ARC was engaged to perform a project implementation audit by a leading beverage company.
Client Challenges
A leading international brewer required additional capacity and a large-scale revamp of their batch control system. Implementation was urgent with a short schedule. The project was technically successful, but significantly over budget. To better manage the supplier selection and project management in the future, company management needed to identify strengths and weaknesses, and obtain recommendations for improvement. ARC Advisory Group was engaged to perform an audit of this project.?
ARC Solution
An ARC consultant who is a highly respected authority on batch control and a key member of the ISA SP88 Batch Control standards committee was engaged. ARC's expertise, with a broad and deep understanding of batch applications, was used to audit the project planning and implementation. Problems facing automation project revamps were identified. Also, the homegrown software functions were reviewed with recommendations on commercially available packages.
Results
The ARC consultant provided an extensive report containing industry best practices and recommendations that were accepted by the team. People from the plant, supplier, and integrator were interviewed. Also, an objective decision making process was established. Included was a control architecture that will accommodate future technologies as they emerge. The report provided business practices for future projects.