Project Challenges and Weekly Progress
Feb 9th, 2012 by Simon
Although, our project has been on track up until this week, we have reached a bottleneck. Although, Kyle and Simon have both been attempting to contact agencies that Marty Frost from BEST has provided us with, they have had little success with the exception of Tracey from MOACS. This will result in our projected completion date being the end of February.
Tracey has provided us with a lot of very useful information that will help our group to complete this aspect of the STAR project for BEST. We now have a least a rough operating cost of the van, some pros and cons of the MOACS transportation vehicle and the contact information of a company in Surrey that MOACS used to obtain their van, Dynamic Bus Sales and Services. The model she directed us to is the Goshen Coach.
Also this week we have met with our group’s mentor, Andrew Cheung. Andrew gave us some guidance of what to do in the mean time while waiting for agencies to respond to our queries. We will be constructing a template for our report that we will be presenting to BEST, so when we do receive responses, it will be much easier and quicker for us to complete the report. Further, instead of doing one quote for a single model, as we had initially intended, Andrew suggested we do three. This way BEST can choose the one that is most suitable for them.
Below are the 3 models we are currently considering:
Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter
Note the two layouts below. The top image shows the normal layout of seats in the van. In the bottom image, we are proposing that two seats be removed near the side-access door to allow the passengers to move more freely in the van while still accommodating the 4 to 6 passenger capacity. The removed seats can be kept as spares, or reinstalled if larger capacity is required.
Images from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_Sprinter
Goshen Coast – Pacer LTD
Images from: http://www.goshencoach.com/PacerLTD.aspx
Turtle Top
Images from: http://www.turtletop.com/VanTerraTerraTransport/Features.aspx
Although the models we consider may change from the three listed above, a cost-analysis will be prepared for all models we do deem feasible for the STAR project.
Some of the key features of all models are:
- Seating capacity for at least 4 to 6 passengers
- Easy access to passenger area from side door
- Storage area for walkers and wheelchairs in the rear of van
- Ceiling is high enough so passengers can comfortably stand when loading and unloading
What’s Next?
- Continue attempting to contact agencies
- Further analysis of all models above and potential additional models (we will choose the best 3 to present)
- Preparation of a report template
- Update of the project schedule
It looks like you are doing a great job so far! Keep up this impressive work!
Snags in projects, like the one you describe this week, are inevitable. Andrew has given you excellent advice on how to accommodate the set-back you mentioned. In retrospect, do you think there is anything you could have done – in terms of project management – to pre-empt the problem?
I like the idea of presenting 3 options to the clients. Sometimes this strategy can trigger ideas in the client that they hadn’t previously considered.
Good luck in the coming week!
-SN