On time, on budget: the Ottawa airport expansion

Summit, Feb 2004 by Levin, Mike

IN A CITY WHERE five of eight large construction programs finish late and over budget, the expansion of the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport (OMCIA) stumped the industry.

It finished six months early, for as much as 10 percent under original cost estimates, and some are looking up OMCIA Authority CEO Paul Benoit's sleeve to see how he did it. The reasons are far simpler than one would expect.

There were no financial bonuses or penalties geared to deadlines and budgets. But there were definitely carrots and sticks, and one has to look at the project managers to understand how efficiency, due diligence and motivation can percolate throughout a $310-million project that used over two million man-hours.

Authority executives knew their management team had to be nimble, inventive and dedicated. "Without management's superb ability to attract big-fish contractors and get everyone to contribute like it was their own project, the expansion would never have had this result," says Robert Fisher, the Authority's Manager of Procurement and Contracting. "The team we selected was extraordinarily efficient."

Overall project management was awarded to MRM - a joint venture between Ottawa's J.L. Richards & Associates and Thornhill's Marshall Macklin Monaghan. Architecture and engineering duties were contracted to YOW Consultants - a partnership between Ottawa's Brisbin Brock Benyon and Vancouver's Achitectura Planning Architecture Interiors.

One of the keys to efficiency during two-and-a-half years of construction was sequential tendering, where sub-contracted packages were started before all technical specifications were in. With 500 sub-contractors involved, this saved thousands of hours. "But it only works if management is able to understand which changes are absolutely necessary and how to respond quickly to needs and questions," Fisher adds.

Another contributor was construction "partners" like PCL Construction (terminal), Dufferin Construction (apron, de-icing facilities) and EllisDon Design Build (parking structure), which carried enough industry weight to get the materials they needed, when they needed them.

Even Paul Benoit put his imprint on financial performance, by bartering interior art and video hardware - with First Air and Panasonic - for free advertising. And it didn't hurt that the 2001/ 2002 winter was mild at a pivotal time for in-ground installation.

Yet these were all logistical elements. Managers keep coming back to motivation and teamwork as the reasons behind OMCIAs early-and-under result.

When Stephen Rocque landed with MRM four months after construction started, he was the latest in a line of five program managers, the nexus of daily organization. "The Authority was very specific about what it wanted, and for how much. It centred around time accountability. I hate being late," he says, explaining why his watch is set 10 minutes ahead of real time.

"I don't know what went on before, but when I got there, IT (information technology) systems were about a year behind, a real red warning sign," he says. "It had to be accelerated, and the only way to do that successfully was to enable everyone involved. People had to be honest with themselves and each other, not play the blame game. As hokey as it sounds, the Authority did a good job encouraging this type of communications."

Sometimes all it took to get someone's extra effort was a thank you, their name on a commemorative plaque, some public recognition. "I believe people want to be part of a successful team. It is very simplistic, but it works," Rocque adds.

Yet carrots rarely work without sticks. There were firings. Those who couldn't deliver or who wouldn't fit into management's mindset were let go. Those who stayed were well compensated, because quality does have a cost. Yet many willingly pulled unpaid overtime to make sure things stayed on track. For Fisher it was middleof-the-night, baggage-system tests.

"Our methodology and planning were extremely well thoughtout. We didn't go for the cheapest price, and that allowed us to tell (contractors) 'Do what you know best. It's what we expect,'" Fisher says. "But it also meant that when something was due on Friday, it got done by Friday. It was a point of honour, right up to our CEO."

The OMCIA Authority is not publicly funded (although it is publicly guaranteed). Self-reliance is the new state of affairs for Canadian airports, and most are now saddled with, or facing, expensive infrastructure improvements. Cost overruns are likely to be Authority killers.

No magic wand produced the results at Ottawa's airport. Others would be well-advised to understand that Authority's process.

-Mike Levin