The nuclear industry can expect to receive an unprecedented degree of government focus as it is set to become the proving ground for a major initiative to bring on a step change in the effectiveness
and, critically, the accountability associated with major government infrastructure projects. The establishment of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in 2005, to take overall control of the
operation and cleanup of Britain’s existing civil nuclear sites, is indicative of the Government’s determination to get this right.
The consequences of this, for UK site operators, are potentially momentous. Each site is being required to develop both near-term life cycle plans and, critically, detailed performance monitoring
as an integral part of those plans. If cost and schedule programmes are not seen to be demonstrably on track, the NDA can make that site’s operation subject to competitive tender with a subsequent
impact on the incumbent management, employees and shareholders. One response to the pressures to enhance performance management, which are felt not only in
the nuclear industry but across all government projects, has been for site operators to invest in sophisticated enterprise resource management (ERP) systems. However, these systems rely far
too heavily on historical data. It is accepted that historical cost data must be available in sufficient granularity but, unless what has been spent is compared with what should have been spent to get
to this point, it is impossible not only to measure project performance but, more importantly, to reforecast the final cost at completion of the project. Furthermore, unless this is established, how
can effective remedial action be considered? With the announcement by the Government that as from January 2006 these techniques, known as Earned Value, will be mandated, the stakes have been raised to a level that no one can afford
to ignore. |
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