Chapter 3: Technical Analysis

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• Technical analysis seek out to
decide whether the fundamentals for
the successful commissioning of the
project has been considered and
reasonably good options have been
made with respect to location, size,
process etc.
• It is done continually when a project
is being examined and formulated. 2
The broad purpose of technical
analysis is:

•To ensure that the project is technically

feasible in the sense that all the inputs
required to set up the project are available.

•To facilitate the most optimal formulation

of the project in terms of technology, size,
location, machinery and equipment, etc
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3.1. Production Program and Plant capacity
3.1.1 Production Program
 Define the levels of output to be
achieved during specified period
 Should indicate the basic products, by-
products, and wastes during the process.
 It should:
 be directly related to the specific sales forecasts.
 consider losses of production within the production
plant site, in storage, transportation and by warranty
service.
 take into account level of technology absorption
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 The production program (capacity utilization)
changes in time during project life.

 Initially (for the first one or two years of

operation) small capacity utilization is often
achieved.
 market is not ready to acquire large amounts
of new product
 the technological difficulties obstruct the full
– capacity operation of the equipment. 5
 The determinants of a production program
during the initial production years vary
considerably from project to project.
 Single – product – continuous process manufacture:
Production problems are more critical
 Multiple – product – continuous process production:
Both production and sales problems
 Batch/job order production: Sales problems are more
critical
 Assembly/mass manufacture: Sales problems in relation
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to price are critical

3.1.2 Plant Capacity
 Plant capacity is the upper limit or
ceiling on the load that an operating unit
can handle.
 It is the maximum rate of output of a
process or system
 Accounting, finance, marketing,
operations, purchasing, and human
resources all need capacity information
to make decisions

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Importance of Capacity Decisions
 Impacts ability to meet future demands
 Affects operating costs
 Major determinant of initial costs
 Involves long-term commitment
 Affects competitiveness
 Affects ease of management
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Factors determining capacity decision:
 Technological Requirement: Minimum
Economic size determined by the technological
factor

 Input Constraints: constraints on the availability

of certain inputs.

 Investment Cost: with no serious input

constraint, cost per unit of capacity decreases
as the plant capacity increases.
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 Market Conditions:
 If very strong, higher capacity is preferable.
 If very uncertain, start with small capacity

 Resources of the Firm: Managerial and

financial
 Government Policy: minimum economic
capacity
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Types of plant capacity:
1. Design capacity (Nominal Maximum Capacity)
 Maximum obtainable output under ideal conditions
 Can only be achieved with unusual working conditions.

2. Effective capacity (Feasible Normal Capacity)

 Maximum capacity given product mix, scheduling
difficulties, and other doses of reality (lunch
breaks, machine maintenance).
 The output to be achieved under efficient operating
condition.

 Actual output
 Rate of output actually achieved--cannot exceed
effective capacity. This is effective capacity minus
unforeseen problems, such as machine breakdown,
union problems, and so on.

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 Actual output
Efficiency =
Effective capacity

Actual output
Utilization =
Design capacity

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Capacity and Scale
 Economies of scale: cost advantages
exploited by expanding the scale of production
in the long run. It leads to reduction in long run
average costs over a range of output.
 Spreading fixed costs
 Reducing labor costs
 Cutting costs of purchased materials
 Finding process advantages

 Diseconomies of scale: rising long run

average costs
 Complexity
 Loss of focus
 Inefficiencies
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 3.2 Raw material and Supplies study
 Materials and supplies are the major
inputs (ingredients) of any project though
the degree of consumption may differ from
project to project.
 Closer relationship between the definition
of input requirements and other aspects of
the project formulation:
 definition of plant capacity
 location & site analysis
 selection of technology and equipment
 economic viability
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 The objective is:
 to identify and quantify the project material
inputs and
 to assess the feasibility of a sustained
supply of these inputs all through the effective
life span of the project.
 Basic issues to be raised:
 What types of materials are needed?
 Where are the sources of these materials?
 How are they obtained?
 What are the costs of these materials?
 What are environmental impacts of using
these materials? 16
 Classification of Raw Materials and Supplies
1. Unprocessed and semi-processed
raw materials
Includes the following types of items:
i. Agricultural products: cereals, oil seeds, flowers,
sugar canes and sugar beets, etc
ii. Livestock and forest products: meat, milk, fur,
leather/skin, horn, teeth, etc of animals (both
domestic and wild), timber, gums, etc.
iii. Marine products: fishes, the water itself, plants in
the water , salt, etc.
iv. Mineral products: both metallic (gold, phosphate,
iron, etc) & nonmetallic (oil, gas, coal, clay, etc)

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2. Processed industrial materials and
components
Such inputs can be generally classified under:
i. Base metals: copper, aluminum, etc
ii. Semi processed materials: sheets, tubes, round bars,
etc
iii. Manufactured parts, components and sub-
assemblies: electronic equipments, seal frame,
engine, etc

3. Auxiliary materials & factory supplies

Do not become integral part of finished product
 Chemical additives, packaging materials, containers,
crates, paints, varnishes, oils, grease, cleaning
materials, etc 18
4. Utilities
 Electricity, water, fuel, steam, etc
 A detailed assessment of the utilities required can only be
made after analysis and selection of location, technology
and plant capacity.
5. Spare parts
 Numerous small items & major components and parts of
machinery or equipment.
6. Supplies for social and external needs
 Not directly related to project operation
 e.g. for a project in a remote area:
 For employees & their families: food staffs, medicine, clothing,
education materials
 For the local community: road & environmental cleaning materials

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Specification of Requirements
 In specifying the type, quality and quantity
materials required, the following factors
are considered:
 Technical factors- such as technology and
production process, type of machinery and
equipment, production capacity and program etc
 Commercial and financial factors- such as
market demand regarding products quality,
competition for materials etc
 Socio-economic factors- such as skill of work
force, environmental policies and regulations,
culture of the people etc.

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3.3. Locations and Site Selection
 Location and site are often used
synonymously but must be distinguished.
 Location refers to a fairly broad area like
a city, an industrial zone or a coastal
area.
 Site refers to a specific piece of land
where the project would be set up.
 The selections of location & site may be
made separately or together.
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Location Analysis
 Location choice is made from a wide geographic
area within which several alternative sites may have
to be considered.
 Qualitative as well as quantitative considerations are
to be taken into account
 Factors determining choice of location:
 Proximity to R.M. & market
 Infrastructures
 Government policies
 Environmental impact
 Labor situation
 Climatic conditions & ecological requirements
 General living condition
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Factors determining choice of location
1. Proximity to R.M. & Market
 The optimal location is the one with
minimum total costs of products sold
 Total costs products sold = R.M transp. Cost +
production costs + distribution costs + allowance
for socio-economic & environmental factors
i) for resource-based projects: the one close to
source of R.M
ii) for a project based on imported R.M: the one close
to a port
iii) for projects producing perishable & bulky products:
the one close to the center of consumption

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Factors determining choice of location
2. Infrastructures:
 Availability, cost, and reliability
 i)Technical Infrastructure: Water, electricity, insurance,
banks, academic institutions etc
 ii)Transport and Communication: Transport facilities
such as by water, rail, air, or road available for the inflow of
various inputs and for the marketing of products & good
communication facilities including telex ,telephone, internet, etc

3. Government policies
 Identification of industrial zones

 Incentives to encourage investments

 Fiscal and legal regulations

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 4. Environmental impact
 Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is an
assessment which aims at ensuring that
development projects are environmentally sound
(friendly).
 To see the positive & negative impacts of the
project
 i) Negative impacts

 Throwing gaseous emissions

 Disposal of wastes to river

 Causing noise, heat, etc

o ii) Positive impacts: additional benefits to the society

o Subsidies or prizes may be given by government

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5. Labor situation
 The availability of skilled, semiskilled and unskilled
labor
 Labor rates (past trends, current, and projected)
 Labor strikes (frequency and severity)
 Labor productivity
6. Climatic conditions and ecological
requirements
i) Climatic Conditions: temperature, humidity, sun
shine, rainfall, wind, snow, dust, earthquake, etc.
 There may be direct impact on the project costs of such
factors as dehumidification, air conditioning, refrigeration, or
special drainage.
 Climatic conditions can also determine the success of a
project in an indirect way. E.g. Skilled labor force is reluctant
to work in areas with extreme climatic conditions. 26
Factors determining choice of location
 ii) Ecological requirements
 Some projects may not have a negative environmental
impact themselves. But they may be sensitive to such
effects.
 An agro industrial project clearly depends on the use of raw
materials that have not been degraded by contaminated
water and soil.
 Management and labor may be reluctant to work in a
factory located in a polluted area with health risks.
7. General living conditions
 Cost of living
 Housing
 Facilities (education, recreation, transport, and Medicare,
etc)
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Factor Rating
General approach to evaluating locations that
includes both qualitative and quantitative
inputs
Procedure:
1. Identify factors relevant for rating
2. Assign weights to each factor
3. Decide on common scale for all factors (0 to 100)
4. Score each location
5. Compute weighted score (wt x score) for each
location
6. Sum up the weighted scores and get composite score
7. Select the location with highest composite score
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  Clothing chain is considering two different
locations for a new retail outlet. They have
identified the four factors listed in the
following table as the basis for evaluation,
and have as shown on the left assigned
weights
Factor Weight Sululta Bishoftu Weighted score
Sululta Bishoftu

Proximity to raw materials 0.40 60 40 24 16

Community growth potential 0.25 80 100 20 25
Availability of public transportation 0.15 80 100 12 15
Labor cost 0.20 60 40 12 8

Composite score 68 64 30
 Choice of Site
 Once the location or alternative locations
are decided upon, a specific project site or
alternative sites should be defined.
 The feasibility study should analyze and
assess alternative sites on the basis of key
aspects and site specific requirements.
 Qualitative as well as quantitative
considerations are to be taken into account
like that of location selection.

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 Factors determining choice of site
1. Ecological conditions of sites
 soil type, site hazards, history of natural calamities etc
2. Environmental impacts
 the nature of the project in relation to restrictions, standards
and guide lines of the government concerning noise, air
pollution, effects if it is close to residential areas etc.
3. Socio–economic conditions
 restrictions, incentives, requirements
4. Costs of land
 cost of land differs from site to site depending on of
course its proximity to main streets and other transport
facilities, major markets, customers etc

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5.Infrastructure
6. Site preparation and development costs
 some areas are more appropriate for construction
without much preparations and development efforts
while other areas may need several works to make
them ready for use
7. Strategy of the projects such as future
expansion
8. Degree of “friction”
 how well the site is linked to its environment.
 traffic flow inward or outward (goods, services, or
people)
9.Cost of utility lines extension
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10. Number of sides of a land parcel
 A multi-sided parcel is more suitable for retail
 One-side parcel is more suitable for residential

11. Nature of goods (products) produced

(perishables or not)

12. Distance to seaport (import and export)

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3.4. Technology and Engineering
3.4.1 Technology Analysis
 An integral part of engineering at the
feasibility stage is
 The selection of an appropriate technology, and
 Planning of the acquisition and absorption of this
technology and the corresponding know – how.
 Technology = Technical process + Know-how
 Technical process = Hardware + software
 Know-how = Knowledge of how to use them
 Two or more technologies may be available
 Define technology required for a particular project through the evaluation of all
alternatives and selecting the most appropriate.
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Technology Acquisition & Transfer
A. Industrial Property Rights:
 Where a desired technology is patented or
covered by registered trademarks, it is necessary
to secure industrial rights from their holders.
 patents, trade marks, copyright and proprietary technology
 un-patented know – how that is available from only a limited
number of sources

 The acquisition of technology in such cases

involves negotiations and contractual
arrangements for technology licensing and
transfer, apart from purchase of equipment for
particular technological processes.

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B. Means of Technology acquisition
1. Technology licensing
 Gives the licensee the right to use patented
technology and get related know – how on a
mutually agreed basis.
 Efforts should be made to acquire only the
essential components of the technology
package offered by the licenser
 May be appropriate when
 There is continuous technology improvement
 The firm uses only some elements of the technology
package

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2. Purchase of Technology
 Obtain the full ownership of technology through
outright purchase
 May be appropriate when
 There is no possibility of significant improvement in technology
in the foreseeable future
 There is hardly any need for technological support from the
seller of technology

3. Joint Venture Arrangement

 The supplier of technology may participate technically
as well as financially
 May be appropriate when
 Continuing technical assistance & supply of inputs from technology
supplier are necessary

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3.4.2. Machinery & Equipment Selection

 The selection of equipment and

technology are interdependent
 Technology choice & equipment selection
may be made together or independently
 Types of equipments are:
 Plant or process equipment
 Mechanical equipments
 Electrical equipments
 Instruments
 Control devices
 Internal transportation equipments
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Factors in selection of equipments
 Plant capacity
 Production technology
 Infrastructural constraints
 The length of time required for training
 Investment outlay required
 The availability of foreign exchange for imported
equipments
 Maintenance requirements and the availability of
maintenance facilities
 Government policies such as import controls
 The degree of automation required
 The availability of spare parts
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Factors in selection of suppliers of
equipments
 The desired quality of machinery
 The level of technological sophistication
 The reputation of the suppliers
 The expected delivery schedules
 The preferred payment term
 The required performance guarantee.

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3.4.3. Structure and Civil Works
 May be divided into three categories:
1. Site preparation and development
 Grading & leveling of site
 Removal of existing structures
 Relocation of existing pipelines, cables, roads, power lines
 Draining & removal of standing water
 Extension of utility lines

2. Buildings and structures

 Factory buildings
 Ancillary buildings (stores, laboratories, maintenance
centers)
 Administrative buildings
 Staff welfare buildings (cafeteria, medical centers)
 Residential buildings
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 3. Outdoor works
 Supply & distribution of utilities
 Handling & treatment of emissions
 Transport & traffic arrangements
 Outdoor lighting
 Landscaping
 Enclosure & supervision (fencing, gates,
doors, etc)

 The plans and estimates for civil engineering

works should be detailed for costs estimates
and implementation scheduling.
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The End

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