SAPPE

Among the different types of projects that architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) firms and owners undertake, airport construction projects are arguably the most challenging. Funding is tight and getting additional resources to cover unexpected expenses is difficult. Project managers often have to collaborate with multiple cities, counties and other government agencies, in addition to regulatory bodies and local interest groups. What's more, construction has to take place in a confined and frenetic area: a live air­field where hundreds of planes and tens of thousands of passengers must pass through safely and efficiently every day.

To succeed, professionals must work quickly to get projects working and completed before changing conditions turn a profit into a sinkhole. To do so, organizations are creating some of the most innovative and effective best practices in the entire AEC industry.

The evidence? Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was able to complete a fifth runway 11 days early and $103 million under budget. The Port of Oakland asked that its $500-million expansion of Oakland International Airport contract 45% of the work locally. Oakland doubled that while remaining on target for completion.

Companies with expertise in airport construction have found that developing best practices has improved their ability to deliver projects profitably on time and with­in budget. For instance, in the rush to acquire projects, there is often a disconnect between the bidding team and the execution team. To avoid this, project managers must create a clearly defined budget, set up systems that enable a full understanding of resources and materials, and require that all subcontractors regularly provide schedules that follow a common work breakdown structure. Progress can then be accurately tracked against established benchmarks.

Organizations also need to cost load their schedules so they can monitor how they are performing on projects against the initial estimate. In addition, project managers should create "what-if" scenarios to determine the best means to address both project issues and further improve performance.

Management

Organizations need to deal with changes as they happen. The team's systems and culture need to easily share information, especially bad news, so that managers can identify the impact, quickly gain necessary approvals, create contingency plans and carry the project forward.

Advances in mobile technology have made it deceptively easy to provide instant updates from the jobsite. But with multiple stakeholders using a wide variety of communications media, relevant action items and responsibilities risk being lost in the fray. Using a standardized system to track and archive communications while maintaining a consistent flow of information helps ensure that everyone on the project is up to date and accountable.

Electronic file-sharing and networked systems can overload project participants with unnecessary information. A good project-management system can provide the stakeholders with a central repository of documents that are presented in a task-specific manner so that authorized parties can access exactly the information they need to do their jobs.

Standardization

All schedules must be standardized so that changes can be dynamically integrated as they occur, and clear and concise information about the most current master schedule is immediately available to all of the relevant parties.

Few projects have as many stakeholders as airport construction. A single version of facts and finances eliminates confusion and helps secure the buy-in of all parties. Project managers can more easily work with stakeholders to garner new funding, secure approvals and easements, alleviate environmental concerns and respond to regulatory demands.

In the volatile and highly competitive airport construction industry, project managers have taken advantage of innovative best practices and captured them within common technology platforms to keep their projects on track and profitable. This success can and should be replicated throughout the entire industry.

Richard Sappe is AEC industry market manager for Primavera Systems, Philadelphia. He can be reached at 610-949-6968 or rsappe@primavera.com.

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