#MVM2028Initiative
The Memphis District has embarked on a bold initiative to revolutionize its processes for delivering projects and engineering solutions. The initiative is called MVM 2028 and its vision is for the District to “bring value to every local, regional, and national interaction as the one stop shop for a full suite of project management, engineering and other technical services.”
One way the District plans to bring value is through its ongoing efforts to deliver projects faster and under budget. The District’s interdisciplinary project delivery teams—consisting of engineers, project managers, program analysts, and others—are seeking to gain maximum benefit from the functions and capabilities of Primavera project management software. They recently teamed with the Corps’ Savannah District to complete advanced Primavera training as a means of enhancing their ability to deliver projects faster and under budget.
The MVM 2028 Initiative is championed by Donny Davidson, Memphis District deputy district engineer for programs and project management. He sees the Primavera application, which uses Earned Value Management (EVM)—principles for measuring project performance— in the hands of his project delivery teams as an MVM 2028 Initiative enabler.
“Our project delivery teams’ increased ability to forecast and monitor project cost and schedule performance with the Primavera application means we can better find ways to streamline our processes, control costs, balance resources and manage schedules,” Davidson said. “This training helps us increase our ability to deliver greater value which is a main goal of our MVM 2028 Initiative.”
Senior Program Analyst Lyndsey Sutton says the Corps of Engineers has adopted EVM principles for measuring project performance and progress.
“EVM, along with good project management practices, allows for a more reasonable prediction of future project performance. A major part of EVM is developing a detailed critical path schedule of project activities and resources. The schedule development requires input and buy-in from the entire project delivery team,” Sutton said. “When properly developed and managed, these schedules will allow us to anticipate time and resource crunch-points and proactively identify ways to recover. This method allows us the potential to deliver projects faster and under budget.”
Civil Engineer Samantha Harper says the Primavera software training provided by Savannah District’s Jeff Huneycutt helped attendees become more effective using the capabilities and functions of the software.
“Topics included adding project activities, developing logic relationships, determining critical path, assigning resources, and comparing baselines,” Harper said. “In the coming months, Memphis District will begin developing these detailed critical path schedules for our long-term supplemental projects, which will eventually become standard practice for all new projects.”
This training and the District’s MVM 2028 Initiative are just a few ways the Corps is identifying and aggressively pursuing initiatives that equip it with policies, tools, training, and resources to deliver value for the Nation.