MST-Department of Management Science

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Browsing MST-Department of Management Science by Author "Apiyo, Christopher Owiya"

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    Project Internal Administration and Performance of Overhaul Projects at Kenya Electricity Generating Company
    (Kenyatta University, 2024-11) Apiyo, Christopher Owiya
    The overall result of an overhaul project in power stations is better electricity productivity. The severity of downtime can disrupt the entire facility. The total cost of downtime, emergency repairs, and repeat jobs in Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC is staggering. The company is witnessing an increase in revenue leaks, close to 8% of its expected revenue, attributed to numerous equipment breakdowns. The inadequate generation also affects the reliability of the national grid and, in turn, the economy for sectors and industries dependent on electricity. Stringent power purchase agreements (PPA) impose penalties when power plants fail to generate at their declared capacity due to machine breakdowns. Usually, overhaul projects aim to minimize failures, increase their availability, and ensure the machine's useful life is attained. An in-depth study of the project's internal administration was conducted to understand its effect on overhaul projects performance. Priority was bestowed to Kenya Electricity Generating Company PLC, Kenya, having 24 operational power plants and a total installed capacity of 1904MW electrical power. This is equivalent to 63% of the country's total installed capacity. Four distinct aims directed the research. These were to investigate the influence of planning, inventory, overhaul resource management and team execution management on the performance of overhaul projects. The study anchored on competence theory as the leading theory as it allowed for a focus on aligning the specific skill sets and capabilities of project managers and team members with the needs of the overhaul project. A literature review summary, project internal administration and overhaul project performance conceptual framework have been presented. The study's methodology was based on a descriptive survey, with a target population of 31 overhaul projects implemented in fourteen power stations spread across Kenya Electricity Generating Company's six operational areas in Kenya- Kipevu, Western, Olkaria and Eburru, Ngong, Seven Forks and Upper Tana; and 112 overhaul projects leads at the designated power stations including power generation assistant managers, engineers, technicians, and procurement and finance officers. The sampling was done by the use of stratified sampling procedure which obtained a sample size of 87 overhaul project leads. The data collection mode was via open and closed-ended questionnaires. Before commencing the actual data collection, the researcher piloted this study on eight respondents who shared similar characteristics with the primary research. The content validity was used to evaluate whether the data collection instrument gave the correct measurement. Cronbach alpha, yielded reliability values of above 0.7 for all the constructs. Data analysis followed using multiple regression to assess the degree of consensus among the participants on the study's specific objectives. The findings showed that planning, inventory management, overhaul resource management and team execution positively influenced performance. Notably, inventory management had the strongest influence (β=0.425), while resource management had a moderate effect (β=0.170). The overall coefficient of determination was 0.590, indicating that 59% of the variation in project performance could be explained by internal management factors. Based on these findings, the study recommends improving planning processes, streamlining inventory management, enhancing resource allocation methods, and providing targeted training to project teams to optimize project outcomes.