Having participated in multiple projects with the Army Corps of Engineers, to me that the basic element sought in maintaining the required standards is in the repetitive Plan-Do-Check cycle.
The COE’s Approach to Plan, Do, Check
The Plan-Do-Check (PDC) cycle is a cornerstone methodology employed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE) to ensure quality and efficiency in project execution. This iterative approach focuses on continuous improvement and validation throughout every phase of a project. Here, we break down the steps in the PDC cycle as practiced by the COE.
Plan
The planning phase sets the foundation for a successful project by defining quality objectives and establishing a clear roadmap. This involves several critical steps:
Define Quality and Priorities:
Quality definitions are validated through value judgments to determine priorities such as highest priorities, plans or specifications, and responsible stakeholders.
Task assignments are clearly outlined, ensuring each responsible party understands their roles and deliverables.
Document Matching:
Match contract materials to corresponding documents, such as submittals, to ensure alignment with project requirements and client expectations.
Scheduling:
Develop a comprehensive project schedule that incorporates key elements:
Timeline: Establish realistic deadlines for each phase.
Manpower: Allocate sufficient personnel for the tasks.
Material Delivery: Coordinate supply chain logistics to prevent delays.
Payment Concerns: Ensure financial milestones align with project progress.
This phase prioritizes meticulous preparation, recognizing that a robust plan is the first step toward a quality outcome.
Do
Execution is at the heart of the “Do” phase. The COE often utilizes tools like the Gantt Chart to maintain organization and clarity:
Critical Path Identification:
Gantt Charts are instrumental in visualizing the critical path, highlighting essential tasks that directly impact project timelines.
These tools help organize predecessors, ensuring dependencies are clear and manageable.
Task-by-Task Approach:
The COE emphasizes the need to review and validate the approach for each task before work begins.
Preparatory Meetings: Convene stakeholders to discuss objectives and methodologies.
Initial Inspections: Conduct initial evaluations to confirm readiness before task acceleration.
Follow-Up Inspections: Perform sufficient inspections to validate compliance with quality standards.
This phase ensures that every action is deliberate and in alignment with the established plan.
Check
The “Check” phase focuses on ensuring that the project meets both individual task quality requirements and overall functionality. While this term applies repeatedly to large projects, its ultimate goal is delivering a fully operational and compliant end product:
Task-Level Validation:
Each task is inspected and verified to ensure adherence to specifications and quality benchmarks.
Systemic Functionality:
Recognizing that a project is more than the sum of its parts, the COE emphasizes end-to-end functionality which at time seems to be a bit redundant but can be necessary to validate stakeholder concerns.
This step ensures that all components integrate seamlessly into a coherent, operational, and compliant whole project.
Through rigorous checks, the contractor mitigates risks and enhances confidence in the final deliverable.
Iterative Improvement
A key feature of the PDC cycle is its repetitive nature. Each phase feeds into the next, with lessons learned from one cycle informing subsequent iterations. This iterative process allows the COE to perform their Quality Assurance responsibilities through adaptive and refining approaches, consistently improving outcomes and maintaining high standards.
A contractor’s buy in to the Plan-Do-Check methodology, demonstrates a commitment to delivering quality projects that meet both technical and functional expectations, ensuring success for all stakeholders involved.
