Korver Alex en Seesing Daan

ImprovingProjectManagementatDHVShanghai
AstructuralanalysisandcomparisonofDHVpracticewiththe
Prince2method

July,2007
AlexKorver
DaanSeesing
Preface
TofinishmyBachelorProgramCivilEngineeringattheUniversityofTwente,TheNetherlands,I
have been given the opportunity to do a three month internship at DHV Engineering
ConsultancyShanghai.InthesethreemonthsIhavedonearesearchinclosecooperationwith
DaanSeesingonhowtoimproveprojectmanagementpracticeofBuildingandIndustryprojects
withinthecompany.Allneededinformationwascollectedthroughasetofinterviews,sitevisits
and available literature in the field of project management. This paper contains all relevant
knowledgeandtheresultsofthisresearch.Nexttothispaper,aProjectManagersManualwas
written to make all acquired knowledge accessible for use during the execution of projects
managedbyDHVShanghai.
Iwilltakethisoccasiontothankallpeoplewhosupportedusduringourassignment.Myspecial
attentiongoesouttoRuudBeekhuisandThomasWangfortheirroleasmentorsandfortheir
helpandsupportduringourresearch.FurthermoreIamgratefultoChrisShiforhissupervision
and giving me the opportunity to come to Shanghai. I would also like to thank all project
managersandstaff,andWimJanseninparticular,forsharingtheirknowledgewithus.Fromthe
University Twente I would like to thank Andreas Hartmann for his support concerning the
content of our assignment. And last but not least I would like to thank Daan Seesing for his
criticalcommentsandgoodcooperationduringtheinternship.
Enschede,October2007
AlexKorver
2
Summary
This paper states the results from my research in cooperation with Daan Seesing, on the
improvement of project management practice within DHV Engineering Consultancy Shanghai.
Shortlywewilldescribetheprocessoftheresearchandtheimportantrecommendationsinthis
summary,ifyouaremerelyinterestedintheresultswerefertoeithertherecommendationsor
theappendixfortheendresultspresentedtoDHV.
Ourfirstchallengewasthelackofarealproblem within theorganization thatneededdirect
research.Afterafirstinterviewwithourmentorswecametotheconclusionthatoverallproject
managementpracticecouldpossiblybeimproved.Toseehowthispracticecouldbeimproved,
firstastructuredanalysishadtobemade.
Thestructuredanalysiswasmadeusingtheknowledgeofrecentliteratureondifferentmethods
likePMBOK andPrince2. BesidethistheoreticalPM knowledgealsoknowledgeofthe context
wasacquired,toseethingsintherightperspective.
Using the knowledge mentioned above and combined with the characteristics of normal
practice at DHV, a framework was set up in order to gather and analyze information on all
relevant aspects. The main chapters of this framework exist of the project phases in a typical
DHV project; the Feasibility Study, Program of Requirements and Initial Design, Design
(PreliminaryandDetailedDesign),Tendering,Construction,Testing&CommissioningandHand
over.BesidetheseeightphasesusedincommonpracticeaninthGeneralchapterwasaddedto
the framework, covering all information used throughout several phases or aspects which
cannotbeplacedinacertainphase.Withineachchapter,asubdivisionismadeonthesixmain
knowledgeareasastheyareusedinthePMBOKmethod;Scope,Organization,Communication,
Time, Cost and Quality. After the framework was constructed information about project
management practice at DHV Shanghai was gathered using semistructured interviews with
projectmanagers,sitevisitsandinformationfromthelocalintranet.
The general impression of project management at DHV was positive. Projects are managed
thorough, though not always optimal structured. The difficulty on finding structured
documentationonaspecificsubjectwasapossibleimprovementwhichcameacrossrightaway.
Other points of improvement were conducted through a comparison of the current practice
with the project management method Prince2. Possible improvements that derived from this
comparison are mainly on the field of procedures. The set up of overall quality procedures,
HealthSafetyandEnvironmentproceduresandastructuralprojectevaluationareexamplesof
thesuggestedimprovements.
Anotherchallengewasthenonoptimalaccesstoavailableknowledge.Aswealreadyanalyzed
andstructuredtheinformationoncurrentpracticeweusedthisinformationtosetupaProject
ManagementManual.Thismanualcontainsallinformationondifferentprocesses,methodsand
techniquesusedbyprojectmanagersduringtheexecutionofprojects.Asecondimprovement
that has already been implemented during our time at the company was the revival of
ShareWork.Thisinternalknowledgedatabasedidalreadyexist,butboththestructureandfiles
wereoutdated.TogetherwiththeeffortofDHVstaffanewShareWorkwassetupcontaininga
newstructureandnewuptodatefiles.BylinkingthemanualandShareWork,thisdatabaseis
now used as a knowledge referring backbone for the Project Management Manual. Finally a
knowledgemanagerandfilemanagerareappointedtokeepthisknowledgebaseuptodate.
3
Contents
Preface ................................................................................................................................ 2
Summary ............................................................................................................................. 3
Contents.............................................................................................................................. 4
1Problemdescription......................................................................................................... 6
1.1Problemdescription.................................................................................................. 6
1.2Objective&researchquestions................................................................................ 7
1.3Methodology............................................................................................................. 8
1.4Structure ................................................................................................................. 10
2Creatingaframework .................................................................................................... 11
2.1Theory:PMMethods .............................................................................................. 11
2.1.1IntroductiontoPM .......................................................................................... 11
2.1.2PRINCE2............................................................................................................ 12
2.1.3PMBOK ............................................................................................................. 13
2.1.4Similaritiesanddifferences.............................................................................. 14
2.2Context.................................................................................................................... 15
2.2.1Projectmanagementofbuildingandindustryconstructionprojects............. 15
2.2.2ConstructionProjectManagementinChina ................................................... 16
2.2.3ProjectManagementpracticeatDHVShanghai ............................................. 17
2.2.4Characteristics.................................................................................................. 18
2.3Framework .............................................................................................................. 19
3Projectmanagementinpractice.................................................................................... 20
3.1General.................................................................................................................... 20
3.1.1Scope................................................................................................................ 20
3.1.2Organization..................................................................................................... 21
3.1.3Communication................................................................................................ 22
3.2FeasibilityStudy ...................................................................................................... 23
3.3ProgramofRequirements&InitialDesign ............................................................. 23
3.4Design...................................................................................................................... 24
3.5Tendering ................................................................................................................ 25
3.6Construction............................................................................................................ 26
3.7Testing&Commissioning........................................................................................ 28
3.8Handover ............................................................................................................... 28
4Challenges&possibleimprovements............................................................................ 29
4.1ComparingpracticeusingPrince2 ......................................................................... 29
4.2Challenges&possibleimprovements..................................................................... 30
4.3Additionalchallenges.............................................................................................. 31
5Implementation ............................................................................................................. 33
5.1Generalprocedures ................................................................................................ 33
6Conclusions&Recommendations ................................................................................. 36
References ........................................................................................................................ 38
4
Listofabbreviations.......................................................................................................... 40
AppendixA:PMManual ................................................................................................... 41
AppendixB:StructureShareWork.................................................................................... 42
AppendixC:Interviewquestions ...................................................................................... 43
AppendixD:InformationInterviewsandSiteVisits. ........................................................ 46
AppendixE:ExampletimescheduleDHVShanghai ......................................................... 48
5
1Problemdescription
1.1Problemdescription
DHVShanghaiisasanengineeringconsultancycompanypartoftheglobalDHVGroup.Oneof
the core businesses of DHV Shanghai is project management. Especially ECPM (Engineering
Construction Project Management) of high end factories, office buildings and special buildings
such as international schools, mostly, in and around Shanghai, China. Most of its clients are
westerncompanies.
To perform these tasks DHV Shanghai has a project management team of professionals
(approximately10people)supportedbyasecretary,financeandaHRdepartment.Theproject
managersareassignedforthedurationofaprojecttobetheoverallcoordinator,representing
theclientandmanageallaspectsoftheproject.Theirtaskvariesfromrepresentingtheclient
and the clients demands throughout the design phase to controlling time and cost in the
constructionphase.Especiallyintheconstructionphaseaprojectmanagerworkspartlyatthe
officeandpartlyonsite.
Thekeytosuccessforaprojectmanageristokeepclosetrackofeverystagewithintheproject
andtherebyapplyhispersonalskills,toolsandtechniqueswhenevernecessary.Therehastobe
madeadifferencebetweentheprojectmanagerspersonalskills(acquiredmostlybyexperience
andeducation)andthetoolsandtechniqueswhichareavailabletohimtousethemwhenever
theyarerequired.AsDHVShanghaihasmanagednumerousprojectsinitsrelativelyshortlife
mostofitsprojectmanagersareveryexperienced.Projectsarealmostalwaysasuccess.
AfterourarrivalattheofficeinShanghaiitseemedtherewasnotarealconcreteproblem,but
the general opinion was that the current practice of project management, although often
successful, was not optimal. So the real problem was not about knowledge itself but to gain
insightintothecurrentknowledge.
To get a better understanding of all available knowledge, the information on DHVs project
managementskillshadtobestructuredinanorganizedway.Thisbecameourfistchallenge.
After the completion of the analysis it will become possible to point out possible fields of
improvement.
6
1.2Objective&researchquestions
Usingtheinformationofthepreviousparagraphourmainobjectivecanbereadasfollowed:
Theobjectiveofthisresearchistorevealandstructurecurrentprojectmanagementknowledge
atDHVShanghaiandpointoutpossiblefieldsofimprovementbycomparingcurrentknowledge
withprojectmanagementstandards.
To clarify our objective it is useful to define Project management knowledge. Project

management knowledge can be defined as all locally available written knowledge and
experience of managing Engineering Procurement and Construction Management projects at
DHVShanghaiEngineeringConsultancyCompany.
Theresearchquestionsthathavetobeansweredtoreachtheobjectiveareasfollowed:
- 1)Whichstructurecanbeusedtorevealtheavailableknowledge?
Which different phases can be distinguished in common building and
industryprojects?
Which areas of knowledge can be distinguished within the field of
projectmanagement?
- 2)WhatarethecharacteristicsofprojectmanagementatDHVShanghai?
- 3)WhicharethefieldsofimprovementforDHVsprojectmanagementpractice?
The outcomes of the analysis are suitable to be used as a general handbook for project
managersatDHVShanghai.
7
1.3Methodology
InordertohaveabetterunderstandingofthePMpracticeatDHVShanghaiandtohavesome
insightingeneralprojectmanagementprocedures,aliteraturestudywasperformedinadvance
to our bachelor assignment. With this new acquired information we had our first exploratory
interviewsattheofficeofDHVinShanghai.
To determine the characteristics of project management practice at DHV Shanghai, first a

framework had to be made to process the gathered information in a structured way. This
framework was made by dividing the construction projects into seven phases. From the
feasibility study up to the handover phase each separate phase is divided again using the
PMBOK methodology. For further details about the theoretical background and the final
frameworkwerefertochapter2.
Using the information from the exploratory interviews and the information we gathered from
otherinternalknowledgesources,liketheintranet,thequestionsforsemistructuredinterviews
with project managers and related staff were made. In total, ten people were interviewed. A
listing of our interviewees can be found in Appendix D, Appendix C contains the standard
interviewquestionsthatwereusedduringtheseinterviews.Othersourcesofinformationarea
number of visits to construction sites. At the construction sites, we analyzed the project
manager doing his daily tasks. These observations were used as extra input next to the
interviews. The gathered information of each interviewee was structured and compared with
the answers of the others. As said before, a manual (or other structured document) wasnt
availablebutwritteninformationaboutrecentlyfinishedandrunningprojectwas.Thiswasalso
inputforouranalysis.AllgatheredinformationledtoafirstversionofaPMspracticedocument
and was discussed with all the PMs in a workshop. Their input was used to update the
informationandfilteroutanyflaws.Asalaststep,thisstructuredanalysiswascomparedwith
thePrince2methodologyfromwhichrecommendationsforfurtherimprovementwerederived.
To divide this assignment between the two researchers a split up was made. Each researcher
analyzedthreeofthesixcontrolareasineveryphase.
8
Interviews
project
managers
Site-visits
current projects
General PM
Characteristics
Current PM
practice DHV
Documentation
PMBOK
Characteristics
Inventory current
Framework
PM practice
Characteristics Recommendations
Construction for improvement of
projects PM practice at DHV
PRINCE2
theory
Characteristics
Chinese
construction
projects
Characteristics
DHV Shanghai
projects
Figure1:ResearchModel
Thediscussedresearchmethodisschematicallyrepresentedintheresearchmodelinfigure1.
Thismodelshowsthatboththecharacteristicsfromstandardliteratureandthecharacteristics
fromthecontextleadtothesetupofaframework.Thisframeworkisthenusedtostructureall
informationofcurrentPMpracticeleadingtoaninventoryofcurrentpractice.Theresultsfrom
this inventory are confronted with theory using the Prince2 method and this analysis finally
leads to a set of recommendations for improvements of projectmanagement practice at DHV
Shanghai.
9
1.4Structure
Chaptertwoofthispaperwillstartoffwiththecreationofaprojectframeworktostructureall
information. First,somegeneraltheoryaboutprojectmanagementisgiven.Fromthis general
theoryonprojectmanagement,twocommonlyusedmethodshavebeenchosenandexamined
further. This theoretical information will be used to determine for example the phases and
knowledgeareaswhichareusedinprojectmanagementmethods.Whena clearimage ofthe
theoryiscreatedwewill proceed tothecontext.Thecontext existsoftheculturalcontext,in
this case China, and the business context. The latter contains the characteristics of DHV
Shanghai. Combining both the context and theory makes it possible to construct a fitting
frameworkforthisparticularcase.
In the third chapter an inventory of PM practice at DHV will be structured using the given
framework. This inventory will be made by using the local intranet containing the previous
knowledge database called ShareWork and interviews with project managers or PM related
staff.
Thefourthchapterwillgiveananalysisontheinventorymadeinthethirdchapterbyusingthe
Prince2methodology.Theoutcomeofthisanalysisisstatedinasetofchallengesandpossible
improvements.Thefifthchaptercontainspossibleimplementationsofthedifferentchallenges
stated in chapter four. In the sixth and final chapter the conclusion and recommendations for
theimprovementofprojectmanagementpracticewillbedrawnup.
10
2Creatingaframework
In this chapter we work towards a framework which can be used as astructured base for the
informationabouttheusedprocessesandprocedureswhichwillbegathered.Thischapterwill
startoffwithabriefintroductionaboutthegeneralprojectmanagementtheoryfollowedbya
focusonthemoredetailedtheories;theProjectManagementBodyofKnowledge(PMBOK)and
ProjectsInControlledEnvironments2(PRINCE2).Inthelastparagraphtheactualframeworkis
presented.
2.1Theory:PMMethods
2.1.1IntroductiontoPM
Managing projects is as old as the pyramids in Egypt. Project Management as we know it

however,asaspecialistareaofmanagement,wasborninthe1950sfromtheUSaerospaceand
weapons Research Industries. The problem of designing an aircraft or weapon system was
burdened with complexity, uncertainties and difficulties. Planning and cost control became
morecomplexanddemandedaspecificapproach. 1
The last decades, project management has become a prevalent organizational form for doing
businessinmanyindustries.ModernProjectManagementcanbedefinedas:
The discipline of defining and achieving targets while optimizing the use of resources (time,
money,people,materials,energy,space,etc)overthecourseofaproject(asetofactivitiesof
finiteduration). 2
Tomanageaproject,aprojectmanagerhastodealwithdifferent,highlydepended,dimensions
andresources.Asecondcharacteristicisthateachprojectcontainsasetofstagesorphasesin
which these dimensions mustbe managed.Thisallhastobedoneinachangingenvironment
withchangingdemands,threatsandademandingclient.Alloftheabovemakesthatmanaginga
projectcanbeadifficulttask.
One of the most important ways to keep control of all different dimensions in the different
stages is to use a certain methodology. In the recent decades numerous methods were
developedtofeedthisdemand.OneofthemostoftenusedmethodsisPrince2,developedby
the office of Government Commerce. The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK),
developedbytheProjectManagementInstituteisanother,wellknownmethod.Othermodels
are the Rational Unified Process (RUP), System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and Solutions
BasedProject.Thesemethodsallgivegeneralandextensiveguidelinesabouthowtomanagea
projectinallthedifferentphases,takingalldimensionsintoaccount.RUPismainlydesignedfor
softwareprojectsandnotdirectlyusableforconstructionprojects.SDLCisasimplewaterfall
1
AlJibouri,S.(2000).DictaatPlanning,beheersingenrisicomanagement.Enschede:UniversityofTwente.
2
Wikipediasearchonprojectmanagement.(n.d.).RetrievedFebruary18,2007,from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Management.
11
methodologyandthereforelesssuitableforcomplexprojects. 3 ThisleavesPMBOKandPRINCE2
asmostsuitabletosuccessfullymanageaconstructionproject.Bothwillbementionedbriefly.
2.1.2PRINCE2
Prince2isanacronymforProjectsinControlledEnvironments2andisaPMmethodologywhich
has become an often used standard since its introduction in 1996. Originally designed for
managingITprojects,itnowcan(andis)readilybeappliedtononITprojectsaswell.Infact,this
methodology is so popular that some companies hire only Prince2certified project managers.
Prince2isdesignedtoprovideaframeworkcoveringthewidevarietyofdisciplinesandactivities
requiredwithinaproject.ThefocusthroughoutPrince2isonthebusinesscase,whichdescribes
therationaleandbusinessjustificationfortheproject.ThebusinesscasedrivesalltheProject
Managementprocesses,frominitialprojectsetupthroughtothefinishoftheproject.
Prince2 provides a tool which can be used to keep track of the valuable information of
resources.Thisisespeciallyusefulwithinprojectteamsituations.Theprojectteamwillbecome
more efficiently and effectively working together. 4 Prince2 can be seen as; a structured
checklist on how to manage a project. 5 The way Prince2 is structured is through processes,
componentsandtechniques.Theprocessescanproceedmorethanonceandareshowninthe
figurebelow.
Figure2:Prince2processes
3
Charvat,J.P.(2003).ProjectManagementMethodologies:selecting,implementingandsupportingmethodologies
andprocessesforprojects.Hoboken,NewJersey:Wiley
4
OfficeofGovernmentCommerce(2002).ManagingSuccessfulProjectswithPRINCE2.London:TheStationeryOffice.
5
APMGroupLimited(2005).PRINCE2CaseStudy,PRINCE2andPMI/PMBOKaCombinedApproachatGetronics.
RetrievedJune20,2007,fromhttp://www.Prince2.org.uk/web/site/PRINCE2Resources/CaseStudies.asp.
12
During these processes the components; Business Case, Organization, Plans, Controls,
ManagementofRisk,Qualityinaprojectenvironment,ConfigurationManagementandChange
Controlareused.
Prince2 is capable of working with most techniques that implement best practices of project
management, but three are described explicitly; Productbased Planning, Change control and
Qualityreviews.
Advantages
The method is generally applicable and has active user groups in the United
KingdomandtheNetherlands.
Themethodfocusesonprojectresultsintermsofthestandardtime,cost,quality,
andfunctionalityparameters,butalsohasastrongfocusonbusinesscaseandthe
benefitstheprojectresultsdeliver.
The method integrates change management that controls the changing
environment.
The method uses management by objectives and management by exception
approaches.

Disadvantages
Itcanleadtohugeandextensivebureaucracieswhennottailoredused.
Itisamethodandnotacureforanyproject.PeoplewhousePRINCE2shouldhave
enoughknowledge,experienceandcontinuetothink.
Human factor or soft issues are not within the scope of the methodology but
definitelyneededforprojectsuccess.

2.1.3PMBOK
TheProject ManagementBodyofKnowledgeisastandardknowledge documentfirstbrought

out in 1983 by the Project Management Institute (PMI), USA. Next to a code of ethics and a
certification for project managers (PMP certificate) it includes also a standard baseline. This
baselineconsistsofsixmajorfunctions(orknowledgeareas):scope,cost,time,quality,human
resourcesandcommunications 6 .
The PMBOK creates a framework which splits the

project processes into five distinct process groups:
initiating,planning,executing,controllingandclosing.It
hastobenotedthatthesegroupsdonotimplythatthe
projectisexecutedinthisorder;theyareonlyprovided
in order to be able to structure and categorize these
differentprocesses.
PMBOKalsoidentifiesseveralprojectknowledgeareas:
Integration management, scope management, time
management, cost management, quality management, Figure3:PMBOKprocesses
6
Duncan,W.R.(1995).DevelopingaPMBOKdocument:theUSProjectManagementInstitutesapproach.
Internationaljournalofprojectmanagement,13,8994.
13
human resource management, communications management, risk management and

procurementmanagement. 7 Byusingthistwincategorizationinprocessgroupsandknowledge
areas,itcanbeusedtoclassifyprojectprocesses.Generallyacceptedthisdoesnotmeanthat
the knowledge and practices described in the PMBOK framework should be applied uniformly
onallprojects;theprojectmanageris alwaysresponsiblefordeterminingwhatisappropriate
foranygivenproject.
Advantages
PMBOK provides a general project management framework in the form of process
groupsandknowledgeareas.
It states the knowledge needed to manage the lifecycle of any project, program and
portfoliothroughtheirprocesses
It defines for each process the necessary input, tools, techniques and (output)
deliverables.
Itdefinesabodyofknowledgeonwhichanyindustrycanbuilditspecificbestpractices
foritsapplicationarea.
Fileallavailableinformationinastructuredmanner.Extrainformationaboutprocesses,
toolandtechniquescaneasilybeaddedtothebodyofknowledge.8
Disadvantages
TheextensivenessofaPMBOK,itcanbetoocomplexforsmallprojects
PMBOKhastobeadaptedtotheapplicationarea,industry,projectsizeandscope,time
andbudgetandqualityconstraints.
Noguidelineabouthowtousethisinformation
2.1.4Similaritiesanddifferences
ToseewhichmethodisbesttostructuretheavailableknowledgeandinformationwithinDHV,
both methods should be compared to
eachother.Mostimportantistoseewhat
Requirement
distinguishes each method. The main PMBOK
reason for the similarities between Framework
PMBOK and Prince2 is the overlap
between the two approaches to project
Method
management, on the fields of Prince2

Method
requirement, method and techniques.
PMBOK
The real difference between both is the
Techniques
Knowledge
difference between a framework with Areas
knowledge areas in PMBOK and a
methodology in Prince2 as is visible in Figure 3SimilaritiesanddifferencesinPrince2andPMBOK
7
ProjectManagementInstitute(2004).Aguidetotheprojectmanagementbodyofknowledge:PMBOKguide.
NewtownSquare,Pennsylvania:ProjectManagementInstitute,Inc.
8
Duncan,W.R.(1995).DevelopingaPMBOKdocument:theUSProjectManagementInstitutesapproach.
Internationaljournalofprojectmanagement,13,8994.
14
figure 4. The so called Framework of the PMBOK can be seen as a collection of principles to
whichamethodforprojectmanagementshould comply.ThisFrameworkcouldbeseenasa
ProjectBriefforthedevelopmentofamethodforprojectmanagementinPrince2terms.
The Knowledge Areas of PMBOK overlap with the Components of Prince2. The difference
between both is in techniques. PMBOK discusses several techniques while Prince2 pays
considerably less attention to techniques and focuses more on process. Thus, PMBOK can be
best used to structure available knowledge and techniques, while PRINCE2 is best for how to
doprojectssinceitisarealhandsonmethod.Wecansummarizethisinformationintothese
keypoints 9 :
PMBOK
Bestapproachforteachingknowledgeareas
Noteffectiveasguidancefortherunningofaproject.

PRINCE2
Bestapproachforrunningaproject
Noteffectiveasguidanceforthenecessaryknowledgeinprojectmanagementsubjects.
In our research in which no structured way of PM practice is available at the start of the
assignment,itthereforeseemslegitimatetostructuretheavailableknowledgeonPMpractice
into a Body of Knowledge for DHV. Therefore our framework will be built using the PMBOK
frameworkandknowledgeareas.NottheactualcontentofthePMBOKwillbeusedforthisfirst
analysis,butmainlytheideaofaframeworkandthesixmainknowledgeareasofthePMBOK.
FortheanalysisofthestructuredinformationweusedthePrince2(howtodo)method.Using
Prince2wecananalyzetheDHVbodyofknowledgetoseeifthereareanygapsinthecommon
practice(thefocusofPMBOK)tocreatethebestpractice(focusofPrince2),forthisanalysiswe
refertochapter4.
2.2Context
2.2.1Projectmanagementofbuildingandindustryconstructionprojects
Construction projects are becoming more and more complex. With an increasing number of
specializedcontributors,stakeholdersandsubcontractorsproperintegrationofmanydisciplines
becomesnecessary.Thereforeaprojectorganizationisinevitable.
Aconstructionprocesssimplyconsistsofthethreefollowingmainphases;program,designand
construction. During these phases the functions, characteristics and form become more clear
with every step. Problem and solution must come together during this process. The program
phase is all about getting the demanded functions clear and determining the feasibility of
possible solutions. In the design phase the characteristics of the object are derived from the
functions. The construction or realization phase includes the transformation from the
characteristicstoausableobject. 10
9
10
K.Th.Veenvliet,inleidingReaderB8ontwerpprocessen,UniversityofTwente,Enschede
15
Construction project management differs from normal project management because of the
factthatbuildingprojectsarentexecutedwithinanorganization.Insteadtheytemporarilyform
aconstructionorganizationwiththeuseofdifferentexternalparties.Thischaracteristicbrings
extra complexity, but it doesnt mean that the processes, instruments, tools and techniques
from general project management are useless. Unfortunately their use often becomes more
complicated. Other specific characteristics of a construction project are the commitment to a
specific location, the change of coalition (partners) during the project, the extensive
administrationalregulations,thelonglifecycleoftheproductandtherelativelyhigheconomical
value.
Amoredetailed(standard)phasingofaconstructionprojectisthesequentialphasingbelow:
Initiationphase:determinetheneedforconstruction
Feasibilitystudy:analysisofprojectpossibilities
ProjectDefinition:definingthegoalsandobjectives
Designphase:Thiscanbeseparatedagainintothegeneraldesign,preliminarydesign,
anddefinitedesign
Tendering: defining the price, by making an inventory of the needed materials and
invitingcontractorsforabidding
Workpreparation:furtherdetaildesignforexecution
Execution:theconstructionoftheobject
Handover:approvalofclientandclosingtheproject 11 .

2.2.2ConstructionProjectManagementinChina
Like other sectors in the Chinese economy, the construction industry is also dependent on
foreign capital, technology and expertise. The industry has some similarities with western
projects but there are also some important differences. Some of these distinguishing
characteristicsarementionedbelow. 12 13
First, trust and mutual respect are important values in the Chinese community. Emphasizing
trustandmutualunderstandingshowsmoreresultsthanimposingpowerandauthority.Nextto
that,familybusinessesarestillverydominantinChinaandthereisaheavyrelianceonfamily
contacts. Project managers must be prepared to face a horde of subcontractors who are
connectedinonewayoranothertothemaincontractor.Tactfulnessanddiplomacyindealing
withsituationsofthisnaturemustbetakenintoaccount.
The Chinese also tend to concentrate more on the profit element and other related financial
matters.Aconsequenceisthatdesignsandconstructionmethodsarechosenbecauseoftheir
economic convenience. Resource allocation can therefore be a more difficult task. There are
alsoconstraintsintheuseofinternationalstandardformsofcontract.Thisisbecauselittleorno
provision at all is included in these forms to provide for amendments in order to suit local
conditions.Contractdocumentsusedarefrequentlybureaucraticandextensive.Foreignproject
managersshouldthereforebeextracarefulwhendealingwithprocurementmatters.
11
Doree,A.G.,Suurenbroek,Y.E.,&VanderVeen,B.(2000).DictaatBouwprocessen,Enschede:UniversityofTwente.
12
Pheng,L.S.,&Leong,C.H.Y.(2000).CrossculturalprojectmanagementforinternationalconstructioninChina,
InternationalJournalofProjectManagement,18,307316.
13
YouJie,L.,&Fox,P.W.(2001).TheconstructionindustryinChina:itsimage,employmentprospectsandskill
requirements.Geneva:InternationalLabourOffice.
16
Oneofthecharacteristicsconcerningthegovernmentistheextensiveamountofregulations.In
Chinatherearealotofpermitsenforcedbylawandthereforealotofdocumentsneedtobe
chopped. An important regulation is that foreign companies need to hire two third party
companiesintheconstructionprocess.ThesepartiesareenforcedbylawandconsistofaLocal
DesignInstitute(LDI)andaJianli(Buildingsupervisor).
Mostforeigncompaniesdonothavetherightcertificatestochoptheirowndesigns.Therefore
theyneedaLDIfortheirpreliminaryendetaileddesign.Usuallytheforeigncompaniesmakethe
initial design themselves. Next to the LDI there also is a third party LDI, a Design Review
Company, to review the LDI. This is also enforced by law. The Jianli is only needed during the
constructionphase.Thiscompanywillcheckthebuildingqualityduringconstructiontoseeifit
livesuptotheregulationsstatedinChineselaw.
Finally,bureaucracyandbriberyarestillprevalentinChinainspiteeffortsfromthegovernment
to exterminate these ills. Along the way, connections at the right places can speed up the
applicationprocess.
2.2.3ProjectManagementpracticeatDHVShanghai
Asstatedbefore,DHVShanghaioperatesmainlyinandaroundShanghai,China.Thereforeithas
totakeconstructionprojectpractice,asitisinChina,intoaccount.Themaincharacteristicthat
makesprojectmanagementatDHVShanghaidifferentfromtherestofChinaisthattheymainly
workforwesterncompaniesandonhighendprojects.Especiallythelevelofdemandedquality
is high. A second characteristic of DHV practice is the size of the assigned projects which are
relatively large and complex and are often executed under time pressure. The third
characteristicisthespecialtaskDHVprojectmanagershaveduringaproject.DHVmanagesthe
projectforaclient.Theytrytocontrolallaspectsforthisclientbutmostcontractswithexternal
partiesaresigneddirectlybytheclient.InthesecasesDHVdoesnotburdentheriskofbudget
exceeding,timedelaysetc.Thisimplementshowever,thattheydonothavethedirectpowerto
influencethesebudgetseither.
ThephasingusedinpracticeatDHVShanghaiispresentedbelow.Thisphasingwasconstructed
togetherwithtwoexperiencedprojectmanagersinafirstorientatingconversation.
FeasibilityStudy:Afirststudytoroughlydeterminecosts,possiblelocationsetc.Usually
acompanycontactsDHVafterthecompanyhasdoneafeasibilitystudyitself.Therefore
thisphaseisnotinthemaininterestofDHV.
PoR&ID:Theprogramofrequirementsisputtogetherafterinterviewswiththeclient
andtheusers.Thisisacombinationbetweentechnicalandfunctionaldemands.Usually
these requirements instantly will be documented in drawings. These drawings are the
initialdesign.ThisinitialdesignistheinputforLDIinthepreliminarydesign.
PD:ThepreliminarydesignhastomadebyaLocalDesignInstitute(LDI),thesedrawings
needtobeapprovedbytheclientandchoppedbythegovernment.
DD:Thedetaileddesignisdividedintotwoissues:theIFBorissueforbiddingandthe
IFCorissueforconstruction.FirsttheIFBismade.ThisisafirstversionoftheDD.Itis
worked out to a certain level of detail, but some things still need to be added and a
thorough inspection for possible errors isnt done in this stage. The IFC is the final
documentfortendering.ThedesignqualityoftheIFBisenoughtostartthetendering.
Tendering:ThetenderingphaseusuallystartsafterfinishingtheIFB.
17
Construction: The actual realization of the object which also includes the work
preparations.TheactualconstructioncanonlybeginaftercompletionoftheIFC.
Testing & Commissioning: A punch list is used to check if the structure indeed is built
accordingthedemandedstandards.Thisinvolvestestingofinstallationsetc.aswellas
checkingforerrorsinappliedmaterials.
Handover:Theofficialhandoveroftheobjecttoitsowner,thisalsoincludesadefect
informationperiod.Thisperiodisnormallyoneyearandhasamaximumof2yearsin
whichDHVnormallyassiststheclientinthefirstmonthsaftercompletion.

2.2.4Characteristics
The characteristics of DHV Shanghai consist of their present practice and the culture of the
country in which it operates; China. The most important characteristics that influence project
managementareGovernmentalregulationsandbureaucracy.
InChinaasmanyothercountriestherearegovernmentregulationstotakeintoaccountwhen
you want to start a building project. Though in European countries the rules are usually quite
clear, this not the case in China. Besides this, there are a lot of parties involved to approve
certainaspectsoftheprojectbeforeyoucanproceed.Theseregulationsandlawscanalsobe
interpretedindifferentways,usuallynotforthebenefitoftheclientofDHV.
Because there is a lot of bureaucracy, the regulations and laws are not clear and they can be
interpretedindifferentways,thiscaneasilyleadtobriberytogaintimeintheprojectapproval
process.
ForthecharacteristicsofthebestpracticeacomparisonwillbeusedoftheDHVphaseswiththe
alreadymentionedgeneralstagesfromtheliterature;
Noinitiationphase:ThisisbecauseDHVisalwaysdoingaprojectfortheirclient.
Noprojectdefinitionphase:ButthePoR&IDtogetherinonephase.Thereasonforthis
is that DHV does not have the necessary permits to make a design that can be used
directlybythecontractor.TheyneedtheLDItomakethesedrawings.TheDHVarchitect
willthereforeonlymaketheID,whichwillbedrawnupdirectlyfromthePoR.
SpiltupDesignphase:Thedesignphaseisthesame,becausethisisanimportanttask
forDHVtogetherwiththeLDI,ithasbeensplitupintothetwophases;PDandDD.
Work preparation and execution are combined in construction phase. DHV is not
buildingtheprojects,butmerelyresponsibleformanagingtheprojectconstructionon
quality,timeandmoneyfortheclient.Thegeneralcontractor(GC)isresponsibleforthe
constructionitself.
Testing&Commissioning:Thisphaseisnotmentionedinthereferencebook. 14 Butfor
DHV an important phase, because clients usually have complex installations in their
projects. A good effort in the testing & commissioning phase will also smoothen the
handoverphase.

14
Doree,A.G.,Suurenbroek,Y.E.,&VanderVeen,B.(2000).DictaatBouwprocessen,Enschede:UniversityofTwente.
18
2.3Framework
To build a framework to structure the available information we will use six of the knowledge
areasofthePMBOK methodin combinationwith themaincharacteristicsof the context; the
projectphases.Thisframeworkispresentedschematicallyinthefigurebelow.
Figure 4: Schematic Framework
WebuiltuptheframeworkusingtheDHVphasesasmainstructureinthenextchapter.Nextto
thisanextraparagraphisaddedtodiscussgeneralproceduresthatareusedthroughoutmore
thanonephase.Forthedesignphasewesplittheparagraphintotwosubparagraphs.Thismain
structure,inphases,ispresentedonthehorizontalline.
Assubstructuretheknowledgeareas,basedonPMBOK,areused.ThoughwechangedtheHRM
knowledgeareaintoorganization,becausethisisbetterapplicableinprojectsDHVmanagesfor
theirclient.WithintheknowledgeareaCommunicationanextraparagraphwillbedevotedto
authority, due to the special attention this subject needs in China. The substructure, in
knowledgeareas,ispresentedontheverticalline.
Duringourresearchweusedthisstructuretoanalyzeandcategorizeallavailableknowledge.In
thispaperwehavechosenhowevertomergethedifferentknowledgeareasperphase.Wehave
chosentodosotoenhancethereadabilityofthepaper.
19
3Projectmanagementinpractice
Toansweroursecondresearchquestion;Whatarethecharacteristicsofprojectmanagement
processatDHVShanghai?wehavetotakealookatthecurrentpracticeatDHVanddescribeit.
Aneasyandstructuredwaytodosoistofilltheframeworksetupinchaptertwo.Asmentioned
beforetheinformationinthischapterismainlygatheredthroughinterviews.
Untilthispointofthisresearchthesisweworkedtogether,butwedividedourtasksindifferent
knowledge areas. As mentioned earlier there are six main knowledge areas; scope,
organization,communication,cost,timeandquality.Ifilledouttheframeworkforthefirstthree
knowledgeareas,asDaandidforthelatterthree.
3.1General
3.1.1Scope
ScopecontrolisveryimportantforDHV.Scopecontrolisallaboutkeepingthedeliverablesand
boundariesofaprojectclear.Theprojectscopecanbedefinedas:Theboundedsetverifiable
endproducts,deliverables,oroutputsthattheprojectteamundertakestoprovidetotheowner
orsponsoroftheproject 15 .
WithinDHVtheprojectproposalandthecontractarethemaindocumentsinwhichthescopeis
clearlystated.AWorkBreakdownStructure(WBS)isagoodmethodtooverseetheprojectand
break the scope up into smaller workable packages. There are three main approaches to
constructaWBS:
- Process or activity oriented: this involves breaking the project into the different
activities it involves such as management, needs analysis, purchasing, testing,
installationandtraining
- Achievementoriented: this involves breaking down the overall project objective into
achievementssuchashavingfullytrainedusers,andacceptanceofasystem
- Function or product oriented: this involves breaking the project up according to the
differentpartsofthefinalproducte.g.offices,productionareaandlandscaping 16
WithinDHVnotjustonesinglemethodisusedbythePMs.Oftenacombinationismade.For
example,differentWBSsaremadefortheplanningandcosts.
Scopechangeisverycommonwithinprojectmanagement,usuallybecauseaclientchangeshis
mind.WithinDHVtheyhaveastepbystepproceduretocontrolsuchaclientswish.Thisusually
occursinthedesignstage,theeffectsoncostandtimearetakenintoaccount.Theclienthasto
approve(e.g.extratimeorcost)beforecontinuation.
Thecontractisalsoveryimportantforthescope,becausetheresponsibilitiesandobligationsof
bothpartieswillbestatedinthecontractwithDHVandtheclient.ThespecificscopeofDHV,
theareaitusuallyworkson,istheareaofEngineeringProcurementConstructionManagement
(EPCM).
15
Wawruck,W.A.(1987).ANeglectedDimensionofEffectivePerformanceonDiverseProjects.PMNorthwest
RegionalSymposium.
16
Selfstudymanagementtraining.(n.d.).RetrievedApril30,2007,fromhttp://mindtools.com
20
Bydefiningtheseboundariescleartogetherwiththeexpectationsoftheclient,DHVcansetupa
clearprojectscopefortheirownproject(management).Thisisrequired,becausethegoalsof
theclientandDHVareusuallyexactlythesame.
Whether DHV contacts a company first or the client contacts DHV first, they always want to
writeagoodproposal,whichoutlinestheprojectandworkscopeandresponsibilities.
3.1.2Organization
The organization of projects contains of an internal organization (DHV team) and an external
organization(DHVteamwithclient,contractor,designinstituteetc.).
Figure5:DHVsprojectteaminternalorganizationchart
The internal team usually has a Project Director as endresponsible of usually more than one
projectatthesametime.HeisatroubleshooterandhelpstheProjectManagerwithimportant
milestones;likecontracts,handoveretc.ThedailyprojectworkisdonebytheProjectManager,
whoisusuallydedicatedtooneproject.Hecontrolsdaytodaycommunicationwiththeclient
andmanagesthecontrolareas(cost,time,qualityetc.).TheProjectManagerisassistedbythe
staff functions of his secretary and his HSE (health, safety and environment) personnel. In
smallerprojectstheProjectManageralsoistheDesignManager(DM)and/ortheConstruction
Manager(CM).NormallytheDMistheLDIcontactpersonandoverseesthetechnicalaspectsin
all design stages. The Construction Manager is the contact person for the General Contractor.
BothofthemwillhaveateamofengineerswithinDHVworkingforthem.

Figure6:DHVsexternalorganizationchart
21
The external project organization in projects DHV is involved in usually exists of the parties
mentioned above. The contact person from the clients side is usually a Project Manager who
directlycommunicatestotheprojectmanagerofDHV.TheProjectManagerofDHVwillmanage
theotherpartiesmentionedinthefigureabove.Thistypeoforganizationiscommonwithinthe
entire industry. It is however important to mention that the contractual lines differ from the
organizationallines.WithinDHVcontractuallinesarealmostalwaysdirectlybetweentheclient
andotherparties.
3.1.3Communication
Thoughcommunicationisnotalwaysrecognizedasanimportantareatocontrol,inpracticeitis
essential. Good communication can prevent a lot of misunderstanding. Within DHV the main
focus is on external communication, because internal communication is very well controllable
duetothelocationoftheteammembersbeingonthesameofficefloorandtheeaseinternal
meetingscanbeheld.

Figure7:Communicationlines
Thisisthecommunicationmapforatypicalproject.Theclient,oractuallytheProjectManager
oftheclient,communicateswithDHVsProjectManager.TheProjectManagerofDHVmanages
histeamandallthepartiesinvolvedintheprojectprocess.
To be able to monitor all agreements that are made throughout a project, all communication
willhavetopassthroughtheProjectManager(seethehourglassmodelinfigure9).Thismight
looklikeabottleneckintheconversationprocess,butactuallytheProjectManagercankeep
allpartiesuptodateandcanclarifyanyobscuritiesiftheyoccur.
InChinatheauthoritiesalsoplayanimportantroleinthecommunicationprocess.Becauseallot
of permits need to be acquired from the local authority or the government, good
communication with the authority can speed up the project process, but maybe even more
important,ifitisneglecteditcanleadtohugedelaysoftheproject.
DHVacknowledgesthedifficultiesofauthorityhandlinginChinaandthereforeDHVcanassist
the client in dealing with the authorities by preparing the necessary documents for a permit
request.
22
WithinDHVadistinctionismadeintothreetypesof
meetings; internal meetings (DHV team), external Genral
Local
Design
(with LDI, contractor or other external party) or Contractor
Institute
DHV
client meetings. To document the agreements in a Team
proper way, with each of these meetings minutes
ofmeeting(MoM)aremadebyDHV. Construction Design
Manager Manager
For the procedure of filing and archiving all
documentation the PMs use the Guidebook
project documentation. The secretaries usually PM DHV
takeabigshareoftheworkoffilingandarchiving.
Thesecretarieshaveamanualoftheirown(project
& construction document control manual) for
PM Client
documenting. They keep copies of all written
communication (fax, email, letters, proposals etc.)
andalwayscheckwiththeProjectManagerforany
incoming or outgoing communication. This is done
tomakesureallagreementswithallpartiesareon
Future
paper. Especially in the Chinese culture this can Client
Users
come in handy as some parties can forget an
agreement.
Figure8:Thehourglasscommunicationmodel
3.2FeasibilityStudy
Thefeasibilitystudyisanimportantpreliminarystudytodetermineand documentaprojects
viability.Thisphasethough,isusuallydonebytheclientthemselves.InpracticeDHVwillonly
make a feasibility study sporadically and on special request of the client. If DHV executes a
feasibility study for the client, usually a special contract for this specific phase is set up. To
actuallystartaprojectaprojectapprovalfromthegovernmentshouldbeacquiredbyDHVfor
theclient.Inthefeasibilitytheconstructionitselfisestimatedusingasetofroughprefixesand
unitprices.Additionalbudgetsareestimatedbyaddingacertainpercentagetotheconstruction
costs.Complimentary,DHVcanalsoassistintheselectionofsuitablesites.Similartocommon
project organizations, this phase is primarily a task of the client and DHV can play an advising
roleinthis.
3.3ProgramofRequirements&InitialDesign
Figure9:StepsinthePoR/IDphase
Theprogramofrequirementsandtheinitialdesignphasearejoinedtogetherintoonephase.
Themainreasontodosoisbecauseadrawingcansometimessaymorethanathousandwords.
Asecondreasonisthegovernmentsdemandforplansinanearlystage.Thisjointdesigningand
23
sketching is a difference with common project practice. As said this is done to streamline the
processandduetogovernmentalpermits.
Akickoffmeetingisheldastheformalstartoftheprojectwiththeclient.DHVusesinterviews
andquestionnairestomakeacompleteandstructuredinventoryoftheclientsneeds.ThePoR
& ID phase does not need an approval by the authorities or a third party. Approval from the
clientiscrucialhoweverbecausethePoRisseenasthebaseofeachproject.
3.4Design
ThedesignphaseissubdividedintothePreliminaryDesign(PD)phaseandtheDetailedDesign
phase(DD).WithinthedesignphaseDHValwaysusesaLocalDesigninstitute(LDI)forthePD
andDD.DuetogovernmentregulationsforeigncompaniesarenotcertifiedtodrawthePDand
DD. Therefore they need a local design institute to make these drawings, the LDI will ask the
governmenttoapprovethesedesigndrawingsandchopthedesigns.Therealsoisathirdparty,
aDesignReviewCompany(DRC)whoalsoneedstoapprovethedrawingsbeforecontinuation.

Figure10:Stepsinpreliminarydesignphase

Figure11:Stepsindetaileddesignphase
Inthedesignphaseitisveryimportanttokeepclosetrackofthedesignprocessandespecially
of any changes or modifications in the design. Within DHV these requests for change are
structuredusingadesignchangenotification(DCN)document.Theclientneedstofillinsucha
documentandsignitfortheextratimeandcostthechangewillprobablytake.Thiswillprevent
anyfuturedisagreementswiththeclientandotherparties.
24
Therecanbedifferentformsofcontract.Thenormalformofcontractinthedesignphaseisa
contract signed by the client and the LDI. Sometimes however, a contract for the design is
signedbyDHVandtheLDI.
ToselecttherightLDIforacertainprojectthekeyfactorsarethelocationoftheLDI(isitbased
inthesamecityaswheretheprojectwillbelocated)andtherightknowledge.Thesefactorsare
important because culture and governmental regulations can vary greatly between different
provinces and even cities in China. Also designerexpertise in a specific field can make the
designprocessmucheasier.IftherearemanyqualifiedLDIsatenderingprocedurefortheLDI
willbestarted.
Though the LDI usually contractually does not work for
DHV,inthedaytodaypracticeitisseenasapartofDHV. Client
ThedesigndrawingsareasmuchtheresponsibilityofDHV
asoftheLDI.ThereasonwhyDHVfeelsthisresponsibilityis
becausetheclientwillalwaysfeelthatDHVisresponsibleor
atleastexpectsDHVtoforeseeanydesigndifficulties. DHV
Communication is of vital importance in the design phase,
because in this phase things can still be easily changed on
paper, in stead of during the construction phase in LDI DRC
concrete.Tostreamlinecommunicationthepreferableway
of communication (by DHV) is the hourglass model. The
Figure12:Communicationinthe
PM is the pivot in all communication. Figure 13 shows the designphase
communicationlinesinthisphase.

The design process will start with a design kickoff meeting with the LDI. There is a weekly
progressmeetingwiththeLDItokeepacloselookonthedesignandtomakesureallwhichhas
beenstatedinthePoRandIDisreallyusedforthePDandDD.AttheendofthePDandDDa
reviewanddocumentapprovalproceduretakesplacewhichhastobeapprovedandsignedby
theclientbeforecontinuation.
3.5Tendering
Thetenderingphaseinpracticewillstartbeforetheactualendofthedesignphase.Sincethisa
vitalpartofthepreparationfortheconstructionphasethestepstakeninthisphasehaveahuge
influence on the progress in the construction phase. The most important part of this phase is
selectingaGeneralContractor(GC)andnegotiatingagoodpricefortheclient.

Figure13:Processstepsinthetenderingphase
AftercompletionoftheDetailedDesignitwillfurtherresultinapackageforCivil,Architectural
and Structural works (CAS) and in a Mechanical, Electrical and Process works package (MEP).
Tenders are to be based on the Issue for Bid (IFB) packages that include the Bill of Quantities
(BOQ)tobepreparedbytheLDIinclosecooperationwithDHVsNationalRegisteredQuantity
25
Surveyor(QS).Attheendofthisphase,thefinalconstructionbudgetwillbepreparedinclose
cooperation with the DHV QS. Finally the tenders will be evaluated, clarified and negotiated,
resulting in finalization of contracts with one General Contractor (GC). This contractor will
usually manage both CAS (Civil, Architectural, and Structural) and MEP (Mechanical, Electrical,
andProcess)works.
ForthetenderingphaseacontracthasalreadybeensetupbyDHVtogetherwiththeclientin
thedesignphase.ThesewerecalledtheIFBandtheIFC;theactualcontractwillbebasedonthe
biddingoftheGContheIFC.ThecontractsarebasedontheFIDIC(InternationalFederationof
ConsultingEngineers)generalconditions.
TherearetwoformsofcontractgenerallyusedwithinDHV;aLumpSumandaRemeasurement
contract. The Lump Sum contract means one price for the whole contract. This is the easiest
form for DHV to manage, though design changes are more difficult to integrate and will need
newnegotiationswiththecontractorforthepriceofthechange.ARemeasurementcontractis
usuallypreferredbythe GC.TheGCgetspaidperunitwhichgoesintothebuilding(e.g.steel
beams). The advantage is that design and construction changes can be easily made without
changingthecontract.Thedisadvantageisthatalltheworkthatisactuallyputintothebuilding
mustbechecked,thiscausesextraworkfortheQSandtheProjectManager.
Theauthoritiesarealsoinvolvedinthetenderingphase.Beforetheconstructionphasecanbe
started a formal document called the construction permit needs to be acquired from the
authorities. Sometimes DHV uses a authority specialist to speed up this process since the
Chinesesystemisquitebureaucraticandtheregulationsconcerningpermitscanbeinterpreted
inmanyways.
3.6Construction
In the construction phase all the designs and preparations will be put into work. The
construction phase is all about making sure the GC completes the building according to the
agreed design. The main focus in this phase is on time, to complete the project within the
deadlinewithofcoursenoorminimumofextracosts,whilemaintainingthepredefinedlevelof
quality.

Figure14:Stepsinconstructionprocess
FortheDHVPMthemaintaskistosmoothentheworkoftheGC.Oneofthecompanymottos
whichsurelyappliestothisphaseis;youcannotberesponsibleforwhatyoucannotcontrol.
SotheDHVPMisnotresponsibleforworkcarriedoutbytheGC,butshouldcreateanoptimal
workingenvironmentfortheGC.
26
Throughout the construction phase DHVs main responsibility is to monitor the construction
processes to assist in ensuring that all the requirements of the client for such processes have
beenmet.
Client
The communication in this phase is quite similar
to the design phase. When there are questions
fromforexampletheGCaboutthedesignthiswill
go through the PM. But when the GC just needs DHV
specificationshecanasktheLDIdirectly.
The in chapter 2.2.2 already mentioned Jianli is
the onsite authority during the construction
Supervisor
phase. The filing and archiving of the documents LDI Contractor
Co. (Jianli)
byDHVisespeciallyimportantintheconstruction
phase,becausetheyneedtobeavailableforthe Figure15:Communicationmapintheconstruction
finalpermissionsbythegovernment. phase
27
3.7Testing&Commissioning
Inthetestingandcommissioningphasethestructure(whetheritisabuildingorplant)istested
toseeifeverythingworksproperly.Thereisacheckingonbuildingerrors,installationerrors,as
wellasdetailslikescratchesondoorsetc.

Figure16:Stepsintesting&commissioningphase
In the testing phase the different smaller items are first tested separately followed by the
testing of a complete system, like the firefighting system. After the testing phase the
commissioningphasestarts,thismeansputtingtowholebuildingintoworkandcheckingfor
errorsinforexamplebuildingtemperature(heating,AC).DHVaccompaniesthecommissioning
for the crucial systems on which government approval is needed (e.g. fire fighting). During
testingandcommissioningalltestsaredocumentedinthetestingandcommissioningreport.
3.8Handover
Aftertestingandcommissioning,thebuildingorplantwillbehandedovertotheclient.Thisis
thelastphasewithresponsibilityforDHV.Afterthishandovertheclientisresponsible.DHVwill
merelyassistinthecommunicationwiththeGCinthedefectinformationperiod.

Figure17:Stepsinhandover
Alex: In the handover phase DHV will be responsible for the actual handover to the client.
BeforeDHVcanhandoverthebuildingorplant,theyfirstneedacompletionapprovalfromthe
government.
28
4Challenges&possibleimprovements
In this chapter a comparison is made between project management practice at DHV Shanghai
and project management literature. The former is described in the previous chapter, for the
lattertheprojectmanagementmethodPrince2willbeused.Inthefirstparagraphthemethod
ofcomparisonisdiscussed.Inthesecondparagraphtheresultsfromthecomparisonarestated
inchallengesandimprovements.Thelastparagraphisusedtoaddthechallengeswhicharenot
extractedfromthecomparisondirectly.
4.1ComparingpracticeusingPrince2 17
As mentioned a comparison is made between the project management method Prince2 and
projectmanagementpracticeasitisexecutedattheDHVShanghaioffice.AsPMBOKwasuseful
structuring the information, Prince2 is useful for its complete and structured manner of
executing a project. This advantage of being a comprehensive method, together with the
advantageofitsgeneralusability,makesPrince2thebestapproachforrunningaproject 18 .It
thereforeseemsjustifiabletochoosePrince2whenmakingacomparison.Whencomparingthis
method with current practice, Prince2s disadvantages must be kept in mind. The methods
tendencytoleadtobureaucracyandthelackoffocusonthehumanfactoristooimportantto
beleftout.Foramoreextensiveexplanationofthemethodwerefertochapter2.1.2.
When DHVs project management practice is compared to the Prince2 method certain
dissimilaritiescometothesurface.Itisimportanthowever,todistinguishadissimilarityfroma
challenge.Thereareseveralreasonswhyadifferencebetweenpracticeandliteraturedoesnot
directly demand a change from practice towards literature. A possible reason for a so called
gap between practice and literature can be the specific context in which DHV practice is
situated.Thisincludestheculturalcharacteristics,nationalandlocalgovernmentalcharacteristic
andthecompanyculture.Second,thesectorofindustry,inwhichDHVoperates,candemanda
specific approach. This includes the characteristics of Building and Industry projects, the
projectsscale,itscomplexityandthespecialfield inwhichDHVoperatesbeinga consultant
andprojectmanagerforaclient.
In this paper we will not enumerate all differences, only the actual challenges and
improvementswillbegiven.ThiscomparisonbetweenDHVpracticeandthePrince2methodis
made on a more abstract level. As it is not in our scope (and not desired by DHV) to actually
implementPrince2,practiceisscannedandcomparedtoPrince2,pointingoutonlythepossible
challenges and improvements. Wherever Prince2 terminology is used, the accompanying
Prince2abbreviationwillbegivenaswell.
17
Akker,vanden,A.(2002).PRINCE2Compact.Heeswijk:LagantManagementConsultantsBV.
OfficeofGovernmentCommerce(2002).ManagingSuccessfulProjectswithPRINCE2.London:TheStationeryOffice.
Fredrikz,B.,Hedeman,B.,&VisvanHeemst,G.(2004).Projectmanagement,eenintroductieopbasisvanPRINCE2.
Zaltbommel:vanHarenPublishing.
18
29
4.2Challenges&possibleimprovements
Formalstartupdocument:Afirstchallengecanbefoundattheverybeginningoftheproject.
AswecomparedthestartupprocessofaprojectexecutedatDHVwiththetheoryfromPrince2
it becomes clear that a formal startup document or Project Brief/Business Case (SU4) is not
availablewithinDHV.Thisdeficiencycanbeexplainedbythefactthisisprimarilythetaskofthe
client.DHVenterstheprojectaftertheclienthasmadeadecisiontostartupaproject.
Itstillisimportanthowevertoclearlyinallaspects.Allrolesandexpectationsmustbedefined
clearly.Althoughthisinformationispartlywrittendowninthecontractbetweentheclientand
DHVandalsotalkedoverduringthefirstexploratorymeetings,somesubjects,arenotsuitable
foracontractbutaretooimportanttoonlybediscussedduringmeetingsandwrittendownin
minutes. For example a contract is not a suitable document for a summary of the most
importantrisksduringaprojectbuttheyaretooimportanttoonlybementionedduringthefirst
exploratorymeetings.
Project Quality Management: A second challenge is the lack of an overall quality plan (IP1).
AccordingtoPrince2aprojectqualityplanmustcontainallactivitiesthatareneededtomeet
theclientsqualityexpectations.Itconsistsatleastofa;Qualitysystem,Qualitycontrol,Quality
assurance and a Quality planning. The quality system includes the different procedures,
processesandorganizationtoimplementquality.Suchasystemisthebasisofaqualityplanbut
unfortunately not structured available at DHV. In other words; Quality of the various sub
products is ensured through numerous procedures, but no guarantee can be given that every
aspectandsubproductoftheprojectischeckedproperlyasthereisnooverallqualitysystem.
ThisqualitysystemisuselesshoweverwithoutgoodQualitycontrol.Qualitycontrolconsistsof
theactualqualitymonitoringitselfandcanbedonethroughseveraltechniques.Oneofthemis
theQualityreviewtechniqueprovidedbyPrince2.ThereviewsperformedbyDHV,forexample
during the design phases, are quite similar to this Prince2 technique. Adjustment of Quality
Control therefore is not needed. Quality Assurance is about the correct use of the quality
system.Thisisnotavailablebutisprobablynotneededwiththesizeoftheprojectsexecutedby
DHV. The same applies to a separate Quality Planning; as such a separate planning is time
consuming and is integrated into the existing time schedules. Summarizing, project quality
management can be improved by the set up of an overall quality system fitting the quality
controltechniquesusedatthismoment.
Handing over tasks/assignments: When certain tasks or assignments are handed over to a
projectteamorexternalteam,Prince2advisestoformallyauthorizeaWorkPackage(CS1),or
anydefinedworkassignment.ThescaleoftheprojectsexecutedbyDHVmakestheformalset
upofaWorkPackageforeverytaskunwanted.Butwhen,forinstance,tasksareoutsourcedin
thedesignphase,aWorkPackageandtheformalauthorizationcouldbeausefultooltomake
clear agreements. These agreements can be for example on the subjects of resources,
tolerancesandreportingdemands.Theonlycurrentpossibilitytoclearlystatesuchagreements
isinacontractorduringakickoffmeeting.Quitesimilartothefirstchallengethereishowever
information that is not suitable for a contract neither a meeting. A basic procedure for the
managingofaWorkpackagecanbeextractedfromtheproductdeliveryprocess(MP)aswell.
Risk assessment: Risk canbedefinedasthepossibilityacertain problemoccurs,multipliedby

theeffectofthisproblem.Managingthoserisksisoneofthemostimportanttasksofaproject
30
manager.Asmallriskcanundermineawholeproject.Prince2supportsthisviewandpaysgreat
attention to the assessment of risks. Within Prince2 its importance is represented by the
component;ManagementofRisk.ManagementofRiskcanbedividedagainintoariskanalysis,
which containsthesearchandassessmentofdifferentrisks,andriskmanagement,containing
the execution of riskreducing measures. Although the DHV project managers pay great
attentiontothemanagementofrisks,anexplicitassessment(orexplicitandstructuredanalysis)
of risk is not performed. For example a risklog is not kept. Especially for DHVs practice the
explicit assessment of projects risks would increase its service and level of professionalism to
the client. As the client often runs all risks, an explicit mentioning and update of these risks
duringmeetingswouldeasetheassessmentofthoserisksbytheclient.
Project Evaluation: After the actual handover of a project DHV uses two evaluation forms to
evaluateitsprojects.Inanexternalformtheclientisaskedtogiveitsopinionabouttheproject.
In the internal evaluation DHVstaff themselves are given the chance to evaluate and write
downlessonslearnt.Thesedocumentsformagoodfoundationforastructuredevaluation.To
be useful for future projects it is just as important to actually use gathered information.
Unfortunately this is not performed at DHV Shanghai. Using the Prince2 method (CP3) gives
gooddirectionsforthefurtheruseofthesevaluableevaluations.Anexampleisthesetupofa
lessonslearntreportaftertheprojectsclosure.
4.3Additionalchallenges
Next to the challenges stated above there are also challenges that emerge parallel and
independent of the analysis made in the previous chapter. These, often more concrete,
challenges were gathered during sitevisits, observations and especially interviews. Some of
theseparallelemergedchallengesaredefinitelyworthmentioning.
Knowledgesharing:Thefirstadditionalchallengecanbefoundinthefieldofknowledgesharing.
Accesstoavailableinformationandknowledgeisnotoptimalatpresent.Thereisnoeasyaccess
topreviousprojectsandnoeasyaccesstotemplates,bestpracticesandliterature.Allofwhich
areagreatsourceofknowledge.Thesecondchallengeconcerningknowledgesharingisthelack
ofwritten(digitalornot)documentation.Asstatedbeforethereisalargeamountofknowledge
available within in the office, but this information is mostly not written down. To learn from
eachotheritiscrucialforanorganizationtohaveallknowledgeavailable.
Health,SafetyandEnvironment:Partiallyoverlappingthechallengeconcerningquality,Health,
Safety and Environment, or HSE, is becoming an increasingly important term in construction
projects.Especiallywesterncompaniesandchemicalcompaniesincreasinglydemandacertain
guaranteed level of HSE. DHV however, has no standard HSE procedures, accept for the
regulationsthatareenforcedbylawandadhochandlingifrequestedbytheclient.Inthiswayit
isverydifficulttoguaranteeacertainlevelofHSEquality.
31
Maintenance: This challenge looks obvious but is certainly worth to be mentioned. When a
comparisonismadebetweenthedifferentphasesinaDHVprojectandthephasinginstandard
literatureaboutconstructionitimmediatelybecomesclearthatmaintenanceisnotincludedin
DHVShanghaipractice.Thisgapcanbepartlyexplainedbyalackofinterestinthissubjectin
thewholeofChina.Nonethelessisseemsworthwhiletoexplorethepossibilitiesonthisfieldas
it can be an extra service to the client and an extra source of income for DHV itself. As this
challenge is purely the content of a project and not about project management itself this
challengeisnotinourscope.Thischallengewillthereforenotbeanalyzed.
Design Integration: Before discussing this challenge we will first define the term design
integration.Designintegration,inthiscontext,isthewholeprocessofintegratingalldifferent
fieldsofknowledgeandrequirementsduringdesigning.Thischallengeisespeciallyimportantin
complex projects as engineers often tend to work on their own subject and do not look over
their task boundaries. Another challenge in design integration is the communication between
the DHV office (engineers) and the external designers (LDI). This also influences design
integrationandisnonoptimalbecauseofthelackofstandardrules.Nowdifferentpeoplehave
adifferentunderstandingofsomedrawingsorterms.Thischallengeis,similartotheprevious
challenge,notdirectlyaboutprojectmanagementbutisrelatedtothecontentofeachproject
itself.Itthereforeisleftouttheanalysisaswell.
As we overlook all challenges and possible improvements listed above a certain type of
improvement can be recognized. This type of improvement can be found in the field of
procedures.Thechallengeswhichmainlyconcernproceduresare:
Formalstartupdocument
Qualityprocedures
Handingovertasks/assignments
RiskAssessment
ProjectEvaluation
HealthsafetyandEnvironment
Knowledgesharing
Asmentionedabovethefollowingtwochallengesarenotinthescopeofthisresearchand
thereforenotfurtheraddressed.
Maintenance
DesignIntegration
32
5Implementation
Since the challenges and improvements have been stated in the previous chapter it is now
possibletolookattheimplementationofthesechallenges.In thischapterwewillgothrough
thepossibleimplementationofeachchallenge/improvement,inotherwordshowtomakethe
improvement work. The main issues of each improvement in the previous chapter will be
mentionedandasuggestiononhowtoimplementwillbegiven.
5.1Generalprocedures
Asthelistinginthepreviouschaptershows,thebiggestroomforimprovementliesinthefield
ofknowledgesharing.
Knowledge sharing: During our internship we created a PM manual which states the current
knowledge within DHV. This manual is used as a general source of knowledge which can be
consultedbyallproject managersat theirownwill.Thestructuredanalysis carriedoutduring
this research functioned as a basis for this manual. The framework designed in chapter 2 was
used to fill out all gained information. Next to the current practice from the analysis we have
alsopaidextraattentiontopracticaltipsandbestpractices(templatesandexamples).
The currently used templates and example documents were put in the knowledge database
calledSharework.Shareworkwassetupoverthreeyearsago,buthadnotreallybeenusedever
since.Duringourinternshipwediscussedthebenefitsofaknowledgesharingdatabasewitha
seniorProjectManager.DuetohiseffortanewversionofShareworkwaslaunched.Themanual
andallrelateddocumentshavebeenputintoSharework.NowthePMmanualcanbeusedas
aneasyoperatingdocumentwhichislinkedtoShareworkasitsbackbone.
ThecurrentITsystemwithinDHVisalsoasubjectforimprovementandcanbeseenasapartof
knowledgesharing.OnthemidlongtermthiswillbesolvedbyanewdevelopedITsystemfor
all global offices, in which all information will be stored on one server. This will make
informationavailablewheneverandwhereveraslongasyouhaveainternetconnection.Onthe
short term though, the IT system should still be improved. The server maximum capacity has
beenreachedatthemoment.Thismeansthatstaffcannotsavetheirworkontheserverand
make it accessible to other staff members, besides this will make the proactive use of the
knowledgedatabaseShareworkforexampleimpossible.Thereforeasimplesolutionlikeadding
extraharddrivecapacitytotheservercanbeimplementedassoonaspossible.Thisisasimple
improvementthatcouldbeeasilyexecutedbythecurrentITmanager.
Otherimprovementscanbemadethroughprocedures.Thereforeeachoftheseprocedureswill
be shortly discussed and a possible way of implementation will be suggested. However, one
importantnotemustbemadebyeachofthefollowingprocedures:Implementationisnotonly
aboutsettinguptheproceduresandmanuals.Infact,itisonlythefirststep.Makingthepeople
use these procedures is just as important. A whole bookshelf filled with procedures is useless
whennooneeverlooksatthem.Makingtheprocedureseasyaccessibleandeasytousearejust
asimportant.Maybeevenmoreimportantistomaketheusersfamiliarwithitscontentandto
showtheuserswhatthebenefitisforthem.Inotherwords:whyshouldtheyuseitinthefirst
place?Thefollowingsuggestionsforimplementationmustbereadwiththisnoteinmind.
33
As mentioned in the previous chapter it is best to focus on a quality system when trying to
improve overall project quality management. This quality system should contain a set of
procedures on how and when to use which quality techniques. These techniques to monitor,
test,checkorensurequalityare,assaidbefore,alreadyavailable.Thequalitysystemthatisto
bedesignedshouldoverseeallthesetechniques,makingsurethatqualityisensuredduringthe
entireproject.Thiswillpreventgapsintheprocessofcontrollingquality.
As this future quality system should be integrated and combined with the current quality
techniques,itisnoteasytosimplytakeastandardqualitysystemandimplementitwithoutany
major changes. At best the DHV Shanghai quality system should be designed bottom up.
Beginningatthebasis,usingtheavailabletechniquesandworkinguptothegeneralandoverall
quality procedures, this document could develop similar to the General Project Management
Manual. This means that the current practice is analyzed and written down first after which
fitting procedures are (gradually) added filling the gaps in quality management practice. This
improvementdependsmainlyontheeffortandtimethatisputintoit.Thisimplementationcan
beperformedbyeitheraDHVemployeeorastudentduringaninternship.
FortheoverallHSEproceduresitwillbebesttocreateamanualtowritedowntheprocedures,
though a careful distinction has to be made between different construction projects. Building
projects on one hand and industrial plants on the other. Because of the severe effects and
mediaattentionwhenincidentsoccuratanindustrialplant,theHSEproceduresareextensive
andspecificanddemandforextrameasures.InpracticeDHVhasalreadymadeaspecificHSE
planonrequestofaclient.ThisHSEplancanbeusedasafoundationtocreateastandardDHV
HSEmanual.TheactualwritingofthemanualcanonceagainbedonebyaDHVstaffmemberor
atemporaryworkforcelikeastudent.
Theoverallriskassessmentisapointofimprovementwhichcanbeimplementedbythesetup
of procedures as well. Setup of these procedures can be a bit more complicated than a HSE
manualthough.TomakesuchaprocedurethereshouldbeanactiveformofRiskManagement,
whichshouldcontain:
- Accesstoreliable,uptodateinformationaboutrisks.
- Decisionmaking processes supported by a framework of risk analysis and
evaluation.
- Processesinplacetomonitorrisks.
- Therightbalanceofcontrolinplacetodealwiththoserisks.
This will need a more extensive approach from an experienced staff member of DHV. In the
proceduretomanagetherisk,arisklogorotherkindofdocumentshouldbeusedwithineach
phasetokeeptrackofrisks.
Thefinalprocedurewhichissuitableforimprovementistheprocedureforprojectevaluation.
Toimproveanorganizationitisimportanttolearnfromexperiences.Thislearningcanbedone
by an internal project evaluation procedure on how successful the project is. It hereby is
importanttofocusmainlyondeprojectexecutionmorethanontheendproduct.Inthiswayit
becomespossibletowritealessonslearnedreportandanendprojectreport.Thereportsof
several different projects than can be compared and analyzed together, for example once a
year.Inthiswaythisvaluablesourceofknowledgebecomesavailableusingonlyaminimumof
extraeffort.Itishoweverimportanttokeepaprojectevaluationconcreteandsimple.Aspeople
areoftenbusywithanewprojecttheywilleasilyloosetheirinterestintheclosedproject.Itis
34
bettertohaveashortandsimpleevaluationthatiseasytoperform,thananextensiveonethat
isneverused.
Implementation of the formal start up and task hand over are relatively simple and can be
implementedbywritingabasicprocedure,makingatemplateandexplainingtheuseofbothin
theProjectManagementManualandduring,forexample,aworkshop.
35
6Conclusions&Recommendations
ProjectManagementiswellexecutedatDHVShanghai.Thisisthemainconclusionthatcanbe
drawnfromthisanalysis.Althoughprojectmanagementiswellexecuted,therestillisroomfor
furtherimprovementofthispractice.Inthischapterarecommendationfortheimplementation
oftheimprovementsisgiven.
Asstatedinthepreviouschapter,mostimprovementscanbeimplementedthroughthesetup
ofvarioussetsofprocedures.Thelesscomplexprocedures,whichareeasytoimplementand
integratedintodaytodaypracticebyadding themintotheProject ManagementManual,are
theproceduresforaformalstartupdocument,taskhandoverandevaluation.Theprocedure
containingastructuralriskassessmentthroughoutallprojectsismorecomplicatedbutcanbe
integratedintotheManualaswell.Werecommendimplementingtheseproceduresassoonas
isreasonablypossible:
- The set up of formal startup, task handover and evaluation procedures and
integratetheseintothedaytodaypracticethroughaworkshopandthroughtheuse
oftheProjectManagementManual.
- CreateandstartanoverallRiskAssessmentprocedurethroughoutallprojectswhich
regulates the explicit assessment and monitoring of all possible threats and
uncertainties. This procedure can be integrated into the day to day practice by
addingittothemanualandtroughaworkshopforallprojectmanagers.
The other procedures take considerably more time. Nonetheless these tasks can be partially
performed by, for example, students during an internship. To make sure all processes and
procedurescanbeintegratedgraduallyandtheorganizationdoesnotgetburdenedtoomuch,
the following sets of procedures, whether or not put together in a manual, can best be
performedsubsequent:
- Thesetupofoverallqualityprocedurestoensureacertainlevelofqualityduringall
phasesofanyproject.
- ThedevelopmentofanoverallsetofHealth,SafetyandEnvironmentproceduresto
ensure a certain standard of HSE during the whole project and especially the
constructionphase.
The analyzed challenges concerning the Sharing of Knowledge are important, as they are a
foundation for all other improvements. Great steps in the implementation of these
improvementsarealreadymadethough.ThishasbeendonewritingtheProject Management
ManualandarevivalofthesupersededShareWork.Tomakesuretheprocessofastructural
build up of knowledge in, lets call it the DHV Project Management Body of Knowledge (DHV
PMBOK), will continue, it is important to always keep the attention focused on this continues
process.APMBOK,ofwhichtheShareWorkandthemanualcanfunctionasabase,willneverbe
finished. By keep updating, adding and reviewing the knowledge, procedures and examples in
thisDHVPMBOKtheorganization,andthepeopleworkinginit,cankeepimprovingtheirskills
andknowledge.Tokeepthisfocusonknowledgebuildupandknowledgesharing,realtimeand
effort has to be put into this subject. Appointing a filecontroller and knowledgemanagers to
36
ShareWork,asitisdonerightnow,areperfectexamplesonhowtodoso.Soourfinalandmost
importantrecommendationscanbestatedas:
- Keep a continues focus on Developing & Sharing knowledge by keeping the

documentsaliveandsupportinginitiativesonthisfield.
Especially the last recommendation is crucial as it is actually a strict condition to develop the
otherrecommendations.
37
References
Akker,vanden,A.(2002).PRINCE2Compact.Heeswijk:LagantManagementConsultantsBV.
AlJibouri,S.(2000).DictaatPlanning,beheersingenrisicomanagement.Enschede:Univsersityof
Twente.
Anderson,E.S.,Grude,K.V.,Haug,T.,&Turner,J.R.(1999).DoeltreffendProjectmanagement.
Utrecht:BrunaUitgevers.
APMGroupLimited(2005).PRINCE2CaseStudy,PRINCE2andPMI/PMBOKaCombined
ApproachatGetronics.RetrievedJune20,2007,from
http://www.Prince2.org.uk/web/site/PRINCE2Resources/CaseStudies.asp.
Charvat,J.P.(2003).ProjectManagementMethodologies:selecting,implementingand
supportingmethodologiesandprocessesforprojects.Hoboken,NewJersey:Wiley
Dalkowski,A.,Lohnert,G.,&Sutter,W.(2003).IntegratedDesignProcess.Berlin:International
energyagency.
Doree,A.G.,Suurenbroek,Y.E.,&VanderVeen,B.(2000).DictaatBouwprocessen,Enschede:
UniversityofTwente.
Ducan,W.R.(1995).DevelopingaPMBOKdocument:theUSProjectManagementInstitutes
approach.Internationaljournalofprojectmanagement,13,8994.
Fredrikz,B.,Hedeman,B.,&VisvanHeemst,G.(2004).Projectmanagement,eenintroductieop
basisvanPRINCE2.Zaltbommel:vanHarenPublishing.
Kerzner,H.(2001).ProjectManagement,AsystemsapproachtoPlanning,Scheduling,and
Controlling.NewYork,NY:JohnWiley&Sons,Inc.
OfficeofGovernmentCommerce(2002).ManagingSuccessfulProjectswithPRINCE2.London:
TheStationeryOffice.
Pheng,L.S.,&Leong,C.H.Y.(2000).Crossculturalprojectmanagementforinternational
constructioninChina,InternationalJournalofProjectManagement,18,307316.
ProjectManagementInstitute(2004).Aguidetotheprojectmanagementbodyofknowledge:
PMBOKguide.NewtownSquare,Pennsylvania:ProjectManagementInstitute,Inc.
Selfstudymanagementtraining.(n.d.).RetrievedApril30,2007,fromhttp://mindtools.com
Veenvliet,K.Th.(2001).DictaatB8Ontwerpprocessen.Ensched:UniversityofTwente.
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Wawruck,W.A.(1987).ANeglectedDimensionofEffectivePerformanceonDiverseProjects.
PMNorthwestRegionalSymposium.
Wikipediasearchonprojectmanagement.(n.d.).RetrievedFebruary18,2007,from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Management.
YouJie,L.,&Fox,P.W.(2001).TheconstructionindustryinChina:itsimage,employment
prospectsandskillrequirements.Geneva:InternationalLabourOffice.
39
Listofabbreviations
AC AirConditioning
BD BasicDesign
BEEC BeijingEnvironmentalEngineeringCompany
BOQ BillOfQuantities
CC CurrentCopy
CAS Civil,Architectural,Structural
CPA CriticalPathAnalysis
DD DetailedDesign
DCN DesignChangeNotification
DIN DeutschesIstitutfrNormung(German,likeISO)
DRC DesignReviewCompany
EPCM EngineeringProcurementConstructionManagement
FIDIC InternationalFederationofConsultingEngineers(thisacronymstands
fortheFrenchversionofthename)
FS FeasibilityStudy
FW Forward
GBcode GeneralBuildingcode
GC GeneralContractor
HSE Health,Safety&Environment
HVAC HeathVentilationAirConditioning
IEC InternationalElectrotechnicalCommission
IQ InstallationQuality
ISO InternationalStandardizationOrganization
LDI LocalDesignInstitute
M&E Mechanical&Engineering
MEP MechanicalElectricalProcess
MoM MinutesofMeeting
MS Microsoft
OQ OperationalQuality
PD PreliminaryDesign
PDP PreliminaryDesignPackage
PM ProjectManagement
PMBOK ProjectManagementBodyOfKnowledge
PoR ProgramofRequirements
QS QuantitySurvey(or)
RFI RequestForInformation
RFQ RequestForQuotations
SMART SpecificMeasurableAccurateRealisticTime
WBS WorkBreakdownStructure
40
AppendixA:PMManual
41
AppendixB:StructureShareWork
42
AppendixC:Interviewquestions
Generalpointsofimportance
- Introduceourselves
- Shortintroductionaboutthepurposeoftheinterview
- Askiftheintervieweeagreeswiththerecordingoftheconversation
- Arrangedrinksetc./makecomfortable
- Enoughpaper,alsotodraw/writeforinterviewee
GeneralQuestions
InformationInterviewee
Name:
Function:
Worksituation/project:
Checkinformationfoundontheintranet.Firstgettoknowmoreaboutthepersonandhis
currentproject,lethimtalk.Laterthisinformationcanbeusedtoreferto.
- Whatdoyouexpectfromthismanual?
- Whatdo/dontyouwantinthismanual?
- Biggestproblemsyouencounteredandhowdidyouovercomethem?(Incurrentor
pastprojects)
GeneralQuestionsperknowledgearea
- Whatprocedureand/ortoolsdoyouuse?Why?When?
- Isthistool/procedureusedduringthewholeprojectoronlyinaspecificphase?
- Doesitstask/formchangesduringtheproject?
- Howdoyouanalyzerisks?
- Howdoyouhandlechangesinrequirementsbyclient,designeretc.
- Doesitwork(referstoallabovesubjects)?Why/Whynot?
- Doyouhaveanexample(document)
ScopeControl
- Whatisscopecontroltoyou?
- Howwouldyoudefineit?
- Whichtasksdoesitcontain?Inwhichphaseisitused/changed?
- Whichtoolsdoyouuseforscopecontrol?
- Howdoyoudeterminetheprojectdefinition?
o Whoareyouworkingfor,whatishis/herresponsibility?
o Whatistheirmaingoal?
- Whataretheprojectsboundaries?Whatisincluded,whatisnot,howto
determine?
- Whichroledoesthecontractplaysinthisandhow?
- Howdoyoudeterminewhatbasicinformationisneeded?Howdoyouretrieveit
fromtheclient?
43
Organization
- Whatdoesaprojectorganizationmeantoyou?
- Whichtoolsdoyouusetoorganizeaproject?
- Howdoyouselectyourprojectteam?
- Howdoyoumakeaplanforpersonnelallocation?
- Howdoyoudetermineresponsibilities?
- Youhaveateammemberwhoisnotmeetinghiscommitments,whatdoyoudo?
- Whichworkingstructuredoyouuse?
- Whichinfluencedoestheclienthasinwhichstagesandwhy?
Communication
- Whatiscommunicationtoyou?
- Whichtoolsdoyouuseforcommunicationcontrol?
o Forexample:Howanddoyoumakeacommunicationmap?
- Howdoyoudeterminethemeetingschedules?
o Whatfrequency?
o Whatkindofmeetings?Formal/informal?
o Levelofdecisionmakinginthesemeetings?
- Whatkindofarchivingandfilingsystemdoyouuse?
o Whatdoyouthinkofthissystem?
o Doyoushareinformationordoyouusesharedinformationwithothers?
TimingControl
- Whatistimecontroltoyou?
- Whichtoolsdoyouusefortimecontrol?
- Howdoyoudeterminethestartdateandplannedenddate?
- Howdoyoudeterminethestartdateandenddateperphase?
- Howdoyouplanactivities,capacitiesandmeans?
o Ganttchart
o PERT
o CPM
o Doandwhendoyoumakeacapacityplan?
- Howdoyoudeterminetheprogressandhowoften?
- Intheconstructionfield,ifthetimelydeliverydependsonthesupplier,howdoyou
managethesupplierandwhatcontractualagreementswouldyouputinplace?
CostControl
- Whatiscostcontroltoyou?
- Whichtoolsdoyouuseforcostcontrol?
44
- Howdoyoudeterminetheprojectbudget?
o DoyouuseWBStoestimate?
- Whatdoyoudowhenaclientbudgetisntsufficient?
- Doyouhaveastandardmethodtokeeptrackofthecashflow?
- Whichproceduresofpaymentarethere?
o Certification?
o Contract?
- Whichproceduresdoyouuseinprocurementcontrol?
QualityControl
- Whatisqualitycontroltoyou?
- Whichtoolsdoyouuseforqualitycontrol?
- Howdoyouseetoitthattherequirementsactuallycanbelivedupto?
- Whatisthereviewandapprovalprocedureonqualitycontrol?
- Arethereanystandards?
o Regulations?
o Checklist?
HSE(onlyduringconstructionphase)
- WhatisHSEtoyou?
- Whichtasksdoesitcontain?
- WhichtoolsdoyouuseforcontrollingHSE?
- Whichrequirementsarecommonlygivenby:
o Thegovernment
o Clientscompany(Global,Europe,Asia,Other)
o DHVitself
45
AppendixD:InformationInterviewsandSiteVisits.
Interviews
NameInterviewee:TimJeanne
Function:GeneralManagerDHVShanghai/ProjectManagement
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:ProjectOrganization,ContractManagement,ScopeandCost
DateInterview:May16,2007
NameInterviewee:ChrisShiYuCheng
Function:DeputyGeneralManagerDHVShanghai/ProjectManagement
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:ProjectOrganization,ContractManagement
NameInterviewee:WimJansen
Function:SeniorProjectManager/ProjectDirector
Currentproject(s):DSMChinaCampus,Smit&ZoonLeatherChemicals
Topicsofinterview:ProjectOrganization,ContractManagement
NameInterviewee:FransvanGunsteren
Function:ChairmanDHVChinaAdvisoryBoard
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:Overalladvice
DateInterview:variousteleconferences
NameInterviewee:RuudBeekhuis
Function:ProjectManager
Currentproject(s):DSMChinaCampus,
Topicsofinterview:Scope,CostandQuality
NameInterviewee:ThomasWang
Currentproject(s):PhilipsR&DCampus
Topicsofinterview:Quality,Time,Communication,TenderingphaseandDesignphases
46
NameInterviewee:KongZhen
Currentproject(s):Smit&ZoonLeatherChemicals,EurocampusInternationalSchool,Semperit
Rubber&PlasticProducts.
Topicsofinterview:GovernmentalpermitsandCost,Quality,Time,Communication,
OrganizationintheConstructionphase.
NameInterviewee:DaiXin
Currentproject(s):SiemensShanghaiMedicalEquipment.
Topicsofinterview:Constructionphase,TestingandCommissioningphase,Handoverphase.
NameInterviewee:EricYongZhao
Function:QuantitySurveyor
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:Cost,QuantitySurvey,WBS.
NameInterviewee:EricYongZhao
Function:QuantitySurveyor
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:Cost,QuantitySurvey,WBS.
NameInterviewee:JasmineYe
Function:ProjectSecretary
Currentproject(s):
Topicsofinterview:FilingandArchiving,Communication
NameInterviewee:LiHua
Function:Architect,Designcoordinatorandconstructioncoordinator
Currentproject(s):DSMR&DCampus
Topicsofinterview:DesignphaseandConstructionphase.
Sitevisits
Project:PhilipsR&DCampus
Phase:thisprojectwasattheendoftheconstructionphase.
Dateofvisit:May9,2007
Project:SiemensShanghaiMedicalEquipment
Phase:thisprojectwasintheTestingandCommissioningphase/Handoverphase.
Dateofvisit:May22,2007
47
AppendixE:ExampletimescheduleDHVShanghai
48
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ImprovingProjectManagementatDHVShanghai

To clarify our objective it is useful to define Project management knowledge. Project

To determine the characteristics of project management practice at DHV Shanghai, first a

Managing projects is as old as the pyramids in Egypt. Project Management as we know it

TheProject ManagementBodyofKnowledgeisastandardknowledge documentfirstbrought

The PMBOK creates a framework which splits the

human resource management, communications management, risk management and

management, on the fields of Prince2

Figure 4: Schematic Framework

Risk assessment: Risk canbedefinedasthepossibilityacertain problemoccurs,multipliedby

- Keep a continues focus on Developing & Sharing knowledge by keeping the

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