June 25, 2020

Comprehensive Project Management Solutions Overview

Projects for which Grantek acts as the overall project manager are referred to as turnkey projects. The role Grantek plays can extend from performing all engineering and integration efforts for a small project, to acting as the coordinator and managing the efforts of all other vendors and contractors involved in a large project. Grantek can manage any project within a facility as a turnkey effort. We are prepared to manage the electrical, networking, mechanical, piping, and other subcontractors needed, in addition to performing the automation and integration of systems.

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The key to a successfully managed turnkey project is early engagement. For Grantek to understand the requirements, scope, budget, and effort involved, we meet with the customer as early in the planning process as possible. We complete an analysis to determine the front-end loading (FEL) and develop a pre-project plan to fully scope the effort and help plan the project. This allows us to more accurately determine the end-to-end project budget before even starting the engineering phases. This also helps to prevent cost overruns down the road. We prefer to be brought in at the FEL stage to help ensure the project plan will meet the goals of the business before work begins.

Grantek pursues three strategic initiatives when taking on a turnkey project:

– Smart Manufacturing: to ensure a project fully leverages new technologies and initiatives

– Industrial Networking: to improve the connectivity of the manufacturing processes, while ensuring a secure and robust facility network and meaningful, integrated reporting capabilities

– Industrial Safety: to ensure a comprehensive and ongoing risk management program is in place that allows rapid implementation of improvements associated with a safety mitigation strategy

As organizations are forced to run leaner, companies may no longer be able to take on project management themselves, yet the projects still require dedicated oversight. Grantek can help by taking on the project as a turnkey effort, or by embedding a project manager onsite who is dedicated to the project.

Companies assume greater risk by managing large projects themselves. By outsourcing aspects of the work, as well as the project management, a company reduces risk by holding one partner responsible, and requiring that partner to manage all other vendors involved.

The most important stage for effective engagement of the turnkey manager is the feasibility stage when preliminary engineering and FEL begins.

Benefits of working with Grantek

Our integrated in-house Strategic Initiative Experts and Project Management Office (PMO) allow us to offer a complete turnkey solution. We act as the customer’s single point of contact and subcontract the building trades to qualified companies, saving companies the effort of managing and coordinating multiple vendors.

For turnkey projects, Grantek provides a dedicated project manager to maintain continuity to all phases of the project from conception to completion. After the project is complete, we also handle follow-up work and support contracts. To reduce information silos, Grantek’s PMO is actively involved in managing other contractors as well as Grantek personnel involved with design and integration.

Our project managers are certified members of the Project Management Institute (PMI®) who follow the Grantek-developed Project Management Methodology (PMM), specific to our areas of specialization for regulated and non-regulated industries such as: pharmaceuticals, food and beverage, consumer packaged goods, and energy.

Our extensive experience enables Grantek to work with companies up front to help ensure that projects are scoped properly and costs are defined and understood before the work is subcontracted out, reducing the need for costly change orders when the project is underway. In today’s business climate of tight budgets and even tighter schedules, many companies do not have adequate resources or expertise in-house to manage expansion projects. Grantek can help ensure projects are properly scoped, estimated, and executed to meet deadlines, stay within budget, and meet business and regulatory objectives.

Another benefit Grantek brings to a project is our vendor and partner relationships, allowing us to engage qualified, specialized subcontractors with the right experience to work on projects. We value our long-term relationships with our customers, allowing us to leverage our past experience with enterprise and facilities as we help plan additional upgrades or expansions.

Our long history as a systems integrator has developed Grantek’s knowledge in the capabilities of delivery partners we’ve worked with on previous projects, and we share that knowledge with our customers. This benefits our customers by allowing them to leverage our previous experience with partners and saves time in vendor selection. We manage our own list of vendor qualification and certifications so our customers can be confident in the qualifications of other contractors bidding on portions of a project. They can rest assured these contractors hold the certificates and licenses needed to do the work. Selecting an unfamiliar vendor strictly based on pricing can turn out to be costly in the long run, if the vendor lacks the necessary qualifications needed.

Grantek has internal processes in place for managing medium to large projects using our project management methodology. For larger projects requiring additional contractors and trades, we have outward capabilities that include analysis and evaluation of contractors we’ve worked with previously. We ensure they offer the best value for the project, bringing in vetted contractors and adding value by leveraging our contractor relationships with our customers.

Grantek operates a contractor Safety Management Program, where we validate the contractors’ safety programs. We analyze their safety history and certifications, annually. We also verify contractors are carrying the necessary insurance. We ensure proper registrations and pass our customers’ requirements along to the contractors to ensure they are met before the work begins. Grantek’s internal safety management program includes contractors as well as Grantek personnel.

Grantek manages projects by prioritizing the development of long-term relationships between staff members and our customers, even through mergers and acquisitions. We try to keep the same project managers and subject matter experts assigned to a customer, to maintain relationships and the historical knowledge of the company and the facility.

Grantek places special emphasis on developing comprehensive safety programs and facility improvements for our customers. Whether a stand-alone effort or as a part of an expansion project, Grantek offers customers access to our Machine Safety Screening Survey Tool. This tool, developed in-house, allows customers to complete an equipment survey. The tool is hosted at a secure data center and is access-controlled; using it allows customers to compile their own list of equipment. Grantek then uses the inventory to develop a safety hazard mitigation program, based on survey results. For multi-facility customers, using the tool allows Grantek to develop a cost-effective mitigation program by analyzing equipment risks across all sites, and thereby developing the mitigation and implementation plans as efficiently as possible and in turn, saving money. The tool is a general industry-standard questionnaire that covers electrical and mechanical safety as well as risks that may be posed by operations and equipment access.

We also focus on the legal aspects of a project, including contracts and change order management. Our process for change order management strives to keep the customer informed of the need for changes and any impacts on the rest of the project. This helps prevent a small issue from turning into a big issue due to lack of communication. Our formal change control process enables us to determine not only the immediate cost of a change, but also its impact throughout the project. We evaluate all changes for risk and schedule impact in addition to cost impact.

Grantek is a certified member of the Control System Integrators Association (CSIA), which has its own Best Practices guide. Grantek contributes in the CSIA peer group at both the Executive and Operations levels. Grantek is recertified by CSIA every 4 years; the CSIA evaluation is based on compliance with the CSIA Best Practices Guide.

Grantek is experienced working cross-border; we are familiar with regulatory requirements of Canadian provinces and US states. Our work is evenly split between the US and Canada. We are familiar with all aspects of cross-border work including shipping requirements for equipment and assets.

Conclusion

Early engagement and the turnkey management company’s industry experience are key to a successful project. The choice of a turnkey solutions provider should not be based solely on price. Grantek offers many advantages in addition to many years of experience, including our safety screening survey tool, our vendor qualification management capability, our extensive list of preferred subcontractors in a variety of disciplines, and our openbook approach to sharing what we’ve learned with our customers. We look forward to helping you with your next business initiative.