OPM4003 S2 2019: Procurement Challenges in Westgate Tunnel Project

This report offers a detailed analysis of the procurement challenges encountered in the Westgate Tunnel Project in Melbourne, Australia. It identifies issues related to supplier management, including shortages and quality control, and explores the project's procurement strategies. The report examine...Read More

Running head: PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Project management (The Westgate Tunnel Project, Melbourne, Victoria)
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

2
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Table of Contents
Summary....................................................................................................................................3
Identification..............................................................................................................................3
Key Stakeholders Map...............................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................7
References and Bibliography.....................................................................................................8
Appendices...............................................................................................................................10
Appendix 1...........................................................................................................................10
Figure No 1: Stakeholder Map.............................................................................................10

3
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Summary
The following report is based on the selection of a particular construction project of
Australia and assess the different perspectives of the project. The following report has
selected the West Gate Tunnel project in Melbourne which is currently under construction in
Melbourne city. The report will identify the different kinds of the procurement challenges
along with the challenges from the stakeholders, marketing campaigns for the project and the
development of the project in a smart and effective manner. The identification of the different
kinds of the procurement challenges and the development of the project is key to the success
of the business venture.
Identification
Supplier management related issues
The construction project of West Gate Tunnel has a long chain of suppliers that helps
the project to carry on the ongoing work in a smooth manner. The project has been approved
by the federal government and has been undertaken by the Victorian Government and
Trans-urban department. Apart from this, the project will be built by the CPB contractor
and John-Holland group (westgatetunnelproject.vic 2019). However, there has been major
problems in the execution of the project as because these companies are finding it difficult to
address to the shortage of professional suppliers in Australia. The absence of the minimum
number of suppliers, the presence of problems like unions and strikes has led to different kind
of problems. Apart from this there have been a number of issues with the quality of the
materials supplied which have led to the additional problems of the organization.

4
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Strategy of procurement
The procurement strategies of the organization needs to be maintained in the most
efficient manner. The procurement strategy for the West Gate Tunnelling Project has
included the likes of the accountability of the stakeholders and a clear process along with the
compliance to the different rules and providing the best value.
Reduction of cost and savings
The approach of the project in the modern days has helped the management to reduce
the costs and savings in a smart and more feasible manner. The use of the Artificial
Intelligence process, the management of the projects using the smart technologies is key to
the success of the West gate project. However, there have been major problems with the
increase in the cost and elements arising from problems of suppliers and procurement
strategies. The absence of the proper suppliers and proper implementation of the works can
be problematic for the business organization.
Accuracy of data in correspondence
There are phases when the project implementation team of West Gate Tunnel has
found it difficult to assess the data in correspondence with the project. As the management of
the project development team has to rely on the accurate data related to the project, the
absence of the proper sources of such data can lead to the compromise of the project. The
data here includes the likes of the predicted budget escalations, supplier material cost, amount
of materials to be used and their audit and many more similar as such.

5
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Risk Mitigation
The risks includes the likes of the;
a. Supplier risks- The absence the absence of the suppliers and the non-availability of
the trust and commitment from these supplier can be problematic for the organization
(Bourne, 2016). The issue can be solved through the appointment of a global supplier
who has a number of operations in Australia and is capable of supplying the best
materials in the most professional manner.
b. Financial and time Escalations- The increase in the budgetary allocations of the West
Gate Project has happened due to a large number of different issues. The sudden
increase in the budgetary allocations and the failure to meet the deadlines threatens
the effectiveness of the project.
Time issues in sourcing
There are a large number of different times when the management of the project
requires an extra timing that can lead to the different kinds of the problems. The failure to
meet the deadlines has been mainly due to the failure behind the proper selection of the
suppliers and the stakeholders. The absence of the stakeholders has been a problem for the
project management to address the goals of the project.
Process issues
The process issues in the project includes the problems from the approval process of
the different departments concerned with the West gate highway. The absence of the
necessary infrastructural clearances and the presence makes the business operations quite
difficult for the project managers.

6
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Key Stakeholders Map
The management of the consultancy firm in charge of the Westgate tunnelling project
has identified the different stakeholders of the project after a detailed market research. The
Government of Australia, the municipal body of Melbourne, the road transport authority of
Melbourne, the port authority and some few other key government and non-governmental
bodies. The presentation of the key stakeholders of the project will help the construction to
take the right path and ensure the success of the project (westgatetunnelproject.vic 2019). The
influence of the government stakeholders will surely have a strong influence over the
organization and thus presents a better chance of business success (cips.org, 2019).
The project manager will have to make the necessary steps to communicate
effectively with the stakeholders. The stakeholders have been informed about the progress of
the first and second phases through e-mail, social networking site and with the presentation of
a formal hard copy letter. The presentation of the information regarding the same has helped
the stakeholders to stay informed. The stakeholders have in turn reciprocated with their
formal approval for the progress of the project and have also visited the site a number of
times to oversee the project and its steady progress. The proper communication followed in
the project has helped the management of the Westgate Project to effectively engage the
government and the other departments of the project to involve in the funding and the
systematic planning. The completion of the first two phases of the project has been completed
and the work on the last three have started (strategyand.pwc.com, 2019). The easy
management of the project has been possible because of the high scale communication
process. Thus the stakeholder analysis of the project has helped the proper monitoring and
satisfaction of the stakeholders (westgatetunnelproject.vic 2019). It is assumed that the

7
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
project will certainly attain huge success in the near future and will attain the required
objectives.
Conclusion
The following report has presented the key perspectives of the project management
process with the example of Westgate Tunnel Project of Melbourne. The example of
Westgate tunnel project has helped the project to present a live example of the different kinds
of the perspectives that includes the supplier chain process and the stakeholder mapping. The
presentation of this factors has helped to make the assignment much better.

8
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
References and Bibliography
Bourne, L. (2016). Stakeholder relationship management: a maturity model for organisational
implementation. Routledge.
Heravi, A., Coffey, V., & Trigunarsyah, B. (2015). Evaluating the level of stakeholder
involvement during the project planning processes of building projects. International Journal
of Project Management, 33(5), 985-997.
Procurement 4.0: Are you ready for the digital revolution?. (2019). Retrieved 13 September
2019, from https://www.strategyand.pwc.com/gx/en/insights/procurement-4-digital-
revolution.html
Procurious, A., Tips, T., & Ideas, B. (2019). Procurious - Social Media in Procurement - The
Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. Retrieved 13 September 2019, from
https://www.cips.org/en/Knowledge/Procurement-topics-and-skills/People-and-skills/Social-
Media-in-Procurement/
Silver, S. A., Harel, Z., McQuillan, R., Weizman, A. V., Thomas, A., Chertow, G. M., ... &
Chan, C. T. (2016). How to begin a quality improvement project. Clinical Journal of the
American Society of Nephrology, 11(5), 893-900.
The top six challenges facing procurement - Supply Management. (2019). Retrieved 13
September 2019, from
https://www.cips.org/en/supply-management/opinion/2017/september/the-top-six-challenges-
facing-procurement-/
West Gate Tunnel Project – West Gate Tunnel Project. (2019). Retrieved 13 September 2019,
from http://westgatetunnelproject.vic.gov.au/

9
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Yam, S. (2019). Buying for Australian Organisations - How it Differs "Down Under" - Open
Windows. Retrieved 13 September 2019, from
https://www.openwindows.com.au/resources/buying-australian-organisations-differs/

10
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Appendices
Appendix 1
Figure No 1: Stakeholder Map
Source: (As created by the Author)
KEEP SATISFIED MANAGE CLOSELY
MONITOR KEEP INFORMED
P
O
W
E
R
INTEREST