NICHE Project Overview
The National Full-Scale Testing Infrastructure for Community Hardening in Extreme Wind, Surge, and Wave Events (NICHE) is a $12.8 million NSF-funded Mid-scale Research Infrastructure (MsRI-1) project led by Florida International University’s Extreme Events Institute. NICHE will support the design of a cutting-edge, full-scale testing facility capable of simulating Category 6 hurricane conditions, including 200 mph winds and storm surge impacts. As part of NSF’s Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI), NICHE aims to advance research in climate-resilient infrastructure and reduce risks to life and property from extreme weather events.
The Challenges
At the start of the project, NICHE faced several foundational project management challenges. There was no full-time project manager or project controls support in place, and the project lacked a detailed schedule with defined dependencies and a critical path. The effort involved multiple universities, most of which were accustomed to traditional NSF grant-based research rather than Mid-scale Research Infrastructure (MsRI-1) projects, which require more formalized reporting. These institutions were unfamiliar with Earned Value Management (EVM) practices and did not have the accounting systems or infrastructure necessary to support detailed tracking of costs by work package or to generate performance metrics such as cost variance or the Cost Performance Index (CPI).
Based on this shared understanding and in alignment with NSF guidance and the Research Infrastructure Guide, the project team, in coordination with the NSF, initially agreed that a full Earned Value Management System (EVMS) would not be required for this design phase. Instead, a tailored approach to progress reporting was deemed sufficient.
Approximately 9 months into the execution phase of the project the NSF assembled a review panel charged to review both the technical objectives and the programmatic aspects of the project. The panel, composed of reviewers familiar with EVM practices, recommended that NICHE develop a detailed IPS down to the fourth level of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and implement a tailored Earned Value Management System (EVMS). Though EVMS is not a strict requirement for Mid-scale RI awards, it is widely regarded as a best practice for integrating scope, schedule, and cost into a unified performance measurement system.
Fortunately, the project had recently onboarded a Project Manager with strong EVM and scheduling experience and had retained consultants with NSF project expertise. This team led the rapid implementation of a scaled EVMS that leveraged the project’s existing time-phased budget, accounting system data, and new IPS.
The Solution
With the project manager and Dash360 engaged, NICHE responded quickly, and within a few months, the team developed an Integrated Project Schedule (IPS) complete with a critical path and resource assignments down to the fourth level of the WBS. NICHE in conjunction implemented the Dash360 Application Software Platform by converting all the cost estimate information from Excel to establish the Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB). With the PMB in place, actuals costs from the university accounting system were imported into Dash360, schedule status was collected, and earned value reports were generated.
Results
Today, the NICHE project holds monthly Control Account Manager (CAM) meetings with the Project Manager to review cost, schedule, risks and technical issues. With the support of consultants from Dash360 and the software, NICHE now accurately tracks schedule performance, properly measures cost variance and CPI, and provides transparent, high-quality reporting to the NSF. NICHE’s proactive management approach has strengthened stakeholder confidence and positioned the project for successful long-term execution.
Dash360 now provides project controls support to NICHE implementing change request, updating the schedule, generating earned value reports and to provide information to the project for data driven decision making and communicate with stakeholders.
Why work with Dash360
Dash360 specializes in the design, development, and implementation of project management controls systems, including schedule development, earned value management, risk management, and configuration management services. In addition to the PMCS Consulting Services, Dash360 features a software platform for the creation of cost estimates, budgeting, earned value management, schedule status collection and risk management. Dash360 application platform is ideally suited for NSF projects, like NICHE, where effective project management and transparent reporting are critical to success.
