Project Management Assignment for AMEC Marine Construction

Project Life Cycle

The assignment is intended to bring out the benefits and limitations of the four stages of Project life cycle with different approaches to project planning and control by relating these to the circumstances in the cases outlined. It is also intended to allow students to demonstrate their learning and competence in respect of the management of resources generally but in particular elements of scope, schedule, quality, and cost.

Citation(s) is/are essential to both tasks to demonstrate students’ ability to fulfil academic writing style in accordance to Harvard referencing. Statements without citation(s) will result in a reducing grade for the corresponding task. Minimum of FIVE (5) references are required and references to be listed at the end of both Tasks.

Q1.  List and explain the four (4) stages of Project Life Cycle, and discuss the importance of eachof them.

Q2.  Describe

I.What is the scope of a project and why it is essential, and

II.How would you have defined the scope in Task 2; case study (AMEC Marine Construction).

Q3.  Using the tables below, (Project 1, 2, 3) plot out an AON project network for all three projects and show:

I.Identification of critical path

II.Project duration

Q4.   Define the following cost appraisal methods and describe the benefits of each methodare?

I.NPV,

II.Payback and

III.IRR.

Q5.  Describe what is:

I.Risk and Risk management and

II.What are the five stages of the Risk Management process?(Total 2x3=6 marks).

I.  Outline and explain what a quality audit in Project management is?

II. What is a Project evaluation and why we are conducting one?

III. Explain what the purpose of monitor a project and

IV. What is Project control?  

AMEC Marine Construction(AMEC) is an international marine construction company with Shipyards around the Globe specialising building specific marine projects for a variety of international clients. It was recently commissioned to construct an install an Offshore Oil and gas production platform for an international consortium.

The Project/program

To construct and installation of an Offshore Oil rig platform to the North Sea.

Construction:

Two four-leg jackets one for the production platform and one for the Accommodation. One accommodation (Deck) platform for the crew quarters and offices with five levels.    

One production (Deck) platform with four decks for the production equipment

Installation:

Jackets: when both jackets structures have been completed skidded onto two barges and towed to the North Sea oil field location. Platforms: both platforms put onto barges and towed out to the jackets location.

Scope Management

The budget for the Project is US$ 550m, and the platform should be installed before the winter weather closed in on the area, therefore no later than 30th August 2024, and delivered for Operation no later than the end of September. After that day is an operational lost profit penalty of US$ 300,000 per day. Since the location of the oil field (North Sea) and the unique design demands of the Project, the construction should start at AMEC's two shipyards on Newcastle upon Tyne, the starting day hasn't been finalised yet but would be the first six months of 2021.The budget of the Project was estimated on the base that work needs to be done with a 24/7 workload framework, and commission both yards at the hole period of the Project.  Also, all the main sub-contractors would be from the UK and Europe due to close links and contracts with the consortium.

Explanation of the main stages of the Program/Project

·Stage 1

ØFinalised Design of Oil rig Platform with the naval architects' design team and provide final blueprints of the Project to the consortium board. 10 days.

ØProject management team:  Commissioning Project preparation, scope definition method development, Project reports documentations.35 days

ØCreation of project teams Project manager with his allocated managers create the relevant teams and finalised project plan. 20 days.

ØDocumentation, manual operations documents for Inspections and maintenance, shipyard base load platform utility (including power, water, and air) allocation, Quality inspection management, Sub-contractors operation documents and plan. 10 days.

·Stage 2

ØOperation platform (deck) construction with four deck levels or topsides welded together and plated over to contain all the equipment required to run the various production process. Coordinate sub-contractors, yard management, Quality inspection management, Logistics, and weight management. Estimation construction time 1003 days.

ØAccommodation platform (deck) construction for the crew quarters and offices with five levels.  Estimation construction time 730 days.

ØTwo four-leg jackets construction one for the Production Platform and one for the Accommodation. Each four-leg Jacket should be fabricated from large rolled steel circular steel sections, welded together and interspersed with smaller tubular members welded to the main legs using prefabricated nodes. Which gives the structure its strength as it tapers from the wide bottom sections to the top smaller section. Construction time for Operation jacket 304 days and the accommodation jacket 215 days

·Stage 3

ØPreparation and transportation of Operation &Accommodation platforms when both structures have been completed final weight and balance them onto crane/barges and towed out to the jackets location. Estimation time for preparation 5days, and transportation time 10 days for each of them.

ØPreparation & transportation of Jackets when both jackets structures have been completed balance them and skidded individually to their crane/barge and towed to the North Sea oil field allocation. Estimation time for preparation 3 days, and transportation time 5 days for each of them.

·Stage 4

ØInstallation of both jackets, when arrived at the allocation, slid off the crane/barge and settled in the water coming gradually to the vertical position over the capped reservoir well, sinking as it is slowly de-ballasted. Estimated time 5 days for each Jacket.

ØAnchoring jackets Once in the right position the piles are driven through the pile sleeves and mud flaps by a pile driver on a barge. Then cement is poured into the gap between the piles and the pile sleeves acting as an efficient grout and effectively securing the whole structure to the seabed at a depth of 480m.Installationtime 5 days for each Jacket.

ØInstallation of Operation & Accommodation platform A heavy lift barge crane swings them over the matching jacket, and both are welded together with great accuracy, a couple of mm between the mating faces being the norm. The offshore commissioning activities are carried out to prepare the platform for the testing of the processing systems. When that stage is finished, then the accommodation deck installation starts with the crane repeating the process and the offshore commissioning activities are carried out for the crew and office quarters. Installation time 5 days for each platform.

·Stage 5

ØInstallation connection and preparation of Subsea pipes to subbed and connecting station pipes to weld to the Operation platform. Duration 15 days.

·Stage 6

ØTesting platform's processing systems as the production platform is installed over the wellhead and the risers connected to the production manifolds the final pipe in the reservoir perforated by small explosive charges. This allows the orderly high pressure flow of gas and fluids to come up the riser to the production manifolds and oil, gas and water systems going through rigorous testing before the platform commissioned and at the same time testing all the departments of the accommodation platform are operational. Duration 30 days for the Operation Platform and 10 days for the Accommodation platform days.