At the Crossroads: Multidiscipline Integration and Coordination in an EPC Contract: A Resurgence of Challenges and Strategic Improvement Opportunities

Master's thesis in Industrial Asset ManagementOver the years, the faculty of Project management contributed excellent methodologies through a set of constituted guidelines that are applicable for smooth execution of projects in every industry. They are broadly based on initiating, planning, organizing, executing, and monitoring & controlling the process groups as a single entity. The implementation of project management methodologies is carried out through project management knowledge in specialized areas such as integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resource, communications and risk. Projects are governed by factors that have major influence in directing the success or failures. Broadly cost, time & quality have been identified as key important success factors for projects. However, the factors are also governed by the complexity of projects and risk involved in project execution. Over the decades the EPC contractors are trying to find solutions to cope up to the complexities colligated with significant risks in project execution. Extensive research is done by every contractor with an objective to integrate schedule and time management functions in an EPC project. Many scholars and researchers used different methodologies such as utility theory, scheduling milestones, cost milestones, performance index, cost accounting etc. However, the focus has been primarily on the construction phase of the project and most often ignores the fact that success delivery of a project is a synchronous and integrated effort of all the disciplines involved in project execution. This research is carried out to identify the critical success factors in EPC projects and establish the essential factors requisite for efficient execution. In a quest to define a framework that essentially facilitates identifying the critical success factors and their key influencing factors, a systematic investigation of established facts were used. The journey in search of knowledge through previously established researches and scholarly work culminated into the design and development of a framework methodology congenial to the current research environment. Collaboration with the research unit specialist groups and individuals helped to develop a survey questionnaire. The required data was acquired from selected participants of the EPC contractor organization that is specialized in offering EPC services in the oil & gas industry. The data was collected based on convenience statistical sampling technique. Acquired data was analyzed through univariate, bivariate, multivariate statistical techniques and identified the critical factors that require attention of the management of the organization under research. The findings indicated concurrence of established project success factors i.e. scope, time and cost with critical success factors identified and defined in the research. The results of analysis identified factors that are significantly affecting the efficiency of multidiscipline integration and co-ordination. The research established that an integrated control system is necessary to the management as a tool that investigates and provides answers from the project stakeholders. Such a system provides the reflection of the factors that are directly or indirectly impacting the cost, schedule and quality constraints of a project. Research Faculty Supervisor: Professor. Jayantha.P. Liyanage, Ph.D, Professor & Chair, Centre for Industrial Asset Management (CIAM), Faculty of Science & Technology, University of Stavanger Research External Supervisors: Nils Erik Olsen and Eivind Eliassen Researcher and Author: Pavan Kumar Akella M.Sc Student, Faculty of Science & Technology, University of Stavange