Quota Shared Park Pathway construction case study
Construction projects required highly experienced and knowledgeable manager who can handle difficult situations during the project. The responsibilities of a construction project manager includes planning, cost management, time, quality and safety management, CM professional codes and practices, contract administration etc (Meredith, Mantel. and Shafer, 2013). They have to make sure that they break down the timescale according to the activities and tasks involved in the project. This process often causes problems which leads to failure of the project. Construction projects are a complex field which requires knowledge of many fields such as business, law, regulations etc. It is essential for project manager to follow basic principles which helps them to move forward.
This essay highlights the importance of Waterfall project management methodology and its contribution in the success of the project. The case study of Quota Shared Park in Australia has been used to understand the advantages and stages of Waterfall method. Apart from this, justification and description of the methodology has also been included in the paper.
Quota Shared Park is located in Queensland, Australia. Mackay Regional Council (MRC) has invited tenders for the construction of pathways in the park. There will be two pathways in the park including bikeways and pathway for visitors. It will build connection between the facilities, centers and offices. It will provide easy access to the visitors as all the facilities are linked together with each other (Heagney, 2016). The projects managers have limited budget and time frame to achieve all the deliverables mentioned by the Mackay Regional Council (MRC) for the project. Project manager has to use effective management technique to ensure high quality during the process. Furthermore, refurnishment and repairs have to be done of the recreation centers to improve the satisfaction level of the visitors. They have to be provided excellent facilities to improve their views.
Waterfall methodology uses top down approach for the projects. It is useful in many areas such as construction, repeatable services, manufacturing, engineering etc. It can be used in all tangible products and their development (Kerzner, 2013). It provides clear vision to the manager and their team members which reduces confusion and delays. This method uses documentation, record keeping and deadlines to achieve the desired objective of the project. The stages follow downward approach and the next stage begins only if all the activities are completed in the previous level. It uses dependencies approach which makes the entire process effective and structured. Furthermore, it allows the manager to understand all the details of the project (Schwalbe, 2015). It reduces the chances of defects and flaws which are discovered at the later stages. Many construction projects extend their time limit because errors are detected at the very end. It causes problems which affect the budget as well as quality of the deliverables. Waterfall method eliminates this issue and helps the manager to accomplish the task. Waterfall method includes project scope, schedules, budget, possible impacts and solutions and real life decisions (Walker, 2015). This method can be easily adopted by project managers because it provides them with the opportunity to modify it according to their need. They can create their own model which is specifically designed keeping in mind the requirements and objectives. Waterfall methodology is useful for constructing the pathway in Quota Shared Park. The entire project team needs direction and vision which will provided by this method (Turner, 2016). Furthermore, the project manager can track the progress and performance of the entire project at different intervals. The corrective actions are taken so as to follow the plans and outlines. Waterfall methodology will be useful in creation of execution plan for the construction of Quota Shared Park pathways.
Waterfall model representation
The model of waterfall methodology involves different functions which help in providing direction the entire project. It is a structured sequential process which clearly defines the subsequent activities (Boud, Cohen and Sampson, 2014). It can be useful in effective management and integration of different tasks. It has smart development stages which are unique for the entire project. The model of waterfall methodology can be modified by the project manager to make sure that it produces the deliverables in the stipulated time and resources. Furthermore, it is a simple model which can be implemented without any major modifications. It requires less time and resources as compared to other methodologies of project management (Snyder, 2014). Apart from this, it helps in maintaining good relations with the stakeholders and clients because they can see the output of the project after each stage. It does not cause overlapping of different activities which is common in construction project. Overlapping of activities increases workload and it affects the performance of the project. Quota Shared park pathway project involves different activities but Waterfall method will ensure that there is no overlapping (Leach, 2014). The different phases of waterfall method include conception, initiation phase, analysis, designing, development, testing and reviewing, implementation and maintenance. These phases have been discussed below:
Conception: The conception stage focuses on decision making and appointment of project manager, team members and workers. Project briefs are created at this stage which includes timescales, cost, allocation of resources, requirements of the stakeholders etc (Fewings, 2013). This phase lays the foundation of the construction project. Quota Shared park pathway construction requires many deliverables which have to understood and planned by the management. They have to give responsibilities to their workers to ensure proper control and implementation of all the activities. The main decisions makers in the phase are sponsor, client and senior management (Mir and Pinnington, 2014). Waterfall methodology focuses on planning and conception stage helps the project manager to accomplish it.
Initiation phase: In this stage, the project team members look for the needs and requirements of the construction projects. It includes the needs of the business, client’s requirements and the equipments which will be used for the project (Brhel, Meth, Maedche and Werder, 2015). Quota Shared park pathway construction will required many laborers such as project manager, experts, workers, support staff, technicians etc. Apart from this, they will also need construction materials, tools and equipments which will help in the construction. Waterfall methodology focuses on details and all the necessities of the project are documented. It reduces unwanted problems for the project manager as everything is available for him in advance (Ferrario, Simm and Whittle, 2014).
Phases of the Waterfall method and their relevance to the case study
Analysis: The project manager, sponsor and team member’s finds out different alternatives which can used in the project (Moniruzzaman and Hossain, 2013). They understand the needs and benefits of each alternative and the best one is chosen from it. This stage also helps in development of relation and communication channels between the team members. Project managers allow them to tack part in the decision making and share their opinions. Furthermore, different activities are divided into small tasks which care given to teams. This allows the management to work on all the deliverables at the same time.
Designing: Waterfall method consists of designing phase which takes into consideration the objectives, requirements, constraints and expectations of the stakeholders (Boud, Cohen and Sampson, 2014). Usually, there are two main components in this phase which includes logical design and physical design. But project manager of Quota Shared park pathway construction can use its own design and implementation model to understand the processes involved in the project. Outlines and layout should be constructed which will make it easier for the team members to start their work (Losada Urretavizcaya and Fernández-Castro, 2013). They will be able to perform thee duets with the help of a plan and outline.
Development: Development stage involves analysis and evaluation of the plans, outlines and designs created in the initial stages (Snyder, 2014). Project managers use this phase to develop solutions fro different activities in the process. It reduces ambiguity and helps in creation of advancement policies. Apart from his, all the things are documented and written policies are created. The quality standard is also decided which has to be followed by the workers and employees in the entire construction project (Moniruzzaman and Hossain, 2013). This stage can also be used for the assessment and improving the scope of the project. Quota Shared park pathway construction will be benefitted with this phase.
Testing and reviewing: The designs and plans are tested to find out any flaws in it. Waterfall methodology of project management focuses on details and gives attention to all the aspects of the project. But this phase is essential to adapt to the changing environment (Walker, 2015). Testing and reviewing reduces flaws which improves the performance of the project significantly.
Implementation: All the plans are deployed in this stage of the process. After the testing stage, the team members and employees execute the plan as per the guidelines. They have to follow the time scales, budget and resources allocation in the construction project (Meredith, Mantel. and Shafer, 2013). All the processes, guidelines, procedures, specifications and standards have to be considered which are included in initial stages of the method. Quota Pathway construction should be formulated considering all the important factors and tasks as per the sequence. It reduces confusion and the quality control can be established in the. Moreover, the manager of park pathway construction should use supplementary sequential process for sections of the project which involves complexities (Brhel, Meth, Maedche and Werder, 2015).
Maintenance: The maintenance sage helps in improving the performance and knowledge of the project manager.
Waterfall methodology is useful for constructing the pathway in Quota Shared Park in Australia. This method is best for the projects which have clear picture about their final product. It helps in creating a detailed plan which takes into account all the activities in the project. In this way it reduces the chances of error or defects (Snyder, 2014). Apart from this, if any problems persist in the process it can be rectified by going back to the previous stage. The aim of Waterfall method is to understand all the aspects of the project rather than only focusing on the speed. It uses sequential procedures to guide the workers. It is effective at the time of collaboration and integration stage. Quota Shared Park pathway has to be constructed to connect all the facilities of the park. The entire project team needs direction and vision which is provided by Waterfall methodology (Losada Urretavizcaya and Fernández-Castro, 2013). The biggest advantage of waterfall method is that it focuses on detailed planning. It allows the manager to take into consideration the needs of the clients and stakeholders. Similarly, in the project of Quota Shared park there are many requirements f the client which has to be accomplished at the end of the project. Apart from this, it gives clear understanding to the stakeholders about the deliverables (Mir and Pinnington, 2014). All the essential things such as schedules, project size, budget, resources allocation and time frame are documented and presented. It will also enable the project manager to track any deviations from the plan. The project follows the same plan which has been created in the initial stages with the approval of board and stakeholder. It increases the satisfaction level of the client as he gets what he wants. Moreover, adoption of Waterfall method in Quota Shared Park pathway construction will not give rise to any misunderstanding and ambiguity (Leach, 2014). The documentation of each stage allows new team members to pick up from where the others left. Therefore, the project manager should adopt waterfall method in Quota Shared Park as it ensures high quality deliverables in the desired time and cost.
Conclusion
Waterfall method uses systematic approach and helps in defining the milestones for the project. It consists of time schedules, due dates, deliverables, requirements, expectations of clients etc. This method is suitable for the construction of Quota Shared park pathways in Mackay region. Waterfall method uses documentation, record keeping and deadlines to achieve the preferred objective of the project. Furthermore, it allows team members and project manager to understand all the details which reduces the chances of defects and flaws.
References
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Ferrario, M.A., Simm, W., Newman, P., Forshaw, S. and Whittle, J., 2014, May. Software engineering for’social good’: integrating action research, participatory design, and agile development. In Companion Proceedings of the 36th International Conference on Software Engineering (pp. 520-523). ACM.
Fewings, P., 2013. Construction project management: an integrated approach. Routledge.
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Leach, L.P., 2014. Critical chain project management. Artech House.
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Meredith, J.R., Mantel Jr, S.J. and Shafer, S.M., 2013. Project management in practice. Wiley Global Education.
Mir, F.A. and Pinnington, A.H., 2014. Exploring the value of project management: linking project management performance and project success. International Journal of Project Management, 32(2), pp.202-217.
Moniruzzaman, A.B.M. and Hossain, D.S.A., 2013. Comparative study on agile software development methodologies. arXiv preprint arXiv:1307.3356.
Schwalbe, K., 2015. Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.
Snyder, C.S., 2014. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge: PMBOK (®) Guide. Project Management Institute.
Turner, R., 2016. Gower handbook of project management. Routledge.
Walker, A., 2015. Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.
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