Hangzhou Bay Bridge Project Management - Case Study Example

Project analysis report Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Code: Date of Submission: Executive summary This project analysis report discussed the various concepts in relation to Hangzhou Bay Bridge which was the project completed successfully. The project was divided into four phases which are initiation phase, designing phase, implementation and the evaluation phase. The report has also discussed the main stakeholders to the project who are the employees, the project manager and the suppliers as well as the contractor who the design engineer. The success factors discussed in this report which determined the success of the project include careful planning and availability of adequate resources. From this project analysis report, I leant effective communication skills and the project management tools to be used to manage the project. Introduction Project management is the process of ensuring that resources are integrated effectively to achieve the objectives of the report. The success of any project is determined by the skills possessed by the project management team. Experienced project managers tend to achieve the project objectives unlike the managers who do not possess the project management skills (Kerzner 2003). In addition, there are some factors which determine the success of the project like the effective utilization of the resources. Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the project which was completed successfully in China. It is the project which was initiated in the year 2008 and it was all about building the bridge across the Hangzhou Bay. It is the longest bridge globally which covers about 35.673 kilometers. The project has a shape of S shape which has six lanes. The project was initiated to easy communication between Shanghai and Ningbo. The project had a total cost of 11.8 billion Yuan (Hangzhou Bay Bridge 2010). The following are the main objectives of the project; I. Ease transport between Shanghai and Ningbo with the aim of improving the trade between the two cities II. The project was aimed at reducing the road congestion between Shanghai and Ningbo III. To reduce road accidents between Shanghai and Ningbo as a result of using the long road transport The project eases transport between the two towns and mostly benefits the Zhejiang province. In appendix 1 below shows the picture of the Hangzhou Bay Bridge. Project stakeholder analysis Stakeholder analysis is the most important factor in determining the success of the project. The needs and expectations of the stakeholders should be taken into consideration to ensure they participate fully in the management of the project to achieve the desired objectives (Kerzner 2003). The following were the key stakeholders in managing the project; The employees helped the project manager to effectively manage the project. The employees provided their competent skills with the aim of achieving the objectives of the project. Failure to consider the interests of the employees the project could not have been achieved successfully (Kerzner 2003). The project manager should motivate the employees so that they can be committed to their tasks. There was also the chief designer who was engineer Wang Rengui. The engineer contributed to the success of the project by developing appropriate technology which helped to eliminate the technical barriers during the project implementation (Pennypacker 2002). Therefore the chief designer contributed to the success of the project and was compensated effectively. The project manager was also important in achieving the goals of the project. Engineer Lv Zhongda applied the competent project management skills to utilize the resources effectively and this led to the success of the project (Pennypacker 2002). The engineer was able to mobilize effective utilization of resources like human skills and financial resources. The suppliers on the other hand played an important in ensuring the success of the project. The suppliers of the materials were encouraged to supply the materials in time with required quality to ensure quality work by the project management team (Pennypacker 2002). There was no stoppage of the project as a result of inadequate resources thus the material suppliers played an important role in ensuring the project was a success. Finally, the government played an important role in the success of the project. The project was financed by the government by a greater percentage. Therefore the government helped to ensure there are adequate resources to ensure success of the project (Pennypacker 2002). The legal process was not too bureaucratic thus the materials were acquired at the required time. The project management The project was managed successfully and that is why it was implemented successfully. To start with, the project was divided into four phases. The first phase of the project was the initiation stage. This is the phase whereby the project was identified and various tasks were identified (Rad & Anantatmula 2005). In addition, the project objectives were formulated at the initiation stage. The next phase of the project was the designing stage. This is where the project manager designed various systems which were applied during the project. The project manager identified the tasks and the duration each task could take as well as the cost estimated each task will consume (Rad & Anantatmula 2005). This is the phase where the project manager should take extra care to ensure the resources are allocated effectively. The third and very crucial phase of the project was the implementation phase. This is the phase whereby the project theory is being put into practice. The communication system is the key to the success of the implementation phase. Both parties should be able to relate well to ensure the resources are utilized effectively (Rad & Anantatmula 2005). The project manager takes the responsibility of motivating the employees to offer their best skills so that the project can be implemented successfully. The strategy which was applied by the project manager during the project was ran-to-plan strategy. This is the strategy which was applied to ensure that the planned activities are implemented according to the laid down procedures. This implies that all the tasks were planned effectively by the project management team to ensure no conflict of interest (Ramakrishna 2010). This strategy enabled the project managers to implement the strategies effectively which led to successful achievement of the objectives set. There was careful planning during the project planning phase. Through careful planning, the resources of the project were utilized effectively. For instance the human skills were maximized since there was no idleness as a result of lack of resources. Careful planning during the project planning g process helped to improve communication among the project stakeholders. The project management team was able to draft the communication structure which should be followed by all the stakeholders. For instance, the supervisors were expected to compile weekly reports and submit the to the project manager (Ramakrishna 2010). This improved communication among the stakeholders thus improving the teamwork. Careful planning also helped to manage the conflicts among the employees and the management. This was possible because of the effective communication strategy developed by the project manager. The project manager applied various project management tools to achieve the expected outcome. In the first place, the project manager used the project plan to describe the details of the project and the scope of the project. The project plan also helped to determine the allocation of the resources and the expected deadlines for various tasks (Ramakrishna 2010). Moreover, the project manager applied the milestone checklist which was updated weekly to determine if the planned outcomes are on track. This helped to improve the monitoring of the project tasks. Critical success factors The critical factors which enabled the project to be implemented successfully include the availability of adequate resources. The resources included the finance and the materials which were used to construct the bridge. These resources ensured that the project did not stop at any given time and that the critical path was developed and realized at the end of the project. The assets like computers and machines were also available to handle the project work (Khang & Moe 2008). On the other hand, the project was accomplished successfully since the project management team was experienced. The project manager and the employees were provided with adequate training to be equipped with relevant skills in the construction of the bridge (Khang & Moe 2008). Through training the employees were motivated thus offered their best skills to implement the project tasks. Careful planning was another crucial success factor which helped to improve the achievement of the project. Through effective planning, the resources were allocated effectively and the project manager was able to monitor the implementation of the various tasks (Khang & Moe 2008). Through effective planning there was good communication system which helped to manage the conflicts among the project stakeholders leading to its success. Lessons leant From this project analysis report, I have been able to learn a number of lessons. In the first place, I leant the effective communication skills. I am now able to formulate effective communication system which will help to mobilize the ideas of the stakeholders of a project. I have also leant project management skills. From this project analysis report, I have been able to understand the various phases of a project and how to develop the project objectives. Finally, I have also leant the skill of identifying the critical success factors which help to improve the achievement of the project objectives (Pennypacker 2002). In the future projects, I will improve the communication and inclusion of the stakeholders in decision making to ensure their needs are also met during decision making. Conclusion Project management skills are important in ensuring that the project objectives are achieved. Hangzhou Bay Bridge was the project which was completed successfully due to the project management skills which were applied. The main stakeholders of this project were the employees, the project manager, the suppliers and the design engineer. The project was divided into phases which are initiation phase, the designing phase, implementation and the evaluation phase. The main success factors which helped to ensure the success of the project were adequate availability of resources like finance, careful planning and availability of materials. The lessons I leant from this project analysis report include communication skills and project management tools. References Engineering Daily 2014, Project Spotlight: Hangzhou Bay Bridge, retrieved on 12th Sep 2014 from http://www.engineeringdaily.net/project-spotlight-hangzhou-bay-bridge/ Hangzhou Bay Bridge 2010, About Us, retrieved on 12th Sep 2014 from http://english.cri.cn/4026/2008/07/20/1901s383263.htm Kerzner, H 2003, Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling JohnWiley and Sons. Khang, D & Moe, T 2008, Success Criteria and Factors for International Development Projects: A Life-Cycle-Based Framework, Project Management Journal, Vol. 39, No. 1, Pp. 72- 84. Pennypacker, L 2002, Managing Multiple Projects: Planning, Scheduling and Allocating Resources for Competitive Advantage, CRC Press, New York. Rad, P & Anantatmula, V 2005, Project Planning Techniques: Management Concepts, John Willey and Sons, New Jersey. Ramakrishna, K 2010, Essentials of Project Management,PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd, Boston, Massuchetts. Appendix Figure 1: Hangzhou Bay Bridge Figure 2: Hangzhou Bay Bridge (Engineering Daily 2014) Figure 3: Bridge and the Bay Figure 4: Facts about the Bridge ((Engineering Daily 2014) Read More