Technical Requirements

The purpose of this project management plan is to communicate to all the stakeholders involved in the process of development and manufacture of the project on the various developments as it regards the progress made with the development of the project (Trott, 2016, p.92). This plan aims at communicating detail information and describes to each of the stakeholders the process that will be undertaken by the project before it can be finally accomplished. Among the details that are details inside this plan include the scope, deliverables, roles and responsibilities of each of the individuals involved, timescales and be a derivative in form from the business cased that is a generation by the sponsor (Buser, 2014, p.189). The plan also forms form part of or can be used in place of s contract that can be entered into between the manager and the sponsor or otherwise if not used as a contract then it has the capacity to stand in lace of an agreement.

Market gap has been identified to exist for a discharge capacitor tester. The capacitor testers that are currently available in the market for use by the consumers are accurate but not cost effective or cost effective but the levels of reliability for use of such testers is left hanging in the balance. This has thus left many consumers of the same commodity stranded on which way to move next following the prevailing market conditions (Stackpole, 2013, p.312). This prompted the invention and further development of a homemade discharge capacitor tester that would not only be affordable to the consumer but also meet their expectations of the services of a discharge capacitor tester. The battery discharge capacitor tester that is to be developed will be one such that is of very low cost, reliable as well as accurate when it comes to meeting the obligations of the customer of testing the capacity of a battery. Through the device the customer would be easily, be able to establish the conditions or state of the battery and the device would be able to function between 12 and 24 volts dc (Kerzner, 2013, p.253). The development of the device will be in line with the electrical equipment (safety) regulations 2016 among other regulations and standards to ensure the projects meets all the safety requirements as stipulated.  

The initial plan of the project was to develop a 12 volts discharge capacitor tester, but due to time constraints, this was not achieved. Instead, a 5 volts discharge capacitor tester was the final product to this project development that was achieved at the end of the project brainstorming and conceptualization. The 5 volts discharge capacitor testate, which is the finally achieved project, would be preceded with the later stages of this project development. Further and more refined developments on this project would be achieved through the help of such personnel as the designers, the engineers, the market departments, operators as well as the web designers (Mohd, 2011, p.518).

Market Opportunities

Another constraint on the project development is in relation to the market or political factors. This is established through the Brexit that is likely to have a direct impact on the commodity. The chances are that the cost of production and exporting to such a country would be culminating in increased costs of the products. This thus called for the need of setting up a place in Europe in which the manufacture of the tester would be done and from which distribution of the final product would take place from (Institute, 2017, p.188).

The project revolves around the development of a discharge capacitor tester that would be used in testing the condition of batteries. Technical requirements refer to technical issues that must be taken into account in order to complete a project (Miltiadis D. Lytras, 2010, p.203). These technical requirements are among aspects such as availability, performance and reliability, which must be met by the project in order to continue with the project to the subsequent stages of development of the project. In order to fully develop the project, the following technical requirements would be required:

• Circuit
• Battery which is either 12 v or 24 v
• A source of power
• A tester (ordinary tester that is to be developed)

The project is designated to grab the opportunity that has been found to exist in the market. The opportunities are a reliable and cost-effective discharge capacitor tester. In order to meet the scope management aspect of the project, it would be important to come up with the duration estimates of the project development (Trott, 2016, p.260). The project would adopt checkpoints or decision gate. In this approach, monitoring and checks will be done at the close of every important stage of development of the project thereby creating a stage-gate. In this approach, the mandatory activities that must be conducted in a stage of development shall be ascertained if they have actually been conducted on the project in order to allow the project to proceed to the next stage of development. The stages of development which include among them preliminary investigation, business case, develop, test and launch would be carefully monitored if they are really reflected in the project (Miltiadis D. Lytras, 2010, p.269). Through this monitoring, it will be possible to establish the roadmap of the project as decisions are made at the end of each of the stages or gates of development.

The project development of this project begins at the preliminary investigations stage. At this stage, the various available options and alternatives on how to go about the project are taken into account. It is at this stage that brainstorming of the ideas pertaining to the development of the project takes place. A conceptual idea of what the project should be like is arrived at upon brainstorming at this stage (Mohd, 2011, p.262). Following the limitations and constraints of time, this stage brought forth an idea on how on the development of a 5 volts discharge capacitor tester. The project would then proceed to the business case stage where it is presented as a potential idea that can be transformed into a reality should it get access to the required support in term of finances and other resources that may be needed. At the business case stage, the project is presented as a proposal to a potential sponsor who upon being taken through the ideas behind the anticipated development would chip in to offer the required financial muscles to drive the project forward (Young, 2010, p.518). Development, testing and launching of the projects are the subsequent stages of the project having been funded. The idea would be transformed into a reality during its development using the necessary skills and expertise after which it is tested to determine if it executable. Launching would be the final stage of development of the project, and it would involve allowing consumers to have access to and use the project and enjoy the benefits that are associated with it.

This project involves the manufacture and distribution of a 5 volts discharge capacitor dispenser to the consumers (Marks, 2012, p.147). The main objective of this project is to fill the gap created in the market due to high cost and non-reliability of the existing discharge capacitor testers available in the market. It is for this reason that the final product of this development aims at the consumer and ensures that the wishes and expectations of the consumer are given a frontline during the manufacturing process. Upon completion of the manufacturing process and taking the product the various tests to ensure that it is safe and fit for use by the consumer, the product would be supplied to the market in small quantity just to find out how it works for the intended consumers (Triantis, 2016, p.322). Thee feedback from such consumers will be carried back to the company so as to make even more refined adjustments and developments to the products in order to ensure that the product meets the expectations and thus satisfies the needs of the consumer. Environmental assessments would also be conducted on the product to determine its impact on the environment and the modalities applicable to make it friendlier to the environment.

Scope Management

Change control management offers a check on any changes that may occur to the project development process and ensuring that such changes do not bring to a halt the development process of the product (Stackpole, 2013, p.282). Change control management would be achieved in this project development through the documenting any changes that occur during the project development process and ensuring that such unnecessary changes do not lead to unwarranted stop to the development progress.

The time spent on the project has a direct impact on the cost of the project since the longer the time spent, the higher the labour charges for the labour that was hired to help with the delivery of the task (Wilson, 2014, p.115). Establishment of a baseline for two weeks and then doing close monitoring of the progress about the baseline would be used in the management of time. By the close of the baseline time, an evaluation is done to ascertain how much has been achieved out of the expectations. In so doing it is important that enough consideration is given to the workload involved in the different tasks that need to be delivered in order to eliminate chances of bias that may result from either overestimation or underestimation of time. Such a consideration would ensure there is sufficient allocation of the required resources in relation to the degree of detail that is expected of the task.

Cost management of the project would cover the production of a baseline, estimate of costs and cost control activities that would come up during the process of development of the project. The cost management strategy for this project will be such that it is not single-minded cost focus on nature (Carstens, 2016, p.239). This would be so to ensure that the designer of the product does not suffer distraction and hence omit other values in the final product citing cost issues. The primary costs of the project will include labor, consumables and fixed costs. The fixed costs would be from the acquisition of any materials or equipment that may be needed for the successful development of the project. It would be important to take note of the labor costs of the projects even though such costs are in most cases ambiguous. Such data would be important when it comes to estimating the overall cost of the project (Buser, 2014, p.148). In order to keep track of the implications of the financial cash flows, the data on cash flows will be processed using spreadsheet to ensure all the budgeted costs and incomes on the project are established.

Quality measures for this project would be to develop not only a cheap but also reliable discharge capacitor tester (Buser, 2014, p.268). The aim of the quality management of this project development revolves around filling the gap identified in the market, which would eventually lead to the satisfaction of the needs of the customer. The main objective of the project development would be to develop a product of the required quality, and which comparison can easily be made between the intended product and the finally achieved commodity (Baxter, 2015, p.222). The project would aim at developing a design that is complex enough in nature and which is inclusive of the production, functional and aesthetic measures as desirable. The determinants of aesthetics of the product would not be easily achievable in the company from the first batch of the product. The feedback from the consumers on the improvements they would wish made on the product would provide limelight on the aesthetic needs and desires of the intended users of the commodity. The functional parameters of the device would include an ability to accurately and reliably measure the discharge capacitor of a battery thereby able to inform the consumer on the status or condition of his battery (Kerzner, 2013, p.254).

Time Management

Human resource management involves assemblage of all the staff that would be required for the completion of the task. Each of the members would be assigned a task and the extent of the workload of the assigned task established to ensure that no staff member is overworked or overload in the process that may lead poor quality delivery or no delivery at all hence leading to failure of the project (Institute, 2017, p.369). As the project manager, there would need to ensure the team is properly managed in such a way that the best out of them is extracted for the purposes of the project development. Ensuring that the team members are properly trained and motivated would be one such way of getting the best out of the team. Assisting in decision making and sorting out of conflicts that may arise due to the diverse background of the project team would ensure effective human resource management. The diverse background of the project team is associated with different ranges of skills and experience that require management (Carstens, 2016, p.192). Keeping a project team composed of members from diverse backgrounds would enrich the project development with an avalanche of skills and knowledge that would see the best quality of the product finally developed. Holding the tea, together even as each of the members delivers on duty assigned to him would ensure keeping the objectives of the project development in sight to avoid any uncertainties for example such of failures (Lester, 2013, p.415). Rewarding the project team members for their achievements would enhance human resource management of the project development.

Communication allows the passage of information. Through communication, the team would be able to share progress on the project development as well as enhancing sharing of knowledge that would be important both on the current and future projects. Being a small project, an elaborate and extensive communication system would not be adopted since the project team would not be composed of numerous individuals (Baxter, 2015, p.358). Computer-aided design and emails would be adopted as the main communication medium through which the team members would be able to share their progress amongst each other and with the project team manager. Through such platforms, knowledge is shared that enhance better performance. As the project manager, it would be possible to keep track of the status of the project as at the task assigned to each team members through communication.

Quality Management

The project just like any other projects would be associated with such hazards that would affect the outcome of the project development (Buser, 2014, p.289). Risk management would thus be aimed at eliminating the risks that could possibly affect the outcome of the project. Identification of the risk, analysis and their treatment would be the most suitable risk management strategy for this project development. Response to risk would include such measures as avoidance, mitigation and transfer to a third party (Abbie Griffin, 2014, p.158).

Adoption of the various available technologies in the identification of the main causes of risks and thereby scrutiny of such causes would ensure a comprehensive understanding of the nature of such risks. Analysis of the risk would entail a look at the likelihood and consequences of the risk in case it occurs. The likelihood is qualitative while the consequences are quantitative. Establishment of the various risk strategies would lead to risk management success in the project. Among such strategies include learning to accept the residual risk and coping up with its consequences, reducing either the likelihood of failure or the extent of the consequences.

Other strategies that would be adopted in case of occurrence of a risk would include increasing quality control, designing for robustness or increasing the generation of quality of the product. This goes hand in hand with developing better equipment through better processes (Management Association, 2013, p.287).

References

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Buser, R.A., 2014. Project Management for Libraries: A Practical Approach. 5th ed. New York: McFarland.

Carstens, D.S., 2016. Project Management Tools and Techniques: A Practical Guide. 5th ed. Oxford: CRC Press.

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