FINAL ONLINE SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT

PROGRAMME Postgraduate Diploma in Project Management

MODULE Project Applied Technology
INTAKE January 2021
DATE 19 November 2021
TOTAL MARKS 100
SECTION A [40 Marks]

Read the case study below and answer ALL the questions that follow.
Construction company improves job-site speed and quality with Surface Go and Azure application

Founded in 1961 in Komatsu, Japan, COMANY is a leading partition construction and manufacturing company. Recently
COMANY set out to boost productivity and ensure high-quality work by enabling employees to collaborate and share
precise information in real time at job sites. By introducing Microsoft Surface Go and a document utilisation solution hosted
on Microsoft Azure, COMANY standardised processes and reduced mistakes from paper-based, manual practices. The
ruggedised, digital solution also helps attract and retain talent in sales, engineering, and construction contractors.

Reducing waste and cost from redone work

Partition manufacturer COMANY Inc. supplies products like office and bathroom partitions that create comfortable,
functional spaces. The firm takes on jobs that integrate design, manufacturing, construction, and maintenance. With so
much to coordinate, Executive Officer Kazuaki Matsushita looked for a solution to reduce time spent on projects.

COMANY began to rethink process administration. On a conventional construction site, information traditionally moved from
place to place as print instructions, like paper drawings and procedure manuals. This meant that work sometimes had to be
redone due to human error in relaying information. The company wanted a way to digitise access to project information and
make it available at construction sites through durable mobile devices.

Cloud-hosted job-site application meets rugged Surface device

COMANY digitised its paper documents, such as drawings and procedure manuals, and deployed an app for accessing
these files from construction sites. It built its cloud-based document utilisation application and uses it to manage data in a
variety of formats, including Word, PDF, and video files, within a single platform, so workers can view the data without
starting up individual apps. Thumbnails of document covers display on the viewer screen, making it easy for workers to
locate files.

Workers can write on documents with a stylus and use a QR code to access the critical files they need from the field,” says
Fumihiko Ido, Technology Sales Administration Executive Officer at COMANY.

Hideyuki Yamaoka, Supervisor in the Information Systems Department in COMANY’s Management Control Division, recalls
why the company proposed a Surface Go solution. "We wanted a device for job-site convenience, Windows for efficient IT
management, and an accurate, easy-to-use stylus so that people on the job site would want to use it. Surface Go met all
these requirements; it was a powerful choice among the devices that we looked at.” Surface Go also has long battery life, to
keep pace with workers throughout their day.

Improved work quality as well as standardised and optimise work style operations

COMANY already sees the benefits of a device and software combination that offers sustained and more secure remote
access to critical data. The new solution eliminated the need for many paper documents, an important step toward the
ultimate goal of increased work quality on construction sites and standardised operations.

Kawa says, "At job sites, we face obvious problems like construction defects and deadline delays, along with less visible
problems, like operational losses and mistakes. Engineers, to give one example, visit all their construction sites to keep
projects on track. Since each engineer is responsible for multiple job sites, they might spend most of the day in transit. In
the future, digitisation should decrease work mistakes as people share information, such as drawings and procedure
manuals, accurately from anywhere. Contractors can complete more work independently, which should reduce our losses to
transit time and redo costs.”

Employees use the report function to create reports inside the system and to pull them up on the viewer. “Thanks to this
function, we don’t need to return to the office to write reports anymore. That allows us to make better use of our travel time,”
says Ido.
(Adapted: Source: https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/812782-comany-manufacturing-surface-en-us)

Answer ALL the questions in this section.

QUESTION 1 (20 Marks)

Based on the case study, compare and contrast some of the tasks and their sequencing involved within a conventional
project for COMANY before and after the implementation of the new system.

QUESTION 2 (20 Marks)

Interrogate the results of introducing Microsoft Surface Go from a project management perspective.

SECTION B [60 Marks]

Answer ANY THREE (3) questions in this section.

QUESTION 3 [20 Marks]

MS Project makes provision for users to create, view and edit resources and associated details. Whilst users can enter
resources in various formats at different points, it is important to create a “Resource Sheet” which contains information
about the resources to be used in the project. Below is a Resource Sheet extracted from MS Project.

Illustrate the steps involved in creating a resource sheet for the following information:
For a house painting project, the activities (all sequential) include:

- Clean and sandpaper the walls (2 days)

- Apply base coat (3 days)

- Fill cracks and sandpaper for smooth texture (1 day)

- Apply first coat of paint (4 days)

- Apply final coat (3 days)

Resources required:

- Painter – R 300 / hour

- Paint – R 1200 / 5L (Requirement is 20 L)

 - Paintbrush– different sizes at different prices

- Sandpaper – R 20 per metre (Requirement is 4 metres)

- Ladder – R 1800 a ladder (already in stock)

- Paint tray – R 90 per tray (already in stock)

- Scraper – R 20 per scraper

- Polyfiller – R 100 per kg. (Requirement is 1 kg)

QUESTION 4

Resource Sheet Features:

4.1 The most prominent feature in the resource sheet is the fact that it can be split in two (2) sections. (10 marks)
Discuss in detail how these two (2) sections assist the user. Be sure to expand on each
component.

4.2 The Figure below portrays the completed Resource Sheet. Note that the resources were inserted, (10 marks)
and types of resources were then selected along with the associated costs. Explain in detail why
there are “zero” cost allocation to some resources.
QUESTION 5 [20 Marks]

Changes happen all the time on projects and the impact of these changes are compounded as a project moves through the
different phases of its life cycle. Critically discuss the importance of setting project baselines on Microsoft (MS) Project and
lay out clearly, the steps that are required to set a baseline in MS Project.

QUESTION 6 [20 Marks]

"The goal of a project management tool is to help those involved in managing projects to achieve their objectives”. In light of
this statement, elaborate on the benefits of using a project management tool.

END OF PAPER