Abstract
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)
When determining the required members to be a part of a project team, the decision to
appoint an engineering manager can be a difficult one. To try and make this decision easier,
and the criteria around this decision clearer, specific factors were sought that could be used
to assist in making this decision. Historic project data from an engineering company was
used as the basis against which a set of criteria were assessed to determine their impact.
The major factors assessed were the types of projects based on their industry type, client
type, project duration, project value, and project complexity. For the engineering industry
projects it was found that all of the above factors contribute to the decision making process;
also that they are all intrinsically connected and cannot be separated or isolated from one
another. The decision needs to be taken by considering all the contributing factors and each
project needs to be reviewed on its own merits; however the general trend observed was
that engineering managers added more value to the projects that they were a part of than
the additional cost required to have them on the project team. Their contribution is also best
realized when they are included in the initial phases of the project, and incorporated in the
team as early on as possible. A greater number of projects should make use of engineering
managers, but more specifically the correct engineering manager with the relevant
experience is crucial to the success of projects in the engineering industry.