Manufacturing project management is a complex domain. The success of manufacturing projects depends on the intelligent coordination of complicated processes, diverse resources, leveraging technology, and effective decision-making.
In this article, we’d like to dwell upon the principles that will ensure the successful completion of manufacturing projects and the role of manufacturing project management software in this process.
Manufacturing Project Management: Main Points to Keep in Mind
To manage manufacturing projects successfully, you need to understand the specificity of the domain you’re dealing with. So, here are the main factors that impact manufacturing project management.
• Increased demand.
The manufacturing industry is facing an increased demand for products, which is caused by the post-pandemic change in consumer behavior. As a result, the number of manufacturing projects to complete is also increasing.
• Intensive application of technological solutions.
Manufacturing technologies are evolving at a breathtaking speed. In addition to the benefits you achieve with recent technology adoption, there are also some risks—it may take more time to get a handle on it, it requires employees with specific skills, it may not work as expected, etc. All these factors add risks to manufacturing project management.
• Risky environment.
The manufacturing environment is risky by nature: it involves work with diverse equipment or may require work with hazardous substances or materials. These factors should be taken into account when planning for risks in manufacturing projects.
• Shortages of human resources.
Workforce shortages have become typical for many industries with intensive technology development. This is explained by the high competition for tech-savvy employees across industries as well as the aging of the workforce. These factors can make it difficult to staff manufacturing projects with the required resources, so they should be also taken into account by manufacturing project managers.
So, how to address all these complexities and complete manufacturing projects successfully? Jump into the next section to learn more.
5 Principles of Successful Management of Manufacturing Projects
1. Appropriate PM methodology.
The right choice of project management methodology can greatly contribute to the overall success of the project management process. While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to managing projects, some of them can be more or less effective for projects in manufacturing. For example, Waterfall is generally considered to be suitable for manufacturing projects with fixed structure, but this approach may lack responsiveness to changes which is also essential for projects in this domain. At the same time, using only Agile isn’t the best option—e.g., it lacks thorough planning that is critically important for manufacturing projects. Combining deterministic methodologies with flexible ones can become a good solution for manufacturing projects.
2. Thorough project planning.
Developing a detailed project plan is half the battle. First of all, it should outline the key activities, milestones, and due dates. Second, it should include all resources required for project execution (employees, equipment, tools, materials, facilities, etc.) and the corresponding budget. Third, you should prepare contingency plans, which is critically important in the highly risky manufacturing environment. Finally, keep the project plans flexible enough by adding time and capacity buffers—uncertainties aren’t going anywhere, and without flexibility, they can derail the project flow and lead to unpredictable consequences.
3. Resource capacity planning.
This technique is crucial for managing multiple concurrent projects that have shared resources. Resource capacity planning will help you determine the feasibility of a new project, detect resource shortages, and bridge the gap between resource demand and supply. Resource capacity planning will ensure that projects will have the required resources in the right quantity at the right time. This becomes especially relevant as manufacturing environments face workforce shortages.
4. Monitoring progress and performance.
Regular monitoring of project progress and performance helps detect inefficiencies and streamline workflows. This is important for manufacturers that strive to meet the increasing demand for products. In addition to that, it’s crucial to keep track of resource performance, as it’s the first indicator of the project environment’s health. Tracking resource performance is the key to identifying and eliminating bottlenecks at early stages and keeping your workflows running like clockwork.
5. Use manufacturing project management tools.
Implementing the above-mentioned principles will be challenging without the assistance of the right project management tools. Let’s explore the capabilities they provide in more detail.
Providing visibility into the whole project environment
Successful management of large and complex projects is impossible without regular monitoring and control. With manufacturing project management software, you can have comprehensive visibility into the state of every project running in your organization.
Managing resources
With resource management capabilities of manufacturing PM software, you can allocate resources intelligently, keep track of their utilization and consumption of materials, plan them for future projects, etc. As a result, you can optimize resource utilization, increase their productivity and efficiency, and deliver more with less.
Making informed decisions
Making intelligent decisions in the uncertain manufacturing environment is crucial. This becomes possible with manufacturing project management software equipped with scenario analysis capabilities (or What-if Analysis). They allow you to run scenarios, analyze their consequences on the project environment, and choose the most advantageous option. With decision-making capabilities, you can effectively address risks and resolve bottlenecks as well as make effective management decisions.
These and other capabilities are available for users of Epicflow, a multi-project resource management tool applicable to manufacturing projects.
Conclusions
1. Manufacturing project management is complex, as it requires the coordination of complex processes, diverse resources, and technology.
2. There are a number of factors impacting manufacturing project management: increased demand for products, a lack of resources, active implementation of advanced technologies, high risks, and workforce shortages.
3. The principles for successful project management in manufacturing include: selecting the right project management methodology, detailed project planning, applying resource capacity planning, regular monitoring of project progress and resource performance, and leveraging robust manufacturing project management software.