From unitary to distributed objectives

Abstract This article focuses on an important trend in the major-project field. A previous emphasis on unitary types is shifting to encompass also distributed forms. These latter types may indicate a potentially reinvigorated and new role for major projects in worldwide economic and social development. Examples include the Channel Tunnel connecting England and France, a proposed high-speed rail network for northern Europe, the EC ESPRIT, BRITE, RACE, and EUREKA programs the US Strategic Defense Initiative, the Human Genome Initiative, and various MITI-sponsored programs in Japan, such as the Fifth Generation Project. Key attributes of distributed major projects, such as the locus of support, missions and objectives, and managerial requirements, are often dispersed and not precisely centered on an easily pinpointed institution. Such elusive and generalized objectives as enhanced competitiveness, regional revitalization, technological innovation, and building state-of-the-art telecommunication/information systems are often aims. Distributed endeavors tend to be more knowledge-driven. Even in such traditional areas as physical infrastructure and aerospace, knowledge content accounts for a growing proportion of the overall value of large-scale undertakings. Critical resources, such as financing, technical and managerial expertise, and political support, must be sought globally. In such a distributed condition, Major Project Simultaneity — the concurrent application of highly diverse elements — is often required.