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we want to avoid that situation. Engineer 1: Sure. But after saying that, if someone has to
analyse every single revision to determine exactly which team needs it, then that takes a lot of
time as well.
Leo: Not if there's a proper procedure in place.
As long as we make sure there’s ...

2
Leo: This project strikes one as pretty complex, in terms of the amount of integration and
overlap between the different design packages.
Engineer 1: Yeah.
Leo: Particularly between mechanical and electrical teams so we have to coordinate that. And
it's obviously a specialist job. It’s beyond my expertise as the overall project manager. So, in
order to make sure that we ...

3
Leo: Thinking about how the separate design groups work together, I don't want to rely too
much on scheduled meetings. We don't want questions and problems piling up, waiting to be
resolved at a meeting in a week's time, or whenever. You all need to be talking to one another on
an ongoing basis.
Engineer 2: I agree with what you're saying.
The trouble is, when you're trying to sort out problems with details on drawings and that kind of
thing, you need to meet face-to-face. And given that we all work in separate offices, it's, you
know, we can phone each other, but...
Engineer 1: Yeah, you still need meetings.
Engineer 2: Especially as there’s so much integration between the different packages, the point
we were talking about before.
Leo: Well, there is a solution to the problem.

d ►4.5 Read Leo summarising the solutions that have been agreed in the meeting. What
has been decided regarding the following points?
1 The decision that the senior engineer in each team must make, regarding drawings
2 The circulation procedure that will be used for each drawing
3 The role of the M&E coordinator in relation to the senior engineers and the project
manager
4 The arrangement that will make informal communication easier

Leo: So, to sum up. As regards design information flow, all preliminary drawings are going to
be shown to the senior engineer in charge of each design team. The senior engineers then say
whether or not their teams need to receive copies of later revisions. If they don’t, they won’t
receive any further revisions. If they do, they'll be issued with every subsequent revision and,
later, revisions of working drawings. To coordinate the interface between mechanical and
electrical design, I'm going to appoint a mechanical and electrical coordinator responsible for
liaising between the senior engineers in the teams, reporting to me. We're locating all three
design teams in a single, open-plan office so when anyone's got a question or a problem, they
can talk to the appropriate person face-to-face. We still have scheduled meetings to discuss
formal issues, but the emphasis will be on ongoing, informal dialogue between the teams.

e In pairs, discuss how the design procedures discussed in the meeting will work in the
following situations.

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