Ukrainian Firm Launches Remote PM Software Solution

Don't walk to your remote offices - project management in global teams became easier in November 2007. Program-Ace, LLC announced the release of a new online solution for interactive project management. According to their news release, AceRemoteProjectTM v1.5 (AceRP) is tailored to suit the needs of professional software and game development companies willing to catch up with the tendency of managing global teams and go beyond the limitations of today's typical outsourcing model.

Top of Page

New Development & Project Management Firm
set to shine in Northeast England and beyond

Reported by Miles Shepherd in London, UK

NorthStar Capital Projects, a new property development and project management company, has recently been launched in the North East and already has its sights set on new projects spread throughout the UK and beyond. The firm, chaired by well-known businessman George Houghton, will work to promote property development projects across the UK, as well as in mainland Europe, China and the USA.

NorthStar Capital Projects is engaging in an £100m development programme with Gateshead-based care home provider, Executive Care Group.

Over the next few years the new company, based in Team Valley, will also be working with other leading care providers in the UK to undertake similar large growth programmes. NorthStar is already in negotiations with several high-profile organisations in the USA, China and Poland, marking the beginning of the company’s international development.

The team heading NorthStar Capital Projects are Development Director, Danny Sharpe and Projects Director, Ian Holmes, who have both come on board from national architects practice B3 Architects. David Harrison will act as the company’s Finance Director. For additional information about the company, contact claire.buchan@recognitionpr.co.uk.

Top of Page

Microsoft Project Conference 2007 EMEA held
December 3-5th, 2007 in Madrid

Reported by Alfonso Bucero in Madrid, Spain

Under the motto of “Learn, Connect, Grow” 422 professionals attended the MS Project EMEA Conference in Madrid (Spain) at the Auditorium Hotel, one of the biggest hotels in Europe, during 3-5 December 2007. PMI (Project Management Institute) was mentioned by the keynote speaker Mike Angiulo – GM of the MS Project Business Unit. He spoke about the growing need for project management certifications (CAPM, PMP and PrgMP), mentioning that PMI has increased their membership over 243,000 people worldwide by 2007. He said that Microsoft has also an internal Certification process in place for their project and program managers.

Three key important messages from Mr. Angiulo:

• Learning about the end-to-end capabilities of the Microsoft Project 2007 family of products

• Connecting. Bringing customers, partners and MS staff together in a vibrant MS Project community

• Growing Project Management potential and investments by sharing best practices and business solutions.

Important messages to be highlighted in this event were:

• Keynote was by Mike Angiulo – GM of the MS Project Business Unit

• A total of 36 break-out sessions were included, split into Developer, System Administrator, Product/Best Practice and Executive tracks

• 9 Customer presentations were featured

• 14 Partners showed their Project solutions in the Exhibition

• A Partner only pre-event session with a 90 minute Q & A allowed us to address partner questions and concerns.

• A packed internal Field sales and marketing pre-event session – we planned for 50 attendees, but had to bring lot’s more chairs in!

• Great fun at the evening Gala party: Spanish guitar, Flamenco dancers, endless tapas and a disco to close!

From the feedback forms an average event satisfaction rating of 8 out of 9. Some comments:

• “Far better than TechEd! Continue on this way!”

• “Great Event!“

• The conference was very useful both for product information and for networking. I will definitely come again”

• “I personally got a lot from this event, it helped solve some of the issues we have experienced with our deployment at project Server 2007, looking forward to SP1’s release".

• “Good refresher and useful because we want to implement 2007 next year”

• “It was a well organized conference.”

• “Great Evening dinner on Tuesday”

Top of Page

URS acquisition of Washington Group creates
global project services company

URS Corporation (NYSE: URS) has completed its acquisition of Washington Group International, Inc. (NYSE: WNG) for a total purchase price of approximately $3.1 billion. The closing of the acquisition followed approvals by URS and Washington Group stockholders at each company's special meeting of stockholders held earlier today.

"This transaction has important benefits for the stockholders and customers of both companies," said Martin M. Koffel, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of URS. "With the addition of Washington Group's complementary engineering and construction services, URS becomes one of the few fully-integrated engineering, construction and technical services firms capable of serving every phase of a project - from initial planning, engineering and construction of a project, to operations and maintenance. The combined company also has enhanced scale and expertise to meet the increasing demand for comprehensive solutions on large, complex global assignments. We are looking forward to capturing the tremendous potential of the combined company."

Mr. Koffel continued, "We also are delighted to welcome Washington Group's 25,000 employees to URS. We believe the combined company is unrivaled in terms of its professional talent and the opportunities we are able to offer our employees as part of a larger, more dynamic company."

The acquisition further diversifies and broadens URS' market exposure, allowing the Company to offer a broad range of engineering and construction services to clients in the transportation, facilities, environmental, water/wastewater, industrial infrastructure and process, homeland security, installations and logistics, and defense systems markets. In addition, the combined company will be a major contractor to the federal government.

In connection with the completion of the transaction, Washington Group's shares have ceased to trade on the NYSE as of the close of trading today. Washington Group will operate as the Washington Division of URS. Stephen Hanks, former Chief Executive Officer of Washington Group, has been named President of the Washington Division and appointed to the URS Corporation Board of Directors. URS stockholders are retaining the shares they held prior
to the transaction. Further details about the transaction are available on the web at
www.urs-wng.com.

URS (NYSE: URS) is a leading provider of engineering, construction and technical services for public agencies and private sector companies around the world. The Company offers a comprehensive range of professional planning, engineering and architectural design, environmental, heavy construction, program and construction management, system integration, and operations and maintenance, management and a wide range of specialized technical services for transportation, hazardous waste, industrial infrastructure and process, petrochemical, general building, water/wastewater, military facilities and equipment platforms, and defense and security programs. Headquartered in San Francisco, the Company operates in 34 countries with approximately 55,000 employees providing engineering and technical services to federal, state and local governmental agencies as well as private clients in the chemical, pharmaceutical, oil and gas, power, manufacturing, mining, forest products, and food and beverage industries ((www.urscorp.com).

Top of Page

Nominations due December 31 for Project Management Office
of the Year Award 2008

The Center for Business Practices (CBP) has opened nominations for the 2008 Project Management Office (PMO) of the Year Award. The annual award, now in its third year, recognizes PMOs that demonstrate vision and acumen in implementing new ideas, methods, and processes that lead to measurable improvements in project management and tangible results for organizations.

“Organizations increasingly rely on PMOs to help drive efficient project practices, productivity, and innovation,” said Jim Pennypacker, director of the CBP. “By formally recognizing the most successful PMOs, we identify role models for the rest of the industry to follow.”

There is no fee to enter the competition and all corporate and government PMOs are eligible for nomination. Nominations must be made by the director or manager of the PMO being nominated. Entry applications, judging criteria, and information about the award are available at www.cbponline.com. The deadline for entries is December 31, 2007.

For details about the 2007 winner, Norton Healthcare, please visit www.cbponline.com.

Winners will be notified by e-mail on February 1, 2008. The award (pictured) will be presented at this year’s Center for Business Practices (CBP) Summit to be held June 25-26, 2008, at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale in Scottsdale, AZ. During the event, the PMO of the Year Award winner will share lessons learned in implementing and maturing a best-in-class PMO.

The Center for Business Practices (CBP) is the research and publishing arm of the management consulting and training organization PM Solutions. The CBP promotes effective strategy execution through sound portfolio, program, project, and performance management by capturing best practice knowledge and integrating it into actionable, fact-based information available through research reports, books, and benchmarking events. For more information, visit http://www.cbponline.com or contact Megan Maguire Kelly at mkelly@schubert.com or Nicole Siter at nsiter@pmsolutions.com.

Top of Page

Invitation to Exhibitors & Sponsors for 22nd IPMA World Congress: Come to Rome for Business & History!

Suppliers of project and program management products, services and technology are invited to Rome, Italy to participate in the Project Management Exhibition that will accompany the 22nd IPMA World Congress on Project Management, ROMA 2008 – Project Management to Run – scheduled for November 9-11, 2008. The 22nd IPMA World Congress and Exhibition will be held at the Palazzo dei Congressi near the heart of downtown Rome.

Exhibitors will have an opportunity to showcase their products and services to over 1,000 delegates from more than 80 countries. An additional 5,000 are expected to visit the trade exhibition. Covering more than 4,000 sqm of space, the Exhibition will be the must-see event of the year for those shopping for project management products or resources.

Main areas for the Exhibition will include the following:

• Information and Communication Technologies Exhibition

• Banking and Financial Area

• Engineering and Construction Centre

• Architecture and Design Arena

• Media Village

• Books Shops

The 22nd IPMA World Congress and Exhibition in Rome will provide a highly flexible environment in which a wide range of sales and marketing objectives can be achieved, from generating sales leads to launching new products, building brand image, and maintaining customer relations. Exhibitors will be allowed to directly sell their products and services to visitors.

Show Dates and Hours

Sunday, November 9 3:00pm - 6:00pm
Monday, November 10 9:00am - 6:00pm
Tuesday, November 11 9:00am - 6:00pm

Exhibit space starts at 9 square meters, with raw space priced at €300 per sqm. To see the exhibition area, visit www.ipmaroma2008.it . For more information about exhibiting, contact Fabio Casiraghi at exhibition@ipmaroma2008.it.

The 22nd IPMA World Congress also represents an important opportunity for sponsors who wish to present themselves to an audience of global experts and leaders in the fields of industrial plant, energy and infrastructure works as well as in the fields of financing, information and communications technology, organization development, research, health and consulting. Certainly project management leaders from across Europe and around the world will be there. In lieu of the central location, a large number of participants from Mediterranean countries are also expected. Join such organizations as Ansaldo Energia, GOGEL, FOSTER WHEELER, LPL Projects & Logistics, MAIRE TECNIMONT, SIEMENS, ASTALDI, GE OIL& GAS, TECHINT, Technip, PENSOTTI, OICE, etc. as Congress Sponsors. For more information on sponsorship opportunities, please contact committee@ipmaroma2008.it.

 

The local host organizations for the ROMA 2008 World Congress in Rome, Italy are the Italian Project Management Academy and the Italian National Association of Industrial Plant Engineering (ANIMP). The President of ANIMP is Mr. Fabrizio Di Amato; the President of the Italian PM Academy is Roberto Mori; the Congress Chairman is Luigi Iperti; and the Project Manager for IPMA 2008 is Vittorio Cariati. For registration, schedule and other information, visit the conference website at www.ipmaroma2008.it.

 

Founded in 1967 and registered in Switzerland, the International Project Management Association (IPMA) is the world’s oldest project management professional organization. IPMA is an international federation of more than 40 national PM societies in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. Local societies serve the specific development needs of each country in its national language. IPMA provides an umbrella organization to represent them at the international level. IPMA’s internationally acclaimed 4 Level Project Management Certification Programme continues to grow worldwide. The IPMA annually presents project management awards to teams that achieve great feats in project management. IPMA maintains its continuous presence in the global PM arena through regular International Symposia, Expert Seminars and its Annual World Congress. The president of IPMA for 2007-2008 is Veikko Valila. Additional information is available at www.ipma.ch .

Top of Page

The Association for Project Management (APM), already world leaders on governance of projects with Directing Change – a Guide to the governance of project management, have added a further dimension to this increasingly vital aspect of projects.

Co-Directing Change: A guide to the governance of multi-owned projects, is the sister guide to the successful APM publication, Directing Change. The guide follows a structured approach that enables directors to question how well its shared projects are governed and to decide where and at what level action is needed. It is founded upon twelve principles that should apply to any multi-owned project in either the public or private sectors, or indeed in Public-Private Partnerships.
Models to Improve the Management of Projects is written by a specially selected expert panel, including Monty Finniston Award holder Terry Cooke-Davies and IPMA Vice President Mary McKinlay, offers clarity on the models designed to improve the management of projects and focuses on six models, namely:

• Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI®)

• PRINCE2™ Maturity Model (P2MM©)

• Programme Management Maturity Model (PMMM)

• Project Excellence Model

• Portfolio Programme and Project Management Maturity Model (P3M3©)

• Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3®)

These guides are available for download to APM members from www.apm.org.uk. The guide is also available from APM Publications.

The Association for Project Management (APM) is the national body for professional project management in the United Kingdom (UK). The organization develops and promotes project management across all sectors of industry and beyond. APM's mission is: "To develop and promote the professional disciplines of project and programme management for the public benefit." At the heart of the association is the APM Body of Knowledge; containing fifty-two knowledge areas required to manage any successful project. APM promotes the use of the APM Body of Knowledge through qualifications, accredited training, research, publications and events. APM is the UK member of the International Project Management Association (IPMA). With headquarters in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, APM has twelve regional branches throughout the UK and one in Hong Kong. With over 15,000 individual and 390 corporate members, APM is one of the largest organizations of its kind in Europe. For 2007 the APM chair is Mike Nichols and the president is Dr. Martin Barnes. Additional information can be found at www.apm.org.uk.

.

Top of Page

Alcatel-Lucent announced on December 13 that the company has been selected by the Chinese Government as the sole supplier for China’s largest high-speed e-government backbone network to improve communications with citizens and businesses in the country’s thirty-one provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.

The huge project, which is part of a network transformation initiative led by the Information Industry Office of the State Council of China, in cooperation with China Netcom and China Telecom, will help enhance information access and availability between government bodies throughout the nation. The contract was signed through Alcatel Shanghai Bell, Alcatel-Lucent's flagship Chinese company.

Alcatel-Lucent’s optical solution will allow government bureaus at different locations to communicate more effectively and securely via Ethernet-based applications such as video conferencing, unified messaging and other NGN services. The new high-speed network will support voice, data, and multimedia services with the highest quality of service and reliability.

“This significant network transformation project further confirms our expertise in providing government solutions,” said Frederic Rose, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s business in Europe, Africa and Asia and President of Alcatel Shanghai Bell. “We will fully leverage our wealth of experience in the optical transmission area and help the Chinese government to deploy the largest Chinese e-Government network with high reliability and security,” he added.

Alcatel-Lucent will provide a convergent solution that maximizes service provisioning efficiency and network protection.

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) provides solutions that enable service providers, enterprises and governments worldwide to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end-users. As a leader in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, IP technologies, applications, and services, Alcatel-Lucent offers end-to-end solutions that enable compelling communications services for people at home, at work and on the move. With operations in more than 130 countries, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with global reach. The company has experienced global services teams and one of the largest research, technology and innovation organizations in the telecommunications industry. Alcatel-Lucent achieved adjusted pro-forma revenues of Euro 18.3 billion in 2006 and is incorporated in France, with executive offices in Paris. For more information, visit http://www.alcatel-lucent.com.

.

Top of Page

The Institution of Chemical Engineers has launched a suite of standard forms for process plant contracts for use internationally. The International Forms of Contract have been drafted in response to the growing number of process plants that are being constructed overseas. They are based on and are a development of existing domestic IChemE contracts that were first published in 1968.

Prior to the publication of these contracts and in addition to bespoke contracts drafted for such schemes, several standard forms of contract already existed that were suitable for the design and construction of process plants overseas. These include: the FIDIC Conditions of Contract for Plant and Design-Build (Yellow Book), the ENAA Model Form International Contract for Process Plant Construction, and newly published ICC Model Turnkey Contract for Major Projects.

So why the need for a new suite of contracts? IChemE's take is that process plants have particular needs and therefore require a specialist contract that is different from those other more established international turnkey contracts. Only time will tell whether the new IChemE form finds favour internationally and becomes a serious rival to the other forms. According to IChemE, the response from the industry to its consultation edition has been positive.

The New International Forms of Contract were launched at a meeting in London in November. After the success of the Consultation Edition of the International Red Book two years ago, the IChemE Contracts Working Party produced three main Forms of Contract and the Subcontract. The International Red Book - Lump Sum Contracts; The International Green Book - Cost Reimbursable; The International Burgundy Book - Target Cost; and The International Yellow Book - Subcontracts were all unveiled at receptions in London and Mumbai, India simultaneously on November 23.

These International first editions use clear English and are presented with all specific references to UK law removed. The conditions of contract follow the pattern set in the International Red Book Consultation Edition of having General Conditions complimented by Particular Conditions, and maintain the tradition of extensive guidance notes to both the schedules and the clauses.

Speaking at the London launch, IChemE Contracts Working Party Chairman, Gordon Bateman, said the new editions were a natural step forward: "We are operating in an international market place and to maintain our role in the development of successful contracts there is a clear need to think and act globally."

Guest speaker at the London launch was Mr VS Peter, Deputy General Manager, Hydrocarbons, at Larsen and Toubro Ltd, whilst over 4000 miles away in Mumbai, President of Shell Global Solutions and Past-President of IChemE, Greg Lewin spoke at a joint event between IChemE and the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers. Greg explained how the new contracts were an excellent example of how the profession can work together for mutual benefit:

The launch in India coincided with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between IChemE and the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers (IIChE). The MOU offers a framework for partnership between the two professional communities, and for encouraging Indian chemical engineers to gain Chartered Chemical Engineer status.

IChemE (Institution of Chemical Engineers) is the hub for chemical, biochemical and process engineering professionals worldwide. The Institution is at the heart of the process community, promoting competence and a commitment to best practice, advancing the discipline for the benefit of society, encouraging young people in science and engineering and supporting the professional development of its members. Founded in 1922 as a professional institution for chemical and process engineers, IChemE has grown to its current status of a 27,000 international membership across more than 113 countries. IChemE is based in the UK, with regional offices in Melbourne, Australia and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. For more information, visit http://cms.icheme.org/.

Top of Page