Terrapin Construction Supply Inc has 46 stores along the East Coast and has decided to expand its operations in the underserved international market. The first international store will be opened in Quebec City in 10 months. A high-level project cost estimate is required for labor, material, and overheads for the new facility. Each TCS store has five major product groups, i.e., plumbing and electrical supplies, hardware and tools, building materials, seasonal, garden and yard items; and paint, flooring, and wall covering.
The construction and opening of a new store can be broken down into design, construction, furniture fixtures and equipment and inventory, operations and technology. The design phase requires licenses and permits, main store garden center and landscape and parking lot. Construction permit should be submitted to the city and follow-ups should be made to ensure that there are no missing documents. Ensure that you receive the approved document. The design review with the stakeholders of the main store garden center which should be able to answer all RFIs to ensure that the design is completed and the RFI is cleared. Ensure that the landscape and packing lot adapt the design while responding all RFIS and ensure that the models are compiled, and RFIs cleared.
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The construction of the main store and garden center should start with the foundation, followed by the steel and structure, then by the roof and the mechanical. Electrical and architectural will then follow. The packing and garage will involve the foundation and groundwork, structure and curve and lastly civil work and landscape. Fixtures that relate to the operation and maintenance of the store should be installed, and the entire work should be completed. All furniture at the offices and sales office should be inventoried. Furniture for the store and office are should also be installed. Determine the inventory and layout of the equipment. Install the required utility for the power equipment and lastly the store equipment (Meredith, 2012; Rad, 2002).
On inventory, meet the movers, supervise them, unpack and file damage claims if there is any. On operations, set up electrical and water accounts, establish Wi-Fi and cable TV accounts and organize for any other utilities. On technology introduce self to neighbors, plant flowers, install dog fence and install security system (Meredith, 2012; Rad, 2002).
Cost estimate for the construction of the new store
| Item No. | Description | Lump Sum Cost |
| 1 | Design | $6500 |
| 2 | Site preparation | $858000 |
| 3 | Permit costs | $4800 |
| 4 | Plumbing, electrical, etc | $13000 |
| 5 | Furniture and Fixtures | $12500 |
| 6 | Equipment, operations, and technology | $9500 |
| 7 | Human resource recruitment and section | $5600 |
| 8 | HR training and deployment | $3750 |
| 9 | Marketing activities | $7800 |
| Total estimated project cost | 921450 |
Assumptions in the preparation of the cost estimate
It is assumed that the project will be completed within the stipulated time. Therefore the budget is expected to change as progress is made to construct the facility. The above costs are based on industry best practices and the floor area of the facility. The estimates are available in the premises of well-established companies that deal with such facilities. The estimates are expected to change as the project news completion. Activities that are expected to take longer will have higher chances of discrepancies compared to operations which are to be completed soon. Similarly, issues like permits are not likely to change shortly (Meredith, 2012; Rad, 2002).
Human resource Plan
Human resources management is an essential element in the opening of a new store in Quebec City Canada. The HRM plan is a tool that will assist in the management of the project’s human resource activities in the new market. The plan includes the roles and responsibilities of the team, staffing management activities including the acquisition of resources, the desired timelines for the skill set and resources, the training that is required to develop the necessary skill, conducting performance reviews and reward systems.
Background
Terrapin Construction Supply Inc is an established retail store development company. The company operates in the home improvement and building supply market where its biggest competitors include Lowe's, Home Depot, Ace and True Value. The company is based in Frederick Maryland and currently has 46 stores along the East Coast. TCT intends to expand its operations into the international market by opening its first store in Quebec City in ten months. A typical shop carries a minimum of 40,000 different products from over 3000 vendors across the globe. The company needs to hire and train employees for the new facility. Each company store has a store manager and an assistant, a bookkeeper, information systems manager for the five categories of products, customer service employees, cashiers, receiving and stocking employees and maintenance and janitorial employees.
Roles and responsibilities
The store manager is responsible for the operations of the entire store. He or she coordinates the activities of the shop floor while ensuring that they maintain contact with the staff and customers of the company. They also provide that the customers receive the required services while monitoring the financial performance of the store. The assistance supports the store manager on their roles and responsibilities. A bookkeeper develops systems that account for the financial transactions of the store maintains the transactional record of the store and reconciles the accounts of TCS to ensure their accuracy. The information system manager is responsible for the operations of the information system in the entire store. They are responsible for the information needs of the five groups of products. The customer service employees assist the customers with purchases on the store floor. The cashiers receive payments from the customers. The receiving and stocking employees receive stock from the suppliers and distribute it to the appropriate places where customers can easily access them. The maintenance and janitorial employees are responsible for the cleanliness and repairs of the store. They also maintain the gardens of the store. Different employees must possess the required skills for them to be competent. A thorough recruitment process will be used to acquire employees with the appropriate qualifications (Bernardin, 2013).
Project organization charts
The following responsible, accountable, consult, inform (RACI) table shows the relationship between the team members and project tasks. The project manager will approve any proposed changes to the projects. The change control process will determine any changes that will be effected to the project.
| Store manager | Assistant | Book Keeper | IS Manager | Customer service | Cashier | R& S Employees | M & J Employees | |
| Operations | R | R | A | A | C | A | C | I |
| Coordination | R | R | A | A | C | A | C | I |
| Records | A | A | R | C | C | C | C | I |
| IS | A | A | C | R | C | C | C | I |
| Customer service | A | A | C | C | R | C | I | |
| Cash management | A | A | C | C | I | R | I | I |
| Stock management | A | A | C | C | C | I | R | I |
| Maintenance | A | A | I | I | C | I | I | R |
Key:
R – Responsible for the completion of the work
A – Accountable for ensuring that the task is complete or signed off
C – Consulted before any decisions are made
I – Informed when a decision has been made
Staffing Management
The staff for the new store in Quebec City will be acquired once the construction has been completed in ten months. The store manager and assistant will be obtained from the company. Individuals who have demonstrated exemplary performance will be deployed for the two positions. The rest of the employees will also be derived from locals in Quebec City. Recruitment and selection will be conducted two months before the new store is opened. Training will be held one month before the store opens its doors to the customers of the city. The new store manager will review the entire team before the facility is opened. The manager will communicate the expected work of each employee and continuously conduct the performance evaluation of all employees to determine their effectiveness in achieving their assignments (Bernardin, 2013).
References
Bernardin, H. J. (2013). Human resource management: an experiential approach . New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Cooke, H., Tate, K., & Cooke, H. (2011). Project management . New York: McGraw-Hill.
Meredith, J. R. (2012). Project Management: A Managerial Approach, Eighth Edition . John Wiley & Sons.
Rad, P. (2002). Project estimating and cost management . Management Concepts.
