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Rajit Harshik Desai, Chief Project Controls, Tata Projects, on balancing project cost, timelines and cutting down on risk

- Rajit Harshik Desai

Infra projects not only have long gestation timelines but can see glimpses of volatility. Any untoward incident can bring a project to a halt or prolong the completion date. How do you work out the risk management and project forecast?

Infra projects’ vulnerability to volatility actually stems from the long gestation period that is typical of this sector. Tata Projects has a very robust process of revalidating the costs and schedule every quarter. The direct costs are assessed factoring the movement of major indices like commodities, labour, POL and of course the Bill of Quantities. Assessment of the indirect cost is predominantly a function of schedule, which is monitored on weekly basis. The upward or downward impact of both these levers is recorded and monitored every quarter along with the mitigation measures/ identified actions that are then taken up with various stakeholders like clients, govt authorities, supply chain partners, etc.

Projects set in motion need to be seen to fruition. What are some of the techniques involved to maintain uniform and continuous progress of ongoing projects?