Introduction

Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG is a company based in Oman that is engaged in the construction industry. The company is operational alongside its subsidiaries in construction, training of personnel and hiring of equipment. The company’s significant areas of focus include civil and mechanical construction, road construction, electrical, plumbing, public health engineering, the hiring of construction equipment, training of personnel to use tractors, vehicles and other equipment among other activities. The company has three divisions namely Oil and Gas, Roads, Bridges and Structures and Civil and Utilities. The company has expanded to other countries that are in the Gulf Cooperation Council and India. The company has several subsidiaries including Al Khalij Heavy Equipment and Engineering LLC, Aspire Projects & Services LLC, Galfar Engineering and Contracting India Pvt Limited and Galfar Training Institute LLC.

Question 1

Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must ensure that they come up with a strategy by which they are going to check on quality and control it. Since the company is working in a sector that requires quality, it would be as important for the company to focus on it as it would focus on other important aspects. Since operation management is a task that requires enough effort and dedication in matters of quality assurance, the company should develop a framework by which all their works and structures can be measured against (Lines et al., 2015).  Creating the position of a quality assurance manager who would work for hand in hand with the project manager would reduce the inefficiencies that would arise. In a bid to maintain its competitiveness and relevance in the construction industry Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must ensure that quality becomes one of their areas of primary focus. Reviewing their products and their policies on matters of quality assurance is a great step towards creating a company that is consistent in quality improves not only the competitive advantage but also enhances the brand image of the company and how the customers perceive it (Lines et al., 2015).  Lastly, the nature of the environment which the company operates in must have quality, and this is not compromisable. Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must, therefore, ensure that quality control is deeply entrenched in its culture and operations management.

Process and capacity design strategies are important in a company of this nature. To be able to balance the output and support all the production goals that are set the company must come up with an elaborate process and capacity design management strategy that will work across all divisions or rather be consistent with all divisions (Lines et al., 2015).  Since the company has numerous divisions with each division having its own specific needs, it is of paramount importance to understand how the process and capacity design would affect the whole operations management department. Strong design strategies support all production goals including technology and resources, and this should be the case of Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG. Creating value stream maps for the company is important as it would help determine what processes are necessary to the entire operations management and how their running can be made efficient (Lines et al., 2015). The overall goal is to ensure that no department is left behind or that no poor department performance is affecting the rest of the departments, and therefore in regards to this, process and capacity design must be given the top priority and focus. Over the last few years, the company has been focusing on this important process in operations management, and it has contributed significantly to its expansion over time. Maintaining this steadiness will however require a balanced approach that cannot be overwhelmed by changes that arise when the company expands or gets into completely new markets. Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG through their outreach unit should ensure that they are way ahead in matters of process capacity and design as this is the core activity of the company.

Scheduling resources is a crucial process and production of operations management. Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must at  times consider how people and production resources are scheduled as this might hamper the production process. According to the managing director of the company, unavailability of enough resources requires scheduling so as availability does (Lines et al., 2015).  It is only important to understand when to omit what resources and in the right way. Operations and project management most important goals are in ensuring that resources including human power do not delay the activities of the processes of the organization. Delivering projects at the stipulated time and effectively and efficiently will mean asking questions on what is needed, in what state is it needed and what other resources are needed to work with it. Throughout the whole industry and the departments at Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG, scheduling takes the largest part as it is the only gateway to ensuring that operational activities are not affected in a negative way(Bakar et al., 2011).  Understanding the minimum resources required by the company to be able to handle the pressure that comes with the delivery of orders is vital and important in this case. To maintain its position in the industry and beyond, Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must initiate a system by which they can use to always check on whether they are in the most appropriate situation to handle the demands and requirements of customers and the potential ones.

Question 2a

Table 1

Based on the table it is evident that in regards to the four V’s, Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG is better placed to compete and become a global leader as compared to The Oman Construction Company.

Question 2b

Improving operational performance is the ultimate goals of the management of any company. Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG case is not as unique as optimising; this is the only way to ensure that quality, reliability, and value are part and parcel of the company. Several ways and approaches can be used to improve the performance of a company in terms of its operations (Bakar et al., 2011). The first prerequisite step is to ensure that employees are engaged in the right way. Engaging employees ensure that there is a strong understanding, trust, and reliability among the employees. Second, leveraging high impact leadership practices among the employees and the entire team is important in strengthening the core of the company.

Achieving the goals set by the organization will be influenced highly by how the organization sets this up. Identifying and removing internal roadblocks or matters that slow the progress of the company is not only relevant for the company but it is also a practice that can deliver high-end results (Bakar et al., 2011). Aligning the metrics of the company in relation to the resources they have, their customer base and the level of competition in the industry will in a significant way improve the operational performance of the company in a great way. Focusing and using training and development of the staff and the employees strategically increases synergy that ensures that employees are top notch and that they contribute positively to all the goals set by the organization. Keeping the focus on the business strategy and how its achievement would lead to operational efficiency is a great way to go for the company (Lines et al., 2015). Building consistent and customer-centric customer intimacy at all levels of the business is a strategy that is usually adopted, and over time it has borne fruits for the companies who use it.

Conclusion

Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG must become relevant in the construction industry by ensuring that they create a culture of reliability and continue producing quality products. Based on an analysis of their operations management, the company’s main areas of focus should be in quality management and scheduling as they are the most important and impactful to the entire organization. Delivering projects that can be still used in coming years is the greatest achievement that a construction company can have, and this is the case of Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG. Lastly, Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG should consider adding more products and services into its offerings as this will enable them to get into new markets and regions with ease and simplicity. True to its philosophy, the company must thrive.

Appendix A

Table 1 on the comparison of Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG and The Oman Construction Company

References

Bakar, A. H. B. A., Ali, K. B., & Onyeizu, E. (2011). Total quality management practices in large construction companies: A case of Oman. World Applied Sciences Journal, 15(2), 285-296.

Lines, B. C., Sullivan, K. T., Smithwick, J. B., & Mischung, J. (2015). Overcoming resistance to change in engineering and construction: Change management factors for owner organizations. International Journal of Project Management, 33(5), 1170-1179.