Fuel Tank Repairing Project: Budget, Schedule, And Resource Management

Project Budget

A project has been undertaken in order to prevent leakages of the Tank due to which the 30% of the ULP storage capacity of Western Australia is on a verge of collapse. Furthermore, the organization has been paying $20,000 per month as environmental fines due to the leakage. The condition of the tanks is critical mainly due to its age as the tanks are over 50 years old. Therefore, repairing the tanks is essential in order to prevent the collapse of 30% of the company’s capacity of unleaded petrol. The project budget is represented in the following table (Walker, 2015)-

Task Name	Cost
Fuel Tank Repairing	$774,616.00 Save Time On Research and Writing Hire a Pro to Write You a 100% Plagiarism-Free Paper. Get My Paper
Project Starts	$0.00
Planning Stage	$18,528.00
Analysing the Requirements	$4,368.00
Schedule Estimation	$11,040.00
Budget and Resource Estimation	$3,120.00
Documenting the Requirements	$0.00
M1: End of Planning and Requirements Gathering	$0.00
Repairing Work Implementation	$750,760.00
Working on Tank 1	$231,200.00
Fixing the 4 steel patches	$13,600.00
Adding 4 Steel anchor on top of the tank	$30,000.00
Cleaning the outside of Tank	$3,600.00
Repainting the Tank after cleaning	$184,000.00
M2: Completion of Work on Tank 1	$0.00
Working on tank 2	$237,560.00
Fixing seven steel patches on the Tank	$18,280.00
Working on the steel anchor	$31,680.00
Cleaning works done	$3,600.00
Repainting the outside of the Tank	$184,000.00
M3: Completion of Work on Tank 2	$0.00
Working on Tank 3	$282,000.00
working on six steel patches	$23,000.00
Working on the 4 anchors	$35,000.00
Replacing the supply Valve	$36,400.00
Cleaning the Tank	$3,600.00
Repainting the outside of the Tank	$184,000.00
M4: Completion of Work on Tank 3	$0.00
Project Completion and Handover	$5,328.00
Checking whether the leakage has been fixed	$2,208.00
Documenting the project work	$0.00
Payment completion	$1,872.00
Resource Release	$1,248.00
Client Sign off	$0.00
Feedback and improvements	$0.00
M5: End of Project	$0.00

Table 1: The prepared budget

(Source: Created by author using MS Project)

An activity based budgeting technique is used to prepare this budget for the project. The cost of materials and the labours are considered while preparing this budget. The main assumptions associated with this budget are as follows (Saadé,  Dong & Wan, 2015)-

1. It is assumed that the rate of wages of the labourers will remain constant till project completion.
2. The materials that are needed will be readily available during the project implementation.
3. No extra requirement will be added while project implementation.
4. The entire budget prepared will be sufficient for covering all the requirements identified in the project planning stage (Maravas & Pantouvakis,  2012).

Repairing, cleaning and repainting all the three tanks are the main objectives of the project. The schedule prepared for implementing the project is represented in the following table (Kim, Kang & Hwang, 2012). The major milestone of the project is marked in red. It is estimated that the project tank will take a minimum of four and half months will be required to implement this project. The project would not have been complex if the site were easily accessible (Kogan et al., 2017).

Task Name	Duration	Start	Finish
Fuel Tank Repairing	135 days	Wed 02-05-18	Tue 06-11-18
Project Starts	0 days	Wed 02-05-18	Wed 02-05-18
Planning Stage	23 days	Wed 02-05-18	Fri 01-06-18
Analyzing the Requirements	7 days	Wed 02-05-18	Thu 10-05-18
Schedule Estimation	10 days	Fri 11-05-18	Thu 24-05-18
Budget and Resource Estimation	5 days	Fri 25-05-18	Thu 31-05-18
Documenting the Requirements	1 day	Fri 01-06-18	Fri 01-06-18
M1: End of Planning and Requirements Gathering	0 days	Fri 01-06-18	Fri 01-06-18
Repairing Work Implementation	98 days	Mon 04-06-18	Wed 17-10-18
Working on Tank 1	31 days	Mon 04-06-18	Mon 16-07-18
Fixing the 4 steel patches	6 days	Mon 04-06-18	Mon 11-06-18
Adding 4 Steel anchor on top of the tank	5 days	Tue 12-06-18	Mon 18-06-18
Cleaning the outside of Tank	10 days	Tue 19-06-18	Mon 02-07-18
Repainting the Tank after cleaning	10 days	Tue 03-07-18	Mon 16-07-18
M2: Completion of Work on Tank 1	0 days	Mon 16-07-18	Mon 16-07-18
Working on tank 2	33 days	Tue 17-07-18	Thu 30-08-18
Fixing seven steel patches on the Tank	6 days	Tue 17-07-18	Tue 24-07-18
Working on the steel anchor	6 days	Wed 25-07-18	Wed 01-08-18
Cleaning works done	10 days	Thu 02-08-18	Wed 15-08-18
Repainting the outside of the Tank	10 days	Thu 16-08-18	Wed 29-08-18
M3: Completion of Work on Tank 2	1 day	Thu 30-08-18	Thu 30-08-18
Working on Tank 3	35 days	Thu 30-08-18	Wed 17-10-18
working on six steel patches	5 days	Thu 30-08-18	Wed 05-09-18
Working on the 4 anchors	5 days	Thu 06-09-18	Wed 12-09-18
Replacing the supply Valve	5 days	Thu 13-09-18	Wed 19-09-18
Cleaning the Tank	10 days	Thu 20-09-18	Wed 03-10-18
Repainting the outside of the Tank	10 days	Thu 04-10-18	Wed 17-10-18
M4: Completion of Work on Tank 3	0 days	Wed 17-10-18	Wed 17-10-18
Project Completion and Handover	14 days	Thu 18-10-18	Tue 06-11-18
Checking whether the leakage has been fixed	2 days	Thu 18-10-18	Fri 19-10-18
Documenting the project work	1 day	Mon 22-10-18	Mon 22-10-18
Payment completion	3 days	Tue 23-10-18	Thu 25-10-18
Resource Release	2 days	Fri 26-10-18	Mon 29-10-18
Client Sign off	1 day	Tue 30-10-18	Tue 30-10-18
Feedback and improvements	5 days	Wed 31-10-18	Tue 06-11-18
M5: End of Project	0 days	Tue 06-11-18	Tue 06-11-18

Table 2: The Milestone and Project Schedule  

The tools used for preparing this project schedule include different scheduling tools such as Gantt chart and Ms Project. A sequential approach is chosen for project implementation and therefore, the schedule has been created following a waterfall approach. Simultaneous working on all the tanks will not be possible due to its limited accessibility and therefore, the chosen method is appropriate for project implementation (Ruël, Bondarouk & Smink, 2012). Furthermore, in order approaches, such as PRINCE2 there is a chance of scope creep which cannot be considered in this project as the project needs to be implemented as soon as possible.

One of the significant merits of waterfall approach is that it helps in implementing a project within the set schedule (Kim, Kang & Hwang, 2012). The use of work break down structure has considerably helped in breaking up of the entire task in smaller executable form. The schedule identified for the project is needed to be followed throughout the project implementation phase in order to successfully implement the project (De Brucker,  Macharis & Verbeke, 2013). 

Project Schedule

Since the repairing works of the tank is particularly complex, it is very necessary to identify the resources required for successful implementation of the project. The resourcing stress points include choice of skilled workers who would be able to work on heights and on the tanks which are difficult to access (Kerzner, 2017).   The resources identified for repairing and cleaning the Tanks are as follows-

1. Skilled workers and Labourers
2. Project manager and the business analyst
3. Materials needed such as steel patches, steel anchors, supply valve and paint
4. Cranes and scaffolds
5. The project management team.

The resources that will be responsible for performing each task associated with the project that has been identified in the project planning stage is indicated in the following table (Kerzner & Kerzner, 2017)-

Task Name	Resource Names
Fuel Tank Repairing
Project Starts	Project Manager
Planning Stage
Analyzing the Requirements	Project Manager
Schedule Estimation	Appointing Business Analyst, Project Manager
Budget and Resource Estimation	Project Manager
Documenting the Requirements
M1: End of Planning and Requirements Gathering
Repairing Work Implementation
Working on Tank 1
Fixing the 4 steel patches	Steel Patch 2m2[1],Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Adding 4 Steel anchor on top of the tank	Steel anchors for Tank 1[1]
Cleaning the outside of Tank	Cleaning Staffs appointed, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Repainting the Tank after cleaning	Large crane on rent[1],Paint to be bought[1],Painter chosen, Renting small crane[1]
M2: Completion of Work on Tank 1
Working on tank 2
Fixing seven steel patches on the Tank	Steel Patch 3m2[1],Workers and laborers, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Working on the steel anchor	Steel anchors for Tank 2[1],Workers and laborers
Cleaning works done	Cleaning Staffs appointed, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Repainting the outside of the Tank	Paint to be bought[1],Painter chosen, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
M3: Completion of Work on Tank 2
Working on Tank 3
working on six steel patches	Steel Patch1.5m2[1],Workers and laborers, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Working on the 4 anchors	Steel anchors for Tank 3[1],Workers and laborers, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Replacing the supply Valve	Tank 3 Supply Valve[1],Workers and laborers
Cleaning the Tank	Cleaning Staffs appointed, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
Repainting the outside of the Tank	Paint to be bought[1],Painter chosen, Large crane on rent[1],Renting small crane[1]
M4: Completion of Work on Tank 3
Project Completion and Handover
Checking whether the leakage has been fixed	Project Manager ,Appointing Business Analyst
Documenting the project work	Archieve
Payment completion	Project Manager
Resource Release	Project Manager
Client Sign off
Feedback and improvements
M5: End of Project

Table 3: The Resources responsible for each task

A standard rate has been assumed for the resources on an hourly basis. The cost of the materials is also considered on basis of standard rates of the materials (Burke, 2013). The table below represents the resources and the rate on which the resources will be paid during the project implementation phase (Tavana, Abtahi & Khalili-Damghani, 2014)-

Resource Name	Type	Max. Units	Std. Rate
Project Manager	Work	100%	$78.00/hr
Steel Patch 2m2	Material		$12,000.00
Steel Patch 3m2	Material		$15,000.00
Steel Patch1.5m2	Material		$20,000.00
Steel anchors for Tank 1	Material		$30,000.00
Steel anchors for Tank 2	Material		$30,000.00
Steel anchors for Tank 3	Material		$32,000.00
Tank 3 Supply Valve	Material		$35,000.00
Workers and laborers	Work	2,000%	$35.00/hr
Paint to be bought	Material		$180,000.00
Cleaning Staffs appointed	Work	1,000%	$25.00/hr
Painter chosen	Work	2,000%	$30.00/hr
Archieve	Cost
Appointing Business Analyst	Work	100%	$60.00/hr
Large crane on rent	Material		$1,000.00
Renting small crane	Material		$600.00

Table 4: Representing the details of the Resources identified

One of the major complexities associated with this project is the accessibility of the tanks. Therefore, skilled workers are needed who will be able to work in the site which is triangular in shape and accessible only from one side. Hence the choice of skilled workers is a major stress point associated with the project.

For proper resource identification, it is essential to develop a proper project plan as the budget of the project is determined according to the tasks required to be performed for successful project implementation. Easy availability of the materials needed for implementation of the project is another major resources stress point associated with the project.  

References 

Burke, R., 2013. Project management: planning and control techniques. New Jersey, USA.

De Brucker, K., Macharis, C., & Verbeke, A. 2013. Multi-criteria analysis and the resolution of sustainable development dilemmas: A stakeholder management approach. European journal of operational research, 224(1), 122-131.

Kerzner, H. 2017. Project management metrics, KPIs, and dashboards: a guide to measuring and monitoring project performance. John Wiley & Sons.

Kerzner, H., & Kerzner, H. R. 2017. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.

Khodakarami, V., & Abdi, A. 2014. Project cost risk analysis: A Bayesian networks approach for modeling dependencies between cost items. International Journal of Project Management, 32(7), 1233-1245.

Kim, J., Kang, C., & Hwang, I. 2012. A practical approach to project scheduling: considering the potential quality loss cost in the time–cost tradeoff problem. International Journal of Project Management, 30(2), 264-272.

Kogan, L., Papanikolaou, D., Seru, A. and Stoffman, N., 2017. Technological innovation, resource allocation, and growth. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 132(2), pp.665-712.

Larson, E.W. and Gray, C., 2013. Project Management: The Managerial Process with MS Project. McGraw-Hill.

Maravas, A., & Pantouvakis, J. P. 2012. Project cash flow analysis in the presence of uncertainty in activity duration and cost. International journal of project management, 30(3), 374-384.

Ruël, H. J., Bondarouk, T., &Smink, S. 2012. The Waterfall Approach and Requirement Uncertainty: An In-Depth Case Study of an. Project Management Techniques and Innovations in Information Technology, 49.

Saadé, R. G., Dong, H., & Wan, J. 2015. Factors of project manager success. Interdisciplinary Journal of Information, Knowledge, and Management, 10, 63-80.

Tavana, M., Abtahi, A. R., & Khalili-Damghani, K. 2014. A new multi-objective multi-mode model for solving preemptive time–cost–quality trade-off project scheduling problems. Expert Systems with Applications, 41(4), 1830-1846.

Walker, A. 2015. Project management in construction. John Wiley & Sons.