Article #026 Tracking and Monitoring Spare Parts Usage During the Project Standard and

Extended Warranty Periods

Once the project reaches the handover stage, the contractor needs to turn over the spare parts as per the contract
documents which will detail those requirements. A general spare parts specification is typically used to outline the
common requirements related to spare parts, with additional specific requirements particular to a specific piece of
equipment or building component specified in the particular specification concerned.

The project owner shall determine the requirements beyond the two-year operating spares if needed. In cases
where it is logical for a vendor of specialist equipment to undertake the maintenance instead of project owner
personnel, no spares would be held by the project owner. For example, for an elevator, it is common for the elevator
vendor to undertake the maintenance under a maintenance contract and the elevator vendor is made responsible
for keeping the required spares in stock.

Using a Project Management Information System (PMIS) like PMWeb, different inventory locations can be created
which will include the project owner own locations as well as the different vendors’ inventory locations as it relates
to the project’s spare parts. This will enable the project owner to have an updated status of all inventory spare parts
regardless where they are stored.

In cases where the project owner will perform the maintenance, then the vendor’s recommendations of what spare
parts are needed is required. The recommended spare parts list is typically included in the Operations and
Maintenance Manuals (O&Ms) for the equipment/component concerned. The pricing for the Spare Parts is provided
typically by the vendor through the contractor, and the project owner will determine which spare parts and in what
quantity they are to be ordered. It should be noted that for common materials such as ceiling tiles or floor tiles the
project specifications normally specifies that 2% spare materials be handed over by the Contractor and that this is
included in the contract price, for example.

PMWeb will be used to capture the details of all those spare parts. The data that will be captured will include stock
number where within the inventory location it is store, Item code (form PMWeb Item predefined list), description,
condition (new or used), condition reported date, unit of measure (UOM), amount stocked, used, unusable, moved
and on hand, unit cost and extended cost, manufacturer name (which will be selected from the predefined vendors
number), manufacture number, item serial number, item lot number, stocked date and any notes to be added.

The attachment tab will be used to capture details of the spare parts stored at the inventory location such as
catalogues, brochures, delivery notes among others. Those documents would be used uploaded and stored on
PMWeb document management repository before they get attached.
Any movements for the stored spare parts whether to be used to replace damaged parts on the facility or relocate
to another inventory location or simply remove because it became unusable, will be done by clicking on the relevant
spare part and update the moved quantity section. This will automatically the spare part stock status.

This stock movement will automatically update the spare part stock status. This will give the option to limit the
displayed spare parts list to only current available stock, past stock or both current and past stock. Selecting the
desired option will automatically update the displayed spare parts list.

The data captured for the spare parts will enable the project owner to monitor and track the spare parts inventor
status to determine subsequent procurement and delivery requirements. The report has a calculate for “% Spare
Parts Remaining” for which the project owner will have 20% threshold to alert that restocking of the spare parts
could be needed while the 10% will be the threshold for starting the process of restocking if needed.
About the Author
Bassam Samman, PMP, PSP, EVP, GPM is a Senior Project Management Consultant
with more than 35-year service record providing project management and controls
services to over 100 projects with a total value in excess of US $5 Billion. Those
projects included Commercial, Residential, Education and Healthcare Buildings and
Infrastructure, Entertainment and Shopping Malls, Oil and Gas Plants and Refineries,
Telecommunication and Information Technology projects. He is thoroughly
experienced in complete project management including project management
control systems, computerized project control software, claims analysis/prevention,
risk analysis/management (contingency planning), design, supervision, training and
business development.

Bassam is a frequent speaker in topics relating to Project Management, Strategic

Project Management and Project Management Personal Skills. Over the past 35 years he has lectured at more than
350 events and courses at different locations in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and South America. He has
written more than 250 articles on project management and project management information systems that were
featured in international and regional magazines and newspapers. He is a co-founder of the Project Management
Institute- Arabian Gulf Chapter (PMI-AGC) and has served on its board of directors for more than 6 years. He is a
certified Project Management Professional (PMP) from the Project Management Institute (PMI), a certified Planning
and Scheduling Professional (PSP) and Earned Value Professional (EVP) from the American Association of Cost
Engineers (AACE) and Green Project Management (GPM).

Bassam holds a Masters in Engineering Administration (Construction Management) with Faculty Commendation,
George Washington University, Washington, D.C., USA, Bachelor in Civil Engineering – Kuwait University, Kuwait and
has attended many executive management programs at Harvard Business School, Boston, USA and London Business
School, London, UK.