Capital spending is up in 2012, with sites not only doing more projects compared to last year, but also more "large" small projects. IPA data show that the larger site-based projects typically perform worse than smaller projects. IPA Manager of Plant-Based Systems Phyllis Kulkarni provides an explanation along with some important things to consider.

IPA Manager of Plant-Based Systems Phyllis Kulkarni sheds some light on IPA's Upstream Business Unit Benchmarking (UBUB) that is used to benchmark a full suite of offshore and onshore petroleum exploration and production projects.

With the goal of making the site benchmarking process as practical as possible, Independent Project Analysis (IPA) launched a team effort earlier this year to streamline the small project workbooks. IPA Manager of Plant-Based Systems Phyllis Kulkarni discusses the process, shares the results, and asks readers for additional ideas to contribute to the streamlining process.

With a growing number of Western companies starting up new facilities in China, there are many interesting topics to explore. How do these sites perform compared with other sites in China? How should they be staffed? Do these projects follow the standard work process? IPA's PM Forum in Beijing in April 2012 will address all of these important issues and more.

IPA constantly conducts various research studies into small project performance. Here is a list of Plant-Based Systems Manager Phyllis Kulkarni's Top 5 Favorite Research Studies for Small Projects and why she thinks they are so valuable.

A German language version of IPA's FEL Toolbox is now available. Read the article for details on how to update your account to the German version, and for more information about how FEL Toolbox can help your project team self-evaluate the level of definition for your projects.

IPA has developed a new success metric for plant managers to measure their site project performance. Manager of Plant-Based Systems Phyllis Kulkarni explains the criteria for both cost-driven and schedule-driven projects and reveals some of the common reasons for failure.

When making your project management wish list this holiday season, don’t forget to include these three ideas from Phyllis Kulkarni, Manager of Plant-Based Systems for Independent Project Analysis (IPA). Including these three tips for small projects in your plans will result in the best gift of all for your project organization: delivering better projects next year!

Phyllis Kulkarni, Manager of Plant-Based Systems for Independent Project Analysis (IPA), provides a glimpse of upcoming IPA small project research topics (what to do about underruns and how large projects fare under a site project organization) and asks for small project topics that you'd like IPA to investigate.