1. Explain how this project fits with the mission and strategy of the organization.
2. What project artifacts does the project manager have in the initial phase of the project based on the case study in this chapter, and how would they be used in developing a quality management plan?
3. What type of data analysis methodologies should the project manager design into the quality management plan, and how would they be used?
4. Which components of the triple constraints would the project manager be most concerned with during the development of both prototypes required for this project?
5. Based on the case study in this chapter, establish quality metrics that would be used throughout the project lifecycle.
6. Develop a comprehensive quality management plan for this project

CASE STUDY: Lewton Telecom – Engineering Prototype Project
Lewton Telecom is a midsized company with an aggressive growth strategy that develops telecom products for the cellular phone industry based in the United States. The company mission is to provide cutting-edge affordable products for the telecom industry that can have immediate application. This company has two locations one is the headquarters where corporate management, accounting, and human resources, as well as all engineering and development, reside, and a second small production facility. After a review of a customer-detailed specification for a new cellular phone base station amplifier, it has been determined that the project will be approved for the development of a prototype amplifier.

A project manager has been identified at Lewton Telecom and has been given the task of developing a project management plan to manage the goal of creating the prototype amplifier. The project manager starts with a comprehensive and detailed specification provided by the customer, and a brief overview statement of work that was developed by the initial evaluation team at Lewton Telecom. As this project manager is one of the senior project managers at Lewton Telecom, she has managed several projects of a very similar type and, based on her experience, would be the best selection for meeting the objectives of this project. Lewton Telecom has several design engineers seasoned in power amplifier development, as well as an extensive staff of both manufacturing and process engineers who have seen these types of projects to high-volume production. There are also research scientists with PhDs specific to this type of product who will be tasked with the development of new technologies required to meet various customer demands.

As Lewton Telecom has accomplished these types of prototypes several times in the past, the project manager sees little challenge with items that are unknown in developing the overall project plan. The challenge will be to meet the customer’s price expectations in volume production, as this may influence how the prototype is created and evaluated. The project manager and project team have decided to create the original prototype as usual with US-based manufactured products to verify form fit and function for product approval. Lewton Telecom has most of their products in high-volume production using their own manufacturing center and Asia in order to control prices and be competitive with other US-based manufacturers. The project manager and project team have determined that, in addition to the first prototype, a second prototype should be made using the Asia-based supplier materials to confirm quality, as well as form fit and function. The project manager will be challenged with maintaining the quality of the second prototype to ensure the Asia-based suppliers can provide materials that would meet the quality expectations of the customer. The typical products used in this base station amplifier include: a machined aluminum housing typical of a US-based machine shop rather than a cast aluminum housing that would be used in high-volume production, circuit boards, RF cables, and ribbon electrical cables.

The project manager now has an added challenge of a second prototype that will need to be made and qualified with Asia-based materials to confirm not only the product conformance to all customer specifications, but also meet price targets in volume production. This creates an added challenge of time as well as project cost, and a very high sensitivity to product quality to ensure the sustainability of this product for the organization and the continued good relations between the customer and Lewton Telecom.