Introduction to the process guide

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Introduction to the process guide
1. Corporate Planning Phase
2. Concept Development Phase
3. Concept Evaluation Phase
4. Project Definition Phase
5. Project Specification Stage
6. Project Tender Phase
7. Project Construction & Delivery Phase
8. Project Review Phase

Purpose and Background

The Process Guide is based on industry recognised project processes supplemented by access to information, guidelines or sites relevant to each phase. Some documents linked to the Process Guide are mandatory for government agencies to implement such as:

Code of Practice for the Building and Construction Industry, and
Ministerial Directions issued under the Project Development and Construction Management Act 1994.

Mandatory requirements are identified throughout the Process Guide.

Key Features

The key features of the Process Guide are:

An emphasis on thorough planning particularly at the initial phases of the process.
The need to establish a clear line of accountability for all phases of the project and to document the process in order to provide an appropriate audit trail.
A requirement for robust evaluation to justify proposals including analysis of all reasonable options.
The need to employ appropriate professional expertise in particular to obtain reliable costing information on the project.
A direction for good practice in the procurement of building and construction projects with links to relevant information where compliance is required or otherwise useful.

Responsibilities

Individual agencies are responsible for the management of a project through all stages of the project delivery process.

Regulatory Development Group within the Building Control Commission provides support to agencies by providing a central policy and advisory role to Government for public construction.

The Department of Treasury and Finance provides advice on the budgetary and financial aspects of proposals, including project evaluation.

Process Overview

The Process Guide describes the details of the process for the development of a capital works proposal in eight broad phases, described in the following table.

Note: Experience has demonstrated that all of the steps in the Process Guide need to be completed to achieve a successful outcome. However many activities can proceed in parallel to minimise the development time. In addition, the scale and complexity of the proposals will dictate the duration and detail of each process to be applied to each project.

Phase	Description
1: Corporate Planning Phase - Developing an Assest Strategy	Effective asset management demands that all assets held must contribute directly to outputs in the most useful and efficient way. All asset management actions need to be consistent with the focus of the agency. What is needed, and by when, must be clear to all parts of the organisation. Strategic and cooperative thinking calls for vertical and horizontal planning by key players. The agency's asset strategy provides a focus for asset management action leading to the development of asset management plans based on the annual work plan to be actioned.
2: Concept Development Phase	This phase entails the translation of a demand for service delivery to a conceptual solution. It involves a more detailed analysis of the basis for the project and the definition of the broad parameters of time, cost scope and quality. Another key aspect is the identification of the reasonable options for delivering the proposal including procurement options.
3: Concept Evaluation Phase	This phase involves quantifying the difference a project will make to the community. The costs and benefits of each of the options will be analysed and the cost-effective option selected.
4: Project Definition Phase	This phase involves the development of the plans for the approved option to a high level of detail. Key activities include checking that the developed design is within the approved parameters and still meets the agreed objectives. There is also a need to check that the project design delivers value for money.
5: Project Specification Phase	This phase takes the project through the steps of preparing the contract documentation.
6: Project Tender Phase	This phase involves calling and assessing tenders, obtaining the final approval for expenditure and the letting of tenders.
7: Project construction & Delivery Phase	This phase takes the project through the steps of construction and commissioning of the work.
8: Project Review Phase	This final step involves the finalisation of the project, updating of information systems and the conduct of various reviews to identify the achievements which will be feedback to the planning process.

Government Strategies

Advances have been made in the implementation of asset management as a core business of Government agencies. The Government's strategy is to build on the foundations that have been established so as to gain more strategic and competitive advantage from public sector portfolios.

The Process Guide describes the steps that should be followed to deliver a Government service involving the construction of, or alteration, to a building asset.

Before You Commence

Before you commence the phases in the Process Guide, there is a requirement to establish that the need for a proposed Government service is consistent with Government's strategies and key directions. These strategies and directions are incorporated in the agency corporate or strategic plan. The need for the service may arise from:

a Ministerial or Cabinet decision, or
the application of a policy arising from the legislation relating to a particular activity.

Asset Management Strategies

Strategies for the management of individual assets and portfolios should be based on defined service delivery objectives. The agency's own principles for whole-of-life management of the assets should then be reflected into these objectives.

Agency best practice strategies should be thoroughly examined by questioning:

Are assets fully used in service delivery?
Have the assets sufficient capacity to provide the required services?
Are assets in a suitable form and condition for the optimal delivery of the services they are intended to support?
How do the costs of operating and maintaining assets relate to budgets and the total costs and/or price of service delivery?
Are asset values (Depreciated Value and Replacement Cost) commensurate with service delivery requirements?
Are assets appropriately located for effective service delivery?
Can the service delivery be provided more effectively through the use of resources other than assets?
Should the asset be Government owned or leased or provided by a commercial service provider?

Asset Management Policy Statement

The Constructing VIC Process Guide is consistent with the Governments strategic directions as described in the Asset Management Policy Statement issued by the Department of Treasury and Finance. The Asset Management Policy Statement aims to assist agencies to achieve better value from the investment in the State's assets.

Asset Manual

The Asset Manual is a separate guide which complements the Asset Management Series. It is issued by the Department of Infrastructure and:

provides the basis for the review of asset needs and performance in delivering services to the community
contains detailed procedures and guidelines for the management of assets.

End of the Introduction. Next phase> 1: Corporate Planning Phase - Developing an Assest Strategy

Last Updated [1-Jun-2009]