Chapter 13 Project and Contract Management

Publisher Summary A project can be defined as a task that has to be completed to a defined specification within an agreed time and for a specific price. Large, capital-intensive projects are characteristics of the oil and gas industry. Planning and controlling a project essentially involves hundreds of personnel, millions of individual items, and significant investment. This chapter explores how and why a typical project is organized in a number of well-defined stages. It discusses the methods used to ensure that the cost and time expectations are fulfilled, and the products are delivered to an agreed specification. It is observed that many oil and gas companies use contract staff to perform a part of the project between preliminary design and commissioning. Contracting out tasks is generally not limited to project work and affects most departments in a company, from the drilling department through to the catering services. The chapter also outlines some of the reasons for contracting out work, and the main types of contract used in the oil and gas industry.