of construction bid packages. Normally for calculating detailed engineering progress, 95% of progress should be achieved with the completion of all drawings, bid packages, requisitions, start-up and operating manuals, purchase orders, SAMS allocations and other miscellaneous engineering and related activities. The final 5% progress consists of design office activities not easily measured, e.g., technical support to construction and commissioning, preparation of as-built drawings (if done in the design office), final design and procurement close-out activities, including demobilization of the contractor engineering office. Actual calculations for detailed engineering progress are covered in later modules of this training manual. DC Material Procurement Progress - The contractor's detailed engineering schedule is also used to identify information related to procurement percent completions for DC materials. The cumulative monthly progress for DC material procurement is indicated in terms of cumulative percentage complete. In the PCS, all percentages are stated in whole numbers and all dates in numeric month and year.

DC material procurement activity begins with the technical approval by the SAPMT of the purchase requisition and is complete when the material is "ex-plant" by the manufacturer or vendor. Note that technical bid evaluation and vendor drawing review/approval are engineering functions and manhours associated with those tasks are considered engineering rather than a DC material-procurement function.

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Information Required for the PCS Report, cont'd. DC material procurement activities performed by the detailed engineering contractor that are considered as DC material functions include: •

Buying,

•

Expediting

•

Inspection

•

Traffic

For an initial PCS, the planned cumulative monthly progress percentages are entered in the Original line in the appropriate month. Revised cumulative progress percentages are entered in the Current line when updating the PCS. Both original and current cumulative progress percentages are shown on the revised PCS. As appropriate when issuing a revised PCS, actual cumulative percentages complete are shown with an "(A)" notation. DC material progress is based on three milestones. The description and weighted value for each milestone are: Milestone Description

Weighted Value

Purchase requisition released Purchase order placed Material at site

20% 40% 40%

DC progress percent is measured as: PRs processed x 20% + POs placed +40% + Material at site x 40% Total PRs Total POs Total POs

Purchase-order material at site reflects the quantity of items on the Purchase Order received at the site. The SAPMT must verify the progress information for DC Material Procurement prior to its inclusion in the PCS report.

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MONITORING THE PROJECT SCHEDULE PERFORMANCE Introduction Once the project schedule baselines have been established, based on the Saudi Aramco's Project Execution Plan, Project Proposal, and the SAPMT approved contractor's detailed engineering schedules, it becomes the SAPMT's responsibility to periodically review and analyze the schedule performance. Systematic monitoring of project's schedule performance helps to identify: •

Deviations from the approved schedules

•

Changes in critical and near critical paths

•

Slippages in schedule milestones

•

Changes in project completion dates

•

Work packages or engineering disciplines falling behind the schedule plan

•

Opportunities to enhance schedule performance

•

Areas of conflicts and adverse interfaces

•

Conflicts in material deliveries on construction schedule

•

Any inconsistencies among other project performance indicators

When schedule performance analysis indicates delays in project completion, causes should be identified and corrective measures taken. Proper schedule performance analysis will enable the SAPMT to apply the analysis towards the following planning and scheduling techniques, which are essential in providing management with the proper visibility to effectively monitor and control projects: •

Time impact analysis

•

Schedule forecasting and trend analysis

•

Progress payment analysis

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•

Recovery schedule development

•

Revision to the Expenditure Request (ERC) date

Schedule Performance Criteria Based on the projects unique characteristics and requirements, the SAPMT should develop its own Schedule Performance Criteria for the project. The schedule performance criteria should primarily focus on: •

Overall Project Schedule

•

Contractor's Schedules

The SAPMT is responsible for tracking the schedule performance of the overall project and periodically report project status to the Executive Management. In assessing the overall project schedule performance, the SAPMT incorporates the project work that is under the jurisdiction of Saudi Aramco, and or other contractors, e.g., engineering, construction, etc. In evaluating the schedule performance of the detailed engineering portion of the project, the performance criteria may include following techniques and methods: •

Intermediate Milestone Method

•

Physical Percent Complete Method

•

Units Complete Method

Intermediate Milestone Method

The Intermediate Milestone Method of schedule performance evaluation identifies major events during the engineering phase of a project which represents significant achievements toward the project completion. The milestones are established by the SAPMT, and the completion dates are finalized, after consultation with the contractor. The specific dates for each of the milestones come from the detailed engineering schedule.

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Schedule Performance Criteria, cont'd. The contractor provides the SAPMT with its performance status against the established milestones. If a consistent pattern develops where the contractor is missing schedule project milestones, then this indicates that actions are required to correct the situation. The contractor may be directed to develop recovery plans to ensure the engineering activities are completed as per the original schedule plan. The milestone schedule can also be tied to weighted percentage of completed work and can be tied to progress payments for the contractor. Some of the milestones established to track engineering schedule performance can be: •

Approval of P & ID's and process flow diagrams

•

Complete vendor print reviews

•

Complete civil/foundation drawings

•

Complete structural design

•

Complete design model

•

Complete piping isometrics

•

Technical Reviews

•

Complete bid packages for construction

The milestones can be customized to project requirements and are influenced by the project's critical path. The schedule milestones for the detailed engineering should be based on the design logic diagram and must support the PEP. Systematic and orderly completion of intermediate milestones will provide a clear indication that the detailed engineering is proceeding on schedule and the project completion date will be met as planned.

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Schedule Performance Criteria, cont'd. The 30%, 60% and 90% reviews are designed to ensure that the detailed engineering contractor develops the physical deliverables in a sequence which is consistent with the approved design logic for the project. Each of these reviews indicate the physical deliverables that should be ready for SAPMT's review and approval. Percent Complete Method

Each of the project physical deliverables is assigned estimated manhours to perform that work. The duration and sequence of activities are backed by a detailed CPM design diagram, logic and man-hours estimate. Total aggregation of man-hours, divided by time units, e.g., days or months, results in a percentage progress curve for the project. These curves are called Progress Percent Complete Curves (See Figure 1) and are used to track actual schedule performance. As each activity is completed, its weighted percentage is credited to actual completion. The total aggregated actual percent complete is then compared with the planned progress to date.

Data Date

100

80 Legend Plan

60 Actual Forecast

40

20

JUN

JUL AUG

SEPT OCT 1993

NOV

DEC

JAN

FEB

MAR APR 1994

MAY JUN

JUL

Figure 1: Progress Percent Complete Curve

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Schedule Performance Criteria, cont'd. If the actual progress falls behind the planned curve, then it gives an indication that the project is falling behind schedule. In evaluating performance with this method, one should also be careful that even though the curve may indicate that project progress is ahead of the plan, but in actuality the project completion date may be in jeopardy, as the critical path activities could be behind the schedule plan. This approach to schedule performance evaluation should take into consideration other project status information, such as: •

CPM schedule analysis

•

Status of schedule milestones

•

Man-hour expenditure curve

•

Status of physical deliverables

The schedule performance evaluation with consideration of above information will ensure that the SAPMT will not make erroneous project assessment based on incomplete and inconclusive project data. Unit Complete Method

The Unit Complete Method of detailed engineering performance measurement uses as its basis the actual completed physical deliverables, such as engineering drawings, work packages, etc. For examples, to track detailed engineering progress the physical deliverables may be broken down by: •

Number of drawings

•

Number of technical specifications

•

Number of piping isometrics drawings

•

Number of bid packages for construction

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Schedule Performance Criteria, cont'd. Each work package in an engineering discipline is assigned weightage based on the work to be performed. Based on the schedule, the aggregated numbers are plotted and are used as a planned curve to compare the actual performance. Figure 2 shows release of the piping isometric drawings to the pipe fabricator. A quick analysis of this curve indicates that the release of piping isometrics is falling behind schedule and may impact the pipe fabrication and eventually construction schedule.

Data Date

1000

800 Legend Plan

600 Actual

400

200

November

December

January

February

March

April

May

Figure 2: Piping Isometric Release Curve The actual number of completed documents is plotted against the plan. Any deviations from the base plan alert the SAPMT of possible trouble in meeting the project schedule plan. In addition to the curve, the critical work items should also be closely monitored to track their performance.

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Information Required to Monitor Schedule Performance The SAPMT utilizes various scheduling and progress tracking documents to monitor project's schedule performance. It is not possible to accurately assess the schedule performance by merely analyzing the project progress and schedule alone. The SAPMT utilizes different project control and progress documents to evaluate/analyze the accurate status of a project. Contractor's Detailed Engineering Schedule

The contractor's detailed engineering schedule is one of the principal documents to monitor project's schedule performance. The contractor develops this document to reflect the schedule plan for all the work scope and physical deliverables associated with the detailed engineering and procurement. After a detailed review by the SAPMT, this contractor's detailed engineering schedule is approved. The approved schedule is then used as the schedule baseline for the Detailed Engineering Phase of the project. At each reporting period, the contractor makes schedule updates and performs a schedule analysis to ascertain the performance to date. The update should identify the following information which is used to monitor the schedule performance: •

Is the project completion date still valid?

•

How may activities are completed as planned?

•

How many activities are behind schedule? –

An exception report is developed showing the activities which are behind schedule.

•

Are there any changes in critical path and/or sub critical path?

•

Which activities are falling behind schedule? –

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Identifies work areas or disciplines which are lagging in schedule performance.

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Information Required to Monitor Schedule Performance, cont'd. •

Any impact of engineering activities on procurement effort?

•

Does the detailed engineering progress support the planned construction start date?

This information is analyzed to develop an assessment of overall schedule performances for this project. Procurement Tracking Reports

Procurement Tracking Reports provide valuable information related to the progress status of the materials procurement program. By implementing effective and informative track of procurement activities and delivery dates, the SAPMT can ascertain if the procurement effort supports the current schedule plans and project completion dates. The critical materials are closely tracked to ensure that these are procured in a timely fashion and support the critical path activities as planned. Any deviations or conflicts with construction requirements are highlighted, and corrective steps are taken to improve the material delivery dates. A good material tracking report should provide the following information: •

Is the procurement program proceeding as planned?

•

How many items are falling behind the delivery schedule? –

•

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Each item is identified in exception reports

What is the procurement status of critical items?

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Information Required to Monitor Schedule Performance, cont'd. Overall Project Schedule

The project's overall project schedule is utilized to status the actual schedule performance and compare it against the baseline scheduling information. Since it is a time-scaled document, it is easy to visualize the actual status and identify trouble spots. By using this document, the schedule status of major milestones are easily identified and schedule performance is assessed. By updating the document, the SAPMT can easily ascertain if the project completion date is still achievable or in trouble.

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WORK AID 1:

GUIDELINES IN THE EVALUATION OF AN CONTRACTOR'S SCHEDULE PERFORMANCE

ENGINEERING

The Work Aid provides guidelines to participants in the evaluation of an engineering contractor's schedule performance. Guidelines: Some possible answers are as follows: Q1: • • • • • • • • •

Consistency of milestones with PEP Sound design logic in activity relationships Correct phase-completion sequence Critical and subcritical paths verification Input sources and their reliability Compatibility with resource requirement Subcontract work scope - included in the schedules Interface with other groups Constraints such as material vendors

• • • • • • • •

Schedule deviations – planned vs. actual Change in Critical Paths Any changes in project completion dates Work categories or areas falling behind the plan Opportunities to enhance schedule performance Areas of conflicts and adverse interfaces Material/equipment shortages Any inconsistencies with other project performance indicators

• • •

Detailed Engineering Progress DC Material Procurement Status Project Schedule Milestone Status

Q2:

Q3:

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Q4: Milestone Description

Purchase requisition released Purchase order placed Material at site

Weighted Value

20% 40% 40%

DC progress percent is measured as: PRs processed x 20% + POs placed +40% + Material at site x 40% Total PRs Total POs Total POs

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GLOSSARY BB

Budget Brief

B1

Budget Item

BISR

Budget Item Summary Report

CPM

Critical Path Method

Critical Path

A series of activities representing the longest uninterrupted path from the start to completion of a network

DC

Direct Charge Materials

ER

Expenditure Request

ERA

Expenditure Request Approval

ERC

Expenditure Request Completion

JO

Job Order

MPU

Monthly Project Update Report

PAER

Prior Approval Expenditure Request

PCR

Project Change Request

PCS

Project Completion Schedule Report

PEP

Project Execution Plan

PMC

Program Management Contractor

PSE

Planning Scheduling Engineer

SAMS

Saudi Aramco Material System

SAPMT

Saudi Aramco Project Management Team

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ADDENDUM 1.

Project Completion Status (PCS) Report

2.

A.

Project Execution Sequence

B.

Project Milestone Schedule

3.

Procurement Progress Calculations

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ADDENDUM 1

Project Completion Status (PCS) Report

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ADDENDUM 2A

Project Execution Sequence

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ADDENDUM 2B

Project Milestone Schedule

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ADDENDUM 3

Procurement Progress Calculations

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