Building on Expertise: The Project Management of Our New Headquarters

Back in 2022, when planning the construction of our new 150,000 square foot building, we needed a project manager to manage all the internal projects related to the building including our decorative stairs and building automation system . The job of the project manager would be to ensure goals were being met and the projects stayed on schedule and on budget. As the construction went on, it was a given that this project manager’s roles and responsibilities would expand to include the punch list, managing vendors and coordinating activities with our construction partner, ReArch Company .?

Enter John Mackintosh, PE, PMP . John was hired by OnLogic to be an engineering project manager - to manage development of our industrial computers from the ground up. In his role he makes sure deliverables are met on schedule and on budget. While developing a computer is little different from constructing a building, it turns out that managing both types of projects require many of the same skills, including attention to detail, ability to juggle a variety of tasks, and a clear communication style. In addition to having all those skills, John is easy to work with! He was the perfect choice to be OnLogic’s project manager for the building construction.

Q&A with John

For the past two years, John has spent much of his time working out of the construction trailer or in the construction zone. Now that everything (well almost everything) is buttoned up, and he is slowly settling back into his routine of computer development project management, we asked him a few questions about his time project managing the construction of our new headquarters.?

Do you have any advice for other project managers??

John: My advice would be to:?

• Be flexible
• Have contingency plans
• Get comfortable dealing with the unknown?
• Execute your plan despite variables not under your control
• Maintain communication with all stakeholders and staff
• Set clear expectations.

Is there any part of the project that you are most proud of??

John: I am most proud of the move! We had a fixed deadline, lots of people to coordinate, and a short time frame for planning. We wanted the transition to be seamless without impacting our customers or our day-to-day operations. And it worked. It all went off as planned without impacting our customers, our products, or our business.

John did a lot of work behind the scenes to make the entire project run smoothly. Matt Whitman, facilities manager noted:

"John did stuff that no one even knew about. And it made everything else so much easier."

What was your favorite part of the project?

John: It was so great to be involved in the project from start to finish - from a grassy patch to our beautiful new space. And now that we’re moved in, I love seeing people enjoying the space.

John himself is enjoying the new space while project managing new computer development. The meeting rooms are a lot more comfortable than the construction trailer and he’s pretty happy that he doesn’t have to wear a hardhat!