RT-MLS-01

Project teams in the manufacturing and life sciences sector must contend with significant uncertainty. Fluctuating market demand and evolving manufacturing technologies can have substantial cost and time-to-market implications for the development of new facilities. Research Team MLS-01 (RT-MLS-01) aimed to address this situation by to creating a structured approach for developing flexible, long lead facilities that project teams can operate without full knowledge of the facility requirements or, potentially, the product manufacturing process.

RT-MLS-01 examined the current state of flexible facility development by conducting a literature survey, undertaking an in-depth review of 15 case study projects, and interviewing members of CII’s Manufacturing and Life Sciences Sector Committee (MLS). The team then identified decision points within the feasibility and conceptual design phases of the capital project development process, where the strategic consideration of flexibility will have the greatest impact. For each decision point, the researchers developed, piloted, and summarized a unique implementation tool. Together, these tools form the Manufacturing Facility Flexibility Decision Support Suite, a resource that provides an objective, fact-based means of managing and adapting to project uncertainty.

The Manufacturing Facility Flexibility Decision Support Suite offers the following benefits to users developing a new flexible facility:

• It identifies which types of uncertainty to expect and consider in the design.
• It provides a quantitative approach to evaluating the costs vs. the benefits of different levels of flexibility.
• It allows the project team to evaluate options and move forward quickly, reducing time to market.
• It results in a facility that does not become a limiting factor due to changes in product, process, or demand: before, during, or after construction.