Advanced work packaging also has shown it can significantly improve safety performance. By preplanning the timing and materials for a scope of work, teams can track and locate materials, reducing materials searches and injury risks. One Alberta project studied by CII and COAA compared work on a multi-year mining project with an annual budget of roughly $400 million before and after the project team used AWP. When AWP was used, tasks that previously ran four months behind schedule were delivered on time. The owner saved 10% of planned budget, and the contractor reported a 300% increase in profit, thanks to reduced rework and improved use of major equipment. Perhaps the most notable aspect was the project's safety record. The project, which logged more than 1 million man-hours annually, went from averaging one recordable incident per month to zero incidents in the 12-month period after AWP was implemented.

Improved safety through AWP also goes a long way toward improving manpower retention. Kirk Morrow, vice president of construction services at S&B Engineers and Constructors, Houston, says producing safe and productive jobsites is critical in light of the manpower shortages forecast for industrial projects along the Gulf Coast. "I asked a [craftsman], who has been with us for while, why he chooses to stay," Morrow said. "The No. 1 thing he said was safety. The second is that, when he goes out in the morning, he knows the tools and materials will all be there for him to do his job."

A COAA study shows that, on projects using traditional methods, workers spent 37% of their time on tools. By comparison, on projects that implement workface planning, workers spend 46% of their time on tools. With billions of dollars in additional projects planned for the Gulf region in the coming years, Morrow says, "We need to be using the workforce we have today more efficiently."

Expanding Applications

As advanced work packaging is gaining momentum in the industrial market, some are looking to use it in other sectors. DTE Energy is applying advanced work packaging to projects ranging from power work to office renovations. DTE started two pilot projects using AWP in 2013 and plans to apply it to all new projects by the end of the year. Stanley Stasek, director of quality management for major enterprise projects at DTE, says the company is expanding its in-house construction-management capabilities and sees AWP as a key component in that initiative. "We need our contractors to be as efficient as possible," he says.

One of the pilot programs involves dry-sorbent injection upgrades at multiple DTE powerplants. "They will install on two plants in parallel and then move on. Work packaging makes sense because you can build [packages] up front, then make adjustments due to location, but the core work remains the same."