Case Study Flashcards
Who did you report into on this project?
Bi-weekly reporting into key stakeholders including:
-my client representatives (director of learning disability, business development and service manager)
-local commissioners (Hertfordshire Council)
Report weekly to my client rep (Head of Asset Management and manager) on progress and financials
Business development and operations to develop scope
How many people were reporting into you?
2no. contractor leads - site manager and contracts manager
Case study: Who agreed the programme for this work with the contractor?
During the joint walkabout held in December 2019, I discussed programme with the contractor including understanding their lead-in times, predicted 4-weeks mobilisation, 3 months building work with completion at the beginning of June.
How was the contractor selected from the Framework?
At the time of purchase they was my clients only available main contractor, and have experience of similar delivery for my client and other organisations
Who agreed the scope for the works
I led a joint scoping survey with the contractor and my clients representative to ensure the scope was devised with the customers needs in mind. I prepared the scope and issued to my clients reps (business development and ops) for approval/feedback before instructing
Who negotiated the task order value?
I negotiated the task order value with the contractors contracts manager ensuring standard items were costed in accordance with the schedule of rates, and reviewing quotes for specialised items. This included a online meeting and email trails to ensure value for my client was achieved
Upon what information was this negotiation based?
Schedule of rates
Quote review
Scope of works from joint inspection
Quantities and measurements
What did the requirement of completion at the earliest possibility mean to you?
The client was unable to provide a definitive date, I therefore considered completion as soon as reasonably possible (without impact to the rest of the programmed works), and ensured I outlined a realistic timeline for the client based on resources, lead in times, decision making etc to ensure they understood what this would be
Why was there a delay to the budget approval?
On this occassion the Client had to keep re-arranging the risk panel meeting due to other priorities for senior management.
Did the contractors programme have any float?
The contractors programme did not outline any float
Did you consider the contractors programme reasonable?
I personally felt the contractors programme was too generous and cautious and could facilitate more works to be carried out simultaneously i.e. the staff and resident bathroom could be carried out simultaneously labour dependant. However I appreciated there was a lot of uncertainty in the industry at this time owing to Brexit and Covid
Case study: Did the contractor agree to the time saving potential of acceleration
Yes the contractor was in agreement. He accepted his original programme was generous and cautious, and accepted acceleration could be accommodated. Due to the long-term partnership, and sensitivity of this particular project, the contractor was keen to support my suggestion to reduce the programme
Did you have any influence of this delay? (re. budget approval)
The delay to the risk panel was outside my control, however I ensured the client was kept reminded of the original programme, and how the delay would impact completion by providing actual versus revised timelines
(Concurrent works) why did the contractor not include this in the original programme?
The contractor admitted he was being generous in his programming, there was a lot of uncertainty in the industry owing to Brexit and Covid
What would the actual time saving be?
We was able to save 3-weeks mobilisation, and reduce construction period from 14-weeks to 11.
What works would have been required during the occupancy of SH? (partial possession)
Lay paving slabs
Renewal of soffits and fascias
New garden shed
Timber sheds for washing machine and dryer
Secondary fencing
Was Option D ever a realistic option?
This could have been accommodated as agreed with both the client, key stakeholders and contractors as a last resort if delays outside our control were occurred due to the time pressures.
Access could be arranged to the contractors via the side gate, and external works were minimal i.e. paving, fencing, soffits and fascias. My biggest concern was the unknown of how this could impact the residents health, however day’s out with the support worker could be arranged to remove the impact.
How would you determine the point of achieving partial possession?
This would be determined by the completion of the internal works which we prioritised in the revised programme. The remaining works would be external only including paving, shed, fencing.
Give me an example of reducing the specification
On purchase of the property the walls and ceilings were wallpapered and generally in good condition however SH was known to have incidents of becoming fascinated with minor flaking, patterns and lines which would encourage him picking the decorations. To mitigate the risk of this, I had scoped to remove the wall paper and fully skim the walls and ceilings to obtain a smooth finish. This was time costly, and disruptive but could have been omitted if time pressures were priority.
With whom in the client organisation did you discuss the scope reduction?
I discussed the scope reduction with my manager, although I recommended against it to mitigate maintenance issues on handover. My priority was to deliver a quality product suited to the client, on time.
