Advanced Work Packaging: A New Perspective for EPC Projects

Imagine if every construction project in your company finished on time, within budget, and beyond expectations. Interested? Well, maybe you have heard about Advanced Work Packaging. But what exactly is it?

Tight Deadlines On-Site

Suppose you have a complex piping system that needs to be erected on-site within a tight deadline due to operational requirements. You’re in charge of making sure this happens. The stakes are high: any delay in getting this system up and running could cost your client a fortune every minute.

Many things could go wrong here.

There could be engineering errors. Maybe your pipe has an ASME (American) connection flange, but the tie-in point requires a DIN (German) connection. Oops.

Maybe you’re missing materials; you need 24 bolts to connect a valve to a flange, but there are only 20 on-site. Was it a purchasing error, or a delivery oversight?

What about the construction crew? Perhaps they do not have the required expertise to perform the tasks necessary to erect the system or to run all the tests and get the system running. Or they do have the experience, but somehow they are missing the proper tools for the job.

We could also be in luck, and everything is correct. Engineering was perfect (hah!), all the material was delivered correctly, and the crew is experienced and ready to work. But did we get the right permits to execute the job? Are we meeting the required safety standards? 

Any problems or delays in executing the task are a huge risk for the client and the contractors. You’d think that with all the planning and coordination, such issues would be ironed out before even setting foot on the construction site. And yet, somehow, something always goes wrong. 

I’ve been there, I’ve seen it happen. It’s almost comical how, in our industry, everybody seems to accept that this sort of thing will happen more often than not. The waste of time and money is astronomical. How do we raise the bar? 

This is where Advanced Work Packaging comes into play. 

The Power of Advanced Work Packaging (AWP)

Advanced Work Packaging (AWP for short) was born out of a collaborative research initiative in 2010, spearheaded by the Construction Industry Institute (CII) at the University of Texas at Austin, and the Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA) in Canada. A dedicated team of researchers developed a structured approach to improve project execution efficiency. This partnership aimed to tackle the complexities and challenges faced by the construction industry, paving the way for a more streamlined and effective project management methodology.

The result was AWP: a construction-driven philosophy. The fundamental premise is that construction is not just the final stage but the primary objective of any capital project. From the onset, every decision and plan is made with the end goal in mind: the physical realization of the project. This shift in focus emphasizes the importance of foreseeing and planning for the construction process, ensuring that all efforts are aligned toward efficient and successful project completion.

How does it work?

AWP proposes to divide the project into manageable work packages, which are detailed plans that cover different aspects of the project, such as engineering, procurement, and construction activities. These work packages serve as a roadmap, guiding the project from initial planning through to completion.

OK. But how is that different from a typical Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)?

That is the right question! Pretty much all project management philosophies try to break down the steak into chewable bites. What makes AWP different?

Typical work breakdown structures decompose a project into manageable tasks, focusing on “what” needs to be done, serving as a project’s backbone by defining the total scope of work. AWP, however, takes a more holistic and construction-driven approach; the project must be broken down into work packages with a total focus on the construction phase. It emphasizes the “how,” “when,” and “by whom,” promoting early identification of constraints and fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration to streamline project execution. 

Constraints?

Yes, constraints: AWP draws upon the theory of constraints, recognizing that the path to construction is often blocked by obstacles such as material availability, equipment logistics, or lack of required documentation. It can even go terribly wrong if there are undetected errors from the engineering and procurement phases. 

This is where information technology comes into play: to have a construction-driven project, the path of construction is the critical step. And to define the path of construction around constraints, the project stakeholders need to have the required data.

A well-managed 3D Model (BIM) is paramount to the successful execution of AWP. It ensures visibility of the multidisciplinary design process, helping identify design problems, constructability and maintainability issues, visualization of the path of construction, and improving communication across the different disciplines of the project. This is why a lot of the time you will see people talking about AWP and BIM together.

Advanced Work Packaging: A Catalyst for Better Project Execution

Adopting AWP is more than just implementing a new project management technique; it represents a fundamental shift in the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) process. It’s a digital transformation effort with the potential to significantly enhance project efficiency and quality. 

Want to learn more about AWP or how it can help you improve your project execution? Reach out for an assessment!