Review the below case and response the questions in a 1 p[age:
CAPITAL INDUSTRIES
In the summer of 1976, Capital Industries undertook a material development program to see if a hard-plastic bumper could be developed for medium-sized cars. By January 1977, Project Bumper (as it was called by management) had developed a material that endured all preliminary laboratory testing.
One more step was required before full-scale laboratory testing: a three-dimensional stress analysis on bumper impact collisions. The decision to perform the stress analysis was the result of a concern on the part of the technical community that the bumper might not perform correctly under certain conditions. The cost of the analysis would require corporate funding over and above the original estimates. Since the current costs were identical to what was budgeted, the additional funding was a necessity.
Frank Allen, the project engineer in the Bumper Project Office, was assigned control of the stress analysis. Frank met with the functional manager of the engineering analysis section to discuss the assignment of personnel to the task.
Functional manager: "I'm going to assign Paul Troy to this project. He's a new man with a Ph.D. in structural analysis. I'm sure he'll do well."
Frank Allen: "This is a priority project. We need seasoned veterans, not new people, regardless of whether or not they have Ph.D.s. Why not use some other project as a testing ground for your new employee?"
Functional manager: "You project people must accept part of the responsibility for on-the-job training. I might agree with you if we were talking about blue collar workers on an assembly line. But this is a college graduate, coming to us with a good technical background."
Frank Allen: "He may have a good background, but he has no experience. He needs supervision. This is a one-man task. The responsibility will be yours if he fouls up."
Functional manager: "I've already given him our book for cost estimates. I'm sure he'll do fine. I'll keep in close communication with him during the project."
Frank Allen met with Paul Troy to get an estimate for the job.
Paul Troy: "I estimate that 800 hours will be required."
Frank Allen: "Your estimate seems low. Most three-dimensional analyses require at least 1,000 hours. Why is your number so low?"
Paul Troy: "Three-dimensional analysis? I thought that it would be a two-dimensional analysis. But no difference; the procedures are the same. I can handle it."
Frank Allen: "O.K. I'll give you 1,100 hours. But if you overrun it, we'll both be sorry."
Frank Allen followed the project closely. By the time the costs were 50 percent completed, performance was only 40 percent. A cost overrun seemed inevitable. The functional manager still asserted that he was tracking the job and that the difficulties were a result of the new material properties. His section had never worked with materials like these before.
Six months later Troy announced that the work would be completed in one week, two months later than planned. The two-month delay caused major problems in facility and equipment utilization. Project Bumper was still paying for employees who were "waiting" to begin full-scale testing.
On Monday mornings, the project office would receive the weekly labor monitor report for the previous week. This week the report indicated that the publications and graphics art department had spent over 200 man-hours (last week) in preparation of the final report. Frank Allen was furious. He called a meeting with Paul Troy and the functional manager.
Frank Allen: "Who told you to prepare a formal report? All we wanted was a go or no-go decision as to structural failure."
Paul Troy: "I don't tum in any work unless it's professional. This report will be documented as a masterpiece."
Frank Allen: "Your 50 percent cost overrun will also be a masterpiece. I guess your estimating was a little off!"
Paul Troy: "Well, this was the first time that I had performed a three-dim dimensional stress analysis. And what's the big deal? I got the job done, didn't IT'
Questions:
1. Who is the best person qualified to make functional estimates?
2. Can this task be delegated?
3. Should the estimating of this task have been delegated?
4. Should Paul Troy have been delegated the responsibility for the estimate?
5. Should Frank Allen have sensed a communication problem between Paul Troy and the functional manager?
6. Should Frank Allen have tracked the project more closely because of the above-mentioned problems?
7. Does Paul Troy appear to realize that there are also time and cost constraints on a project?
8. Is it beneficial for project office personnel to know the man hour estimates?