Malcolm X at Southland Drive
Enhanced Bus Shelter
Presented by:
Group #2
Hau-Yaung Kuo
Hong Liang
Robert Stone
Katie Truong
Professor Whittenberg
OPMA 5364 – Project Management
July 10, 2003
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Table of Contents
Introduction and Background………………………………………………………………………
Project Overview. …………………………………………………………………….……………
Project Objectives…………………………………………………………………………………..
Contractual Aspects. ……………………………………………………………………….………
Construction Schedules……………………………………………………………………………
Project Budget. ………………………………………………………………...…………
Personnel. …………………………………………………………………………………...……
Project Evaluation…………………...………………………………………………………...……
Potential Problems………………………………………………………………………………….
Conclusion. …………………………………………………………………………………...……
Recommendation. ………………………………………………………………………….………
Assessment. ………………………………………………………………………………...………
Appendix. ………………………………………………………………………………………..…
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INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
The Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority (DART) is a public transportation agency
providing an assortment of transportation services to 13 cities in the Dallas, Texas Metroplex.
DART employs 3,038 people and has an operating budget of almost 306 million dollars.
Transportation services include bus, an electric light-rail system, a commuter rail line, high
occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, ride-sharing programs, curbside services for the mobility
impaired, and transit educational services. The extensive network of DART Rail, Trinity
Railway Express (TRE) and bus services moves more than 200,000 passengers per day across
the 700-square-mile service area, with tailored routes to make one’s trip fast, comfortable and
economical (www.dart.org).
PROJECT OVERVIEW
One of DART’s long-term goals is to work in conjunction with Dallas City Officials and
Council members to enhance DART’s transportation shelters in the surrounding Dallas
communities. The main purposes of these projects are to bring safety to all citizens, beautify low
socio-economic areas in Dallas, and to promote a pleasant ride to each destination. Similar
enhancement projects have been well supported by DART’s ridership as well as the general
public. The stakeholders of these beautification efforts include DART, the City of Dallas, riders,
and the contractor who has been awarded the bid.
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Currently, one of DART’s proposed projects is for the construction of the Bush Shelter
Plaza at the intersection of Malcolm X Boulevard and Southland Street, located in Dallas, Texas.
The Plaza will include an enhanced shelter, electrical work, illumination, landscaping, and an
irrigation system. The project includes the construction of an off-street bus transfer facility
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complete with a circular driveway/layover area, and pedestrian improvements on a site
approximately 150ft x 160ft in size. The construction contract consists of the following features
(Solicitation): (Double space the bullets)

792 square yards of concrete pavement

Construction of 770 linear feet of curb-n-gutter

2,622 square feet of concrete sidewalk and handicap ramp

Construction of 20 cubic yards of slab foundations

Placement of 150 square yards of brick pavers

Installation of (6) light poles and fixtures on foundations

Landscaping (e.g. 15 live oak trees, 8 bald cypress, 7,000 square feet of hydro-mulch)

Installation of an irrigation system

Preparation of the site including lime manipulation/stabilization.
Additional site preparation include the demolition, removal, and disposal of 103 square
yards of concrete walk, and 275 linear feet of curb and gutter, associated with preparing the site
for its improvement.
The Malcolm X enhancement project is expected to be complete within two hundred five
(205) calendar days after the receipt of the Notice to Proceed (NTP). The engineering consulting
firm responsible for the design of the construction layout is Bridgefarmer & Associates, Inc.
One contract award to a general construction contractor is anticipated under the project’s
solicitation. In accordance with the General Provision of the contract, the awarded contractor is
expected to interface with the following contractors, agencies, and property owners
(Solicitation):
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1. Private utility contractors
2. DART’s regulated material contractors
3. City of Dallas contractors
4. Other DART contractors
CONTRACTUAL ASPECTS
The contract for the Malcolm X project has fixed unit prices with estimated item
quantities and some lump sum line items. The contract contains 25 exhibits and blueprints in full
and half sizes. It clearly identifies all provisions that the Contractor is to perform during the
construction phase of the project. DART used an Invitation for Bid (IFB) solicitation method for
this contract. The solicitation phase of the project is currently taking place. Therefore, the
contract has not been awarded. DART is expected to make its announcement on July 16, 2003.
The Contractor must meet specific insurance requirements in the contract. For example,
the Contractor is required to obtain the following types of insurance with specified limits of
liability that protect the interests of DART and the Contractor:

Comprehensive Automobile Liability Insurance

Builder’s Risk Insurance

Commercial General Liability Insurance

Workers’ Compensation Insurance
The Contractor must require that all subcontractors performing work under the contract carry at
least Workers’ Compensation insurance. (Exhibit D)
In addition to insurance requirements, the Contractor must obtain certain bonds to be
considered as a candidate for award. Types of bonds would include Bid Bonds, Payment Bonds,
and Performance Bonds. All bonds are some percentage of the total contract amount. For
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example, the Bid Bond is equal to 5% of the total bid price and must be submitted by each bidder
prior to the bid opening date and time. (Exhibits Q & R)
The General Provisions of the contract state 72 detailed areas of performance and
instruction for the Contractor. Some of these areas include the construction schedule, item
schedule, changes to the contract, inspection of construction, and final acceptance by DART. (p1
of Exhibit F)
Changes To The Contract
At any time, the Contracting Officer may submit written orders to make changes to the
general scope of the contract. Examples of contract changes include:

Specifications (including drawings and designs)

Work performance

Facilities, equipment, materials, services, or site to be furnished by the Authority

Directing acceleration in the performance of the work
Conversely, the Contractor is encouraged to develop, prepare, and submit “value
engineering change proposals” (VECPs) voluntarily.
A VECP is a change in the contract
requirements that bring about a cost savings. The Contractor and DART then share the savings
at a rate of 55% and 45%, respectfully. (p13, Exhibit F).
Final Acceptance
After the Contractor has satisfactorily completed the work and has passed the inspection
phase, the Contracting Officer will issue a Notice of Final Acceptance to the Contractor. The
Contractor may then submit an invoice for the payment of unpaid monies owed on the contract.
(p34, Exhibit F)
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CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULES
The Construction Schedule is to be submitted to the Contracting Officer for approval by
the Contractor. If the Contractor falls behind the approved schedule, the Contractor must take
the necessary steps to improve progress such as increasing the number of shifts or increase
overtime operations. (p3 of Exhibit F)
Table A presents the Level I Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) of the major
construction categories and schedule of the Malcolm X enhanced bus shelter project
(specification). A detailed listing of all tasks in the WBS can be found in Appendix A of this
report.
Table A: Level I Work Breakdown Structure of Malcolm X Enhanced Bus Shelter
ID
Task Name
Duration
Start
Finish
Malcolm X Enhanced Bus Shelter
135d
Fri 8/1/03
Wed 2/11/04
1
General Requirements Gathering
28d
Fri 8/1/03
Wed 9/10/03
2
Site Work
32d
Thu 9/11/03
Fri 10/24/03
3
Irrigation Systems
8d
Mon 10/27/03 Tue 11/4/03
4
Electrical Systems
16d
Wed 11/5/03 Wed 11/26/03
5
Concrete Work
37d
Mon 12/1/03 Thu 1/22/04
8
Bus Shelter Assembly
22d
Mon 12/22/03 Thu 1/22/04
7
Beautification
14d
Fri 1/23/04
Thu 2/11/04
PROJECT BUDGET
DART will examine and review the Contractor’s original bid and estimating documents
used in preparing its bid. A schedule defines each item and its unit of measurement and
generally represents the work to be carried out in accordance with the contract. Pricing data
must be certified immediately after an agreement is reached on the total contract price. DART
compares pricing proposals submitted by bidders with the design engineer’s estimate. Table B
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displays the Engineer’s construction cost estimate for the Level I WBS (p18 Exhibit F). A
complete breakdown of the engineer’s cost estimate is shown in Appendix??.
The total
estimated cost of the project is over $500,000. This figure is based on the projected cost of all
items, quantities, and recent unit prices for materials.
Table B: Engineer’s Construction Cost Estimate of Malcolm X Bush Shelter Level I WBS
MALCOLM X AT SOUTHLAND BUS SHELTER
Engineer's Construction Cost Estimate for Level I Work Breakdown Schedule
Budget Item
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Level I Task Description
Estimated Cost ($)
General Requirements Gathering
87,250.00
Site Work
97,323.38
Irrigation Systems
1,500.00
Electrical Systems
27,158.75
Concrete
203,999.94
Bus Shelter Assembly
40,500.00
Beautification
14,000.00
Subtotal =
471,732.07
Bonds (5% of Subtotal) =
23,586.60
Contingency (10% of Subtotal) =
47,173.21
Total =
542,491.88
An important point worth noting is that all of the DART’s resources are considered
overhead based on its accounting system. As a result, salaries, designs, and the cost of the land
are not included in the project budget. Typically, the cost of the design work runs about 6% of
the total cost of the project or approximately $30,000 for this project.
PERSONNEL
DART has assigned one of its members, Mr. Ernie Martinez, as Project Manager of the
Malcolm X Enhanced Bus Shelter project. His major responsibilities include:

serve as the liason between DART and the contractors
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
communicate effectively with the construction engineer from Bridgefarmer &
Associates, Inc. and the awarded Contractor

oversee the construction project

work out any issues or conflicts that may arise during the project’s life cycle

monitor and control the project’s budget
Mr. Martinez and the construction engineer will develop milestones for the project. They
share the responsibility of monitoring those milestones during the construction process. In
addition, the cost of the project will be monitored by the payment of invoices. These invoices
should include the details of every timesheet that was logged against the project as well as costs
from the Item Schedule. Finally, the Contractor must establish an adequate inspection system
and maintain complete inspection records to be made available to DART. (p11, Exhibit F)
Because the construction site resides in a high crime area of Dallas, additional security
resources are anticipated to protect the safety of the community throughout the duration of the
project. The Transit Police will control traffic during construction and monitor any potential theft
or vandalism that may occur.
SUPPLEMENTARY FINDINGS
(I think we need to delete this or move it elsewhere) Prior to any construction in DART’s
service area, a study was conducted to inspect the conditioning of the land and decide on the
location of the enhanced bus shelter. This study also looked at the social impact of the project on
surrounding homes and businesses.
Also, an environmentalist performed a safety study to assess the land and the illumination
of the area. The study helped identify potential concerns that may arise during the construction
process.
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PROJECT EVALUATION
The scheduling and analysis of a project’s work activities in a project can be mapped
using commercial software. The Malcolm X Enhanced Bus Shelter Level I WBS, discussed in
the Scheduling section of this report, was generated using Microsoft Project 2000. Some of its
tools used for this project report include: identification of the project’s milestones and critical
path, Gantt charts, and Network Diagram.
Performing simulation analysis for future outcomes can help Project Managers reduce
projects’ risks and dramatically improve the quality of their decisions.
By moving to a
probabilistic approach to forecasting, Project Managers can better quantify the risks inherent in
their models and gain insights not available through traditional deterministic approaches. Crystal
Ball is a software package that generates such an analysis using Monte Carlo simulations.
(reference-CRYSTAL BALL PROFESSIONAL INTRODUCTORY TUTORIAL)
Figures 1 and 2
represent outputs generated from two simulations for forecasting the time and budget of the
project.
Figure 1: Chart of Crystal Ball’s forecast on Time Evaluation
Forecast: C52
Crystal Ball Student Edition
Not for Commercial Use
1,000 Trials
Frequency Chart
11 Outliers
.031
31
.023
23.25
.016
15.5
.008
7.75
.000
0
129.198
132.608
136.018
days
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139.428
142.838
In Figure 1, the chart shows the result of a Monte Carlo simulation for the total number of
workdays needed to complete the project. After running one thousand trials, the mean number of
days is 136.018 with a variance of 6.881 and a standard deviation of 2.623. Crystal Ball
determined that there is a 60% chance that the project will be completed within 137 days.
Figure 2: Chart of Crystal Ball’s forecast on Budget Evaluation
Crystal Ball Student Edition
Forecast: C16
Not for Commercial Use
1,000 Trials
Frequency Chart
13 Outliers
.036
36
.027
27
.018
18
.009
9
.000
0
404,422.93
437,301.37
470,179.81
503,058.25
535,936.68
Dollars
As for Figure 2, the chart shows another Monte Carlo simulation forecasting the budget
needed to complete the project. The mean budget required for project completion is $470179.81
and has about a 50% chance of meeting this estimation.
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS
The new design of the enhanced bus shelter may initially create a delay in the bus
schedule because of the driveway it has to enter when picking up and dropping off passengers.
Buses delayed are not only caused by other vehicles and traffic signals, but by frequent and timeconsuming stops to pick up and discharge passengers which includes passenger boarding time,
collection of fares, etc. Also, having buses circulate around large parking lots contributes
unnecessarily to delay of transit.
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The completion of the Malcolm X enhanced bus shelter may create a social atmosphere
for the riders as well as the community. However, with its location, some potential problems
such as gangs, drug dealers, and homeless people may create a disturbance in the area.
Therefore, an increase in police patrol has been considered in protecting the safety of DART
riding citizens and the community residences. .may like some homeless people stay in the
shelter for a long time. All these will relate to safety issues and will increase the police patrol.
Foreseen uncertainties may arise during the project’s life cycle.
For example, the
construction work may disrupt the normal lifestyle of the people living in the community.
In
addition, vandalism and crimes may potentially increase the budget costs as well as delay the
schedule of the project. Finally, inclement weather may extend the duration of the project. To
overcome these foreseen uncertainties, DART has pre-established time buffers for each month of
the project schedule.
The most difficult part of the project is anticipating unforeseen uncertainties that may
arise during the construction phases. For instance, problems such as unanticipated injuries or
equipment failures delay the project’s progress.
Blueprints of the construction work not
matching the actual site layout may cause a tremendous impact on the construction work, which
will in turn negatively affect the success of the project. The Project Manager must create a
contingency place for each scenario and must have a strong communication channel with all the
stakeholders
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the Malcolm X at Southland Drive Enhanced Bus Shelter project is one of
DART’s many efforts to work with the surrounding community to promote a safe and enjoyable
ride from one destination to another. DART’s contract provides a detailed outline of the scope
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of work and specifications needed to complete the project in the time allotted.
The awarded
Contractor is required to follow all criteria listed in the legal document. The Work Breakdown
Schedule is useful in identifying the critical path of the project and organizing the various work
activities.
The engineer’s cost estimate provides an itemized outline of the project’s budget,
totaling $542,491.88. Using the Crystal Ball software, the Monte Carlo Simulation analysis
shows a 60% probability that the project will be completed within 137 days and a 50% chance of
meeting the estimated mean budget of $470179.81 for the project. Uncertainties will exist
throughout the duration of the project therefore the Project Manager must be flexible and cope
with constant changes. Effective communication is one of the major key factors for success of
the project.
RECOMMENDATIONS
One of the recommendations for the project would be to use the Theory of Constraints
(TOC). In particular, adding a project buffer and feeding buffers to the chain of events. This
would increase the chance of completing the project from 60% (TO WHAT %??) as forecasted
in the Crystal Ball simulation.
Another recommendation would be to incorporate DART personnel salaries as part of the
project budget. This would present a more accurate total project cost and allow DART to
properly budget for future projects.
ASSESSMENT
The time spent on the Malcolm X project has proven to be very educational and
knowledgeable to the understanding and application of Project Management. By working on this
project in conjunction with class lectures and article presentations provided a “hands-on”
experience to the principles of project management. Finally, we are presenting a copy of this
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paper to the Project Manager, Mr. Ernie Martinez, per his request. This will help prepare him for
the work that will occur in the near future.
OTHER ISSUES TO DISCUSS
1. References
2. One page summary
3. Presentation
4. Graphics/Reports -add in the report or as an Exhibit?
5. Title Page
6. Peer evaluations
7. TOC
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