Summary of collected answers
| Question | Case 1 | Case 2 | Case 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| How the activities of the design stage are planned and controlled? | Short meeting between the owner and the responsible engineer. Delays are common | Meeting between teams leaders of each area. A WBS and a detailed schedule are developed. The schedule is controlled every 15 days. Delays are common | Meeting involving in-house and subcontracted designers. A WBS and a simple schedule are developed. The schedule is controlled every 15 days. Delays are common |
| How definitions and technical decisions are made during design process? | Engineer defines everything by himself, with the owner intervening only in complex cases. Clients are not involved because “they are not technically familiarized with the subject” | Each has total autonomy to make technical decisions about its specialty. Errors in this definition process are source of constant and common reworks | Subcontracted designers submit their technical decisions for approval of the specialty expert. There is no subcontracted integration. Erroneous decisions are only realized at the end and reworks are constantly needed |
| How is the client involved during the process? | The client is not involved. Only receives the final design | Constant and long validation meetings with the client’s designers to approve every decision point. The process is reported to be long and slow paced | Clients biweekly validate the progress. Future executors (contractors) are also invited to evaluate the design at the end |
| How does development process flow between the teams and the employees? (Focus on authorities and responsibilities) | Responsible engineer handles the whole development process, with the help of interns | It is a functional organization structure. Areas have full authority under its specialty. Integration between areas is always made through formal hierarchy | Subcontracteds rarely speak among themselves directly. All the communications are made through the project manager (reported to be a slow and bureaucratic process) |
| How the progress of the projects is reported to the in-house team and for the clients? | With clients: e-mails/calls (not in a structured way) Internal: verbally | With clients: technical meetings and monthly boards with mangers from both sides Internal: periodic meetings involving department leaders only | With clients: technical meetings and semi-monthly boards with managers from both sides Clients: verbally (little integration reported) |
| Was the current process reviewed in the past? Is there a plan for any change in the future? | It always worked this way and there are no plans for change | The process was defined after the merge process. Political barriers prevent revisions | Due to constant reworks in the past, the client was more involved. The intend to further improve the process, although it will be no radical change |
| There are problems with your products after your deliver it? | Some problems in the execution phase. Clients sometimes complain of high costs due to allegedly over-design. However, these complaints are “unsupported” | Executors often ask for contract amendments due to design’s errors. The company claims it occurs only due to bad faith of the contractor | Executors often ask for contract amendments due to design’s errors. The company claims it occurs only due to bad faith of the contractor |
| Are you familiar with the concepts of lean product development? | Has never heard of | Has never heard of LPD, however, has heard about lean construction | Has never heard of LPD, however, has heard about lean construction |
| Are you familiar with the concepts of agile project management? | Has never heard of | Has heard about it in lectures, however, the knowledge is reported as “shallow” | Has heard about it in lectures, however, the knowledge is almost null |
| Are these methodologies applicable to your reality? | Possibly, however, the implementation seems improbable | Improbable | Very applicable, however, difficulty in implementation would be significant |
| Which are the main challenges (or roadblocks) for the implementation of the methodologies, considering your companies context? | Cultural. “The current way is working well” | Cultural, functional organization structure, clients’ responsiveness, contractual structure (defined costs, deadlines and specifications) | Cultural, contractual structure with the subcontracted designers and the impossibility of imposing methodologies in the suppliers |
| Question | Case 1 | Case 2 | Case 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| How the activities of the design stage are planned and controlled? | Short meeting between the owner and the responsible engineer. Delays are common | Meeting between teams leaders of each area. A WBS and a detailed schedule are developed. The schedule is controlled every 15 days. Delays are common | Meeting involving in-house and subcontracted designers. A WBS and a simple schedule are developed. The schedule is controlled every 15 days. Delays are common |
| How definitions and technical decisions are made during design process? | Engineer defines everything by himself, with the owner intervening only in complex cases. Clients are not involved because “they are not technically familiarized with the subject” | Each has total autonomy to make technical decisions about its specialty. Errors in this definition process are source of constant and common reworks | Subcontracted designers submit their technical decisions for approval of the specialty expert. There is no subcontracted integration. Erroneous decisions are only realized at the end and reworks are constantly needed |
| How is the client involved during the process? | The client is not involved. Only receives the final design | Constant and long validation meetings with the client’s designers to approve every decision point. The process is reported to be long and slow paced | Clients biweekly validate the progress. Future executors (contractors) are also invited to evaluate the design at the end |
| How does development process flow between the teams and the employees? (Focus on authorities and responsibilities) | Responsible engineer handles the whole development process, with the help of interns | It is a functional organization structure. Areas have full authority under its specialty. Integration between areas is always made through formal hierarchy | Subcontracteds rarely speak among themselves directly. All the communications are made through the project manager (reported to be a slow and bureaucratic process) |
| How the progress of the projects is reported to the in-house team and for the clients? | With clients: e-mails/calls (not in a structured way) | With clients: technical meetings and monthly boards with mangers from both sides | With clients: technical meetings and semi-monthly boards with managers from both sides |
| Was the current process reviewed in the past? Is there a plan for any change in the future? | It always worked this way and there are no plans for change | The process was defined after the merge process. Political barriers prevent revisions | Due to constant reworks in the past, the client was more involved. The intend to further improve the process, although it will be no radical change |
| There are problems with your products after your deliver it? | Some problems in the execution phase. Clients sometimes complain of high costs due to allegedly over-design. However, these complaints are “unsupported” | Executors often ask for contract amendments due to design’s errors. The company claims it occurs only due to bad faith of the contractor | Executors often ask for contract amendments due to design’s errors. The company claims it occurs only due to bad faith of the contractor |
| Are you familiar with the concepts of lean product development? | Has never heard of | Has never heard of LPD, however, has heard about lean construction | Has never heard of LPD, however, has heard about lean construction |
| Are you familiar with the concepts of agile project management? | Has never heard of | Has heard about it in lectures, however, the knowledge is reported as “shallow” | Has heard about it in lectures, however, the knowledge is almost null |
| Are these methodologies applicable to your reality? | Possibly, however, the implementation seems improbable | Improbable | Very applicable, however, difficulty in implementation would be significant |
| Which are the main challenges (or roadblocks) for the implementation of the methodologies, considering your companies context? | Cultural. “The current way is working well” | Cultural, functional organization structure, clients’ responsiveness, contractual structure (defined costs, deadlines and specifications) | Cultural, contractual structure with the subcontracted designers and the impossibility of imposing methodologies in the suppliers |
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