FEL Projects

Front-End Loading Projects: Plan, Schedule and Execute

The key to executing a successful migration lies in the FEL stage. Some of you may have heard the term front-end loading or FEL before, but for those who haven’t, here’s a brief explanation. Front-end loading projects, or FELs, are structured in a way to help plan for migration by executing the engineering upfront – really from inception until you get to implementation. FELs normally include a stage gate approval process. They focus on funding approval and definition, increasing in accuracy through each stage of the FEL project. FELs have a proven track record of improved results. Every customer we have worked with who has done an FEL has seen cost savings in the long run because of effective upfront planning. Most of their projects have also been under budget.

f you couldn’t already tell, the biggest item we’re talking about today is planning. Obviously, we’ll cover other items, but this point is the most important: Early efforts spent on good definition will pay for itself. The figure shows the impact of making decisions and changes early in the project versus late. The gray arrows along the bottom axis represent the major phases of the project: definition, design and development, and finally, construction and commissioning. You may be able to change the outcome of the project throughout the life of the project; however, as code is developed and cabinets are installed, the effort required to affect change and the cost associated with that change rises very quickly the further into the project you get. Nobody likes rework, and with proper planning there shouldn’t be any. We’ve got to make sure that those things are identified as early in the project as possible. In doing that work upfront, we minimize cost and the impact to the schedule. The point is, don’t undercut the future success of your project by skimping on early planning and the budgeting effort. Remember, early efforts pay for themselves later.

It’s important to note that FELs are not extra or added engineering. The engineering must be done at some point, so by executing an FEL, you’re effectively pulling engineering from the implementation project forward and making decisions earlier rather than later.