How do you control costs and risks while maintaining quality in mechanical engineering projects?

I believed that the key elements in executing a project in a cost efficient and appropriate quality would be as follow: 1- Experienced and well qualified engineering team. As normal practice, the engineering in a project will cost between 3-5 percent of total cost. But the point is that this little portion will affect the remain majority portion (Procurement and construction). By hiring well qualified engineers who has past experiences in similar projects, will help the client/owner to perform the project in a best timely and costly manner. 2- Project assessment and relevant resource allocation in early stage of project. By assessment of the project and identifying bottle necks will help the manager to plan for facing the challenges.

A clearly identified scope and requirements along with a well defined change control process paired with continuous monitoring of the scope and schedule assisted with data visualization techniques that offer high visibility is a great way to significantly reduce scoop creep which is one of the biggest sources of risks such as going over budget, not finishing on time, or delivering a product that is not in line with client requirements. I have also found that a well prioritized list of requirements that has been reviewed by the end user can help ensure stakeholder satisfaction with the final product and helps deliver value quicker

This list could be longer but a couple of key points as follows * Ensure all are clear on the scope. *Identify as many unknowns as soon as possible. *Verify routes work. *Set benchmarks at the start. *Follow best practice. *Establish a common communication channel/ software with all parties. * Ensure works information is up to date.

What ever the end product is, you have to be able to manufacture, assemble, disassemble and repair, so having experienced team members from the mfg/ assembly/ repair arena goes a long way in a successful project

There is no secret for succeeding in completing a project on time and on budget. One requires competent and honest people at all levels. Sometimes companies try to save money by hiring as little staff as possible and/or hiring second class (cheapest/unexperienced) "experts". Without skilled and competent employees, companies, large or small, are simply empty shells regardless of their past credibility. Yes, good (experienced) people may cost more money, but savings are made on the long run as less iterations are necessary. Mishaps always happen, but when you have a strong qualified team, those mishaps are tackled transparently in a timely manner by stepping over our individual egos and by keeping the project's final objective in sight.

Planning is key. Using locally available material to avoid transportation cost and lead time will have significant impact in overall project.

Yes in mechanical engineering you most know the resources and cost needed to complete the project. This includes all the materials and tools use for the project

Proper planning plays a roll and the deep insight in the reading and understanding the constraints in the processes of reading and understanding the insight of a drawing in get in the mind off the design engineer plan off the product as you must show your ability to perform. Yes the training in personel is important and also the reading and understanding off welding and machining symbols with experience as most worker do not understand it and feels the designer add unnecessary detail but it's important to have the symbols

Estimate Resources and Costs opt for tolerance analysis software, ensuring real-world accuracy. Accurate estimations are the foundation of cost control, akin to precision in CNC programming.

The major risk involved in every project is 1) Costing of Materials 2) Work Scheduling 3) Changing the requirements and needs during the project. If these key risks are mitigated, this helps the project in significant ways.

There are often hidden and unrealized benefits to having junior professional mechanical engineers in the room at the onset of a project. These are the entry level individuals that may potentially bring the most value to avoiding the acute angle to mitigate risk and control costs. What has worked in the past may not always be suitable for current challenges. They're antedotes to a "we've always done it this way" approach by helping teams avoid tunnel vision, asking the seemingly "inexperienced" questions, provoking ideas and placing our own biases in check.

In my experience, this is one of the important stages. Documentation and conversations from past clients and vendors should be a good basepoint for risk assessments. Excel is a great tool to record the data.

Identifying risks are continuous process should be carried out throughout project. Stakeholders in all the levels should be empowered, there has to be a culture for open communication. This help to identify and report risks in all levels. Thanks Ganesh Kalimuthu, PMP

Maintaining a risk register during the design phase is critical to project success in the construction and operation phases. Important decisions can be documented, risks elevated, and the final product/plant better defined by the accurate listing and resolution of risk.

It is also important to understand that quality control has to be performed throughout the entire project, not at the end. Also, quality control should be applied to the processes we are following on the project to ensure high efficiency. Prevention costs less than correction or faults, which is why we should take the time to ensure that adequate audits and tests are being performed to the processes and the components of the product being developed. When possible, get the client’s input on the test procedures, as they understand the product and tend to have valuable inputs, and it helps with client satisfaction. I also found preparing the test procedures early in the project tends to help with visibility on the required level of quality.

These items can be pertinently embedded in a Quality Management System. Furthermore, certification (e.g based on ISO 9001 standards), is a good way to increase confidence in the company.

More and more today, customers need to see a plan for QA. It doesn’t have to be an extremely detailed plan but it has to exist. This plan isn’t just to check a box but is critical for success. Each company has different processes and forms and SOPs. If you don’t tell your customer how you do things they will assume you will do things their way. If you try to do things their way and not just to their requirements, you slow things down trying to follow processes that are abnormal for your company.

To control costs and risks while maintaining quality, implementing robust quality assurance and control processes is key. During my time as an energy auditor, we used detailed checklists and regular inspections to ensure compliance with standards. For example, we set up a system where every piece of equipment was checked against specific criteria at different project stages. This early detection of issues prevented costly rework and minimized risks. Regular audits and adherence to industry standards are essential. Documenting every step also aids in continuous improvement and accountability.

Quality in mechanical engineering projects is non-negotiable. Implementing a robust quality assurance and control system is key to maintaining this standard. This encompasses the establishment of quality benchmarks, regular inspections, testing at various stages of the project, and adherence to international standards and regulations. Such measures not only assure the quality of the engineering work but also serve to prevent defects, thereby avoiding the high costs associated with rework or project delays.

Continuous Monitoring on: a) Progress Tracking to monitor project progress to identify and address issues promptly. b) Cost Control to regularly review project costs and compare them against the budget. Adjust as needed to prevent overruns. c) Quality Assurance to implement quality control processes throughout the project to maintain high standards.

By increasing the quality by stabilizing and maintaining the important characteristics of the product-process, reducing unimportant restrictions in the process, increasing productivity.

Availability of ample resources to Review, collaborate and monitor the project performance in terms of cost, savings, time and resource utilization has been a gamechanger. Not only relying on traditional ERP tools one also needs utilize newer tools for pain areas like scheduling and use LMS for robust safety process. Most of the projects follow CPM models to schedule the start and stop, rather than simply show the progress, we should focus on display of delay and cost associated with tasks in every review meeting.

Late tasks are a common cause of budget issues. Make sure deadlines are in place for even the small things and check progress at least once at the halfway point. Most modern project software has features to help you gather progress and performance data.

Having established Phase Gates, to review each phase of the project and establish a Pass/No Pass system is critical to maintaining limited scope creep and keeping the project on time and in the right direction.

Start with a detailed plan that outlines the scope, objectives, and deliverables. Develop a realistic budget. Identify potential risks early in the project. Prioritize risks based on their impact & probability. Develop contingency plans for high-impact, high-probability risks. Establish clear quality standards and objectives for the project. Implement a QMS to ensure adherence to standards. Track project expenses to ensure alignment with the budget. Implement cost-saving measures without compromising quality. Implement a change control process to evaluate and approve any changes to the project scope, budget, or schedule. Allocate resources efficiently. Cross-train team members to ensure flexibility in resource allocation.

In mechanical engineering projects, controlling costs and risks while maintaining quality involves learning and improving from feedback and past lessons. In my government engineering projects, we regularly conducted retrospective meetings to analyze what worked and what didn't. For instance, a review of a radar installation project revealed that earlier supplier engagement could reduce costs and mitigate procurement risks. Implement a process to gather and review feedback, both during and after project completion. Encourage open and honest communication about successes and failures. Use these insights to refine methodologies and decision-making processes, this helps by enhancing project efficiency, reducing risks, and maintaining quality.

Post-Project Evaluation or post-mortem. Identify lessons learned. After project completion, conduct a comprehensive review to identify successes, areas for improvement, and lessons learned for future projects.

A post-project review is essential for team and personal development as an engineer. There is rarely a project that is completed without issues or roadblocks, so establishing processes to overcome or avoid those roadblocks in future projects is critical to personal and team growth. One's ability to identify and overcome roadblocks before they happen is a skill that puts you in a position to succeed where others can not.

Risk Response: Implement risk response plans as needed to mitigate or transfer risks that could impact project quality or cost. Team Training: Ensure that the project team has the necessary skills and training to meet quality objectives. Continuous Improvement: Encourage a culture of continuous improvement, where lessons learned from previous projects are applied to enhance quality and cost control. Client and Stakeholder Communication: Maintain regular communication with clients and stakeholders to manage expectations and address concerns. Post-Project Review: After project completion, conduct a thorough review to identify areas for improvement and apply lessons learned to future projects.

In the current context, understanding that market has been volatile since pandemic and cost escalation plagued with longer lead time for the supplies has made things worse, however it is still necessary to strike a balance when carrying out Value Engineering and review the Break Even (Capital cost-fixed/upfront vs Operating cost-variable). It is hard to tell the client (and when the client is not the end-user) that there is no further value to Value Engineering, however it is prudent to take the steps and engage the client to brainstorm to brief how the Risks outweigh Cost Benefits, when that’s the case. Not every dollar is worth saving.

Project houses operate on programme, budget costs and quality control. Successful projects maintain the planning and implementation of all three management activities in balance.

I believe I can recall the RBI Process (Risk-Based Inspection), which includes the following: 1. Data and information collection 2. Risk assessment process. 3. Risk Ranking 4. Inspection plan 5.Mitigation 6. Reassessment. After that, if necessary, we can continue from step 1 until we are satisfied with the plan.

Make the plan target for cost by element of maintenance, make sure all the team work by standard of manual, share the achievement of cost every week and every month give the appreciation for team who is the save cost by week and monthly..