How we deliver

The DDF is our own delivery methodology, developed through sustained investment in research and practice. Two things distinguish it:

• It is business-case centric. Every deliverable traces back to the outcome the project was funded to achieve. When scope pressure arrives — and it always does — that traceability is what makes the trade-off decision obvious instead of political.
• It integrates design and delivery processes with our quality system, rather than running quality as a parallel audit function.

The framework draws heavily on the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK) and PRINCE2, so it is familiar to any client team that has run structured programmes before.

In practice, our project managers adopt the client's existing methodology to keep the project aligned with concurrent initiatives, and supplement it with elements of the DDF where there are gaps. We are not interested in imposing process for its own sake.

1. 01

   Appraisal and feasibility

   Initial appraisal, options identification, demand and capacity analysis, order-of-magnitude cost, and an honest view of whether the project should proceed as conceived.

2. 02

   Investigation

   Surveys, site investigation, geotechnical and hydrological work, laboratory testing, baseline environmental and socioeconomic data.

3. 03

   Concept and preliminary design

   Layouts, alternatives assessment, preliminary sizing, planning applications and negotiations, public consultation where required.

4. 04

   Detailed design and documentation

   Full engineering design, drawings, specifications, bills of quantities, cost estimates, technical approvals and adoptions, tender documentation.

5. 05

   Construction supervision

   Site inspection, materials and workmanship quality assurance, contractor and programme management, variation control, instrumentation and monitoring.

6. 06

   Commissioning, monitoring and evaluation

   Testing and pre-commissioning audits, handover documentation, benefit monitoring and evaluation, mid-term and post-project evaluation, third-party validation.

We place great emphasis on controlling and managing change. Programme and cost targets, activities and interfaces are monitored closely so that potential problems surface early enough to be corrected cheaply. Each project is managed proactively to stop it developing its own inertia — the state in which everyone is busy and nothing is advancing.

The best system in the world, delivered on time and on budget, still fails if the people it was built for decline to use it. Managing change is the work of bringing hearts and minds on board — and it runs in parallel with the Gantt chart, not after it.

Our change management strategies are designed to ensure that:

• communication with the project team and the wider stakeholder community is deliberate and continuous;
• fear and surprise are replaced with knowledge and awareness;
• learning and education requirements are identified early and actually delivered;
• ongoing support and learning continue after go-live;
• channels for feedback are open from day one — and visibly acted on.