Professor Kit Fai Pun

Publication/source: Industrial Engineering and Management Journal, 54-61, 2026

Snippet: Value is one of the key concepts in project management. The concept of value is predicated on the relationship between the satisfaction of diverse needs and the resources utilised to fulfill these needs. It represents a direct relationship between cost and quality. The fewer the resources used or the greater the satisfaction of needs, the greater the value. Aligned with this is value management (VM) which alludes to creating the best value of products or services on the basis that the function must be sustained. PRMG 6005: Value Engineering and Management is one teaching course offered at Postgraduate Level in the Faculty of Engineering, The University of the West Indies (UWI), Trinidad and Tobago (T&T). This course aims to provide students with the underlying principles and techniques of VM with emphasis on their application to organisations. A UWI’s Campus Research and Publications Fund (CRPF) project was initiated to develop a casebook as a bench/reference text with tools and reading aids/guides for PRMG 6005. This paper starts with a brief review of value concepts and the evolution of the VM discipline. It then elaborates the VM process with a VM framework and job plan, and discusses the enablers versus barriers of VM adoption in organisations. In this paper, a study agenda is elaborated along with the description of major stages of the CRPF project’s execution and discussion of the deliverables.

Publication/source: Industrial Engineering and Management Journal, 2-3, 2026

Description / abstract: On behalf of the Editorial Board, we are writing this message to present Volume 5, Number 1 of the Journal. This issue features six (6) scientific/technical papers.

Publication/source: West Indian Journal of Engineering, 79-88, 2026

Description / abstract: The steelpan is the national instrument and represents a unique confluence of cultural heritage and complex engineering in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T). By harmonising sinking and standardisation through engineering protocols, this project ensures the long-term sustainability of the craft while positioning the steelpan as a scalable, globally competitive, high-quality industrial product of the nation. There is a need for T&T’s steelpan industry for a holistic evolution—one that preserves the artisan’s intent while ensuring technical precision—culminates in 5S (i.e., Steelpan Sinking, Standardisation, Sustainability, and Scaling) domains for national development. The need aligns with the priority research areas set by T&T Research and Development Impact (RDI) Fund at The University of the West Indies (UWI), St. Augustine Campus, to transform a craft-based cultural asset into a value-added, standardised manufacturing industry. This paper explores this to modernise T&T’s steelpan industry by integrating robotics, material science, and data-driven policy for national development. By consolidating desk research findings on sinking process and associated determinants of the steelpan production, a holistic framework is developed. A 5S project is initiated for RDI Fund application which is structured into three (3) integrated modules over a 36-month execution period. This paper presents the research agenda of 5S project that is composed of a three-phase action research methodology, a stakeholder engagement plan, a knowledge sharing and dissemination plan, a risk management plan, and a project implementation and monitoring plan. Several …

Publication/source: West Indian Journal of Engineering, 59-69, 2026

Description / abstract: Manufacturing projects frequently experience schedule overruns despite extensive planning and the availability of productivity-related knowledge. Evidence shows that low project productivity (PP) — at both the activity and workforce levels — is closely associated with delays; however, existing models are predominantly predictive or retrospective and offer limited real-time value during execution. This study aims to develop and validate a real-time PP model designed to improve schedule performance in manufacturing environments. The research pursues four objectives. First, it articulates and applies a pragmatist mixed methods (MM) framework suited to PP research, providing the methodological foundation for identifying factors that influence PP. Second, building on this foundation, it identifies five PP success factors that shape schedule reliability during execution. Third, it constructs a metrics-based PP model comprising three indicators for daily real-time productivity measurement. Fourth, it validates the model through an industrial case study in Trinidad and Tobago, using 26 days of activity-level, workforce-level, and schedule performance data. The findings show that real-time PP measurement strengthens daily work planning, supports proactive decision- making, and mitigates emerging delays, leading to closer alignment with schedule baselines. This study contributes a validated PP model, demonstrates the value of pragmatist MM for bridging the theory–practice divide in project studies, and provides practitioners with a practical tool for improving schedule performance during execution.

Publication/source: Industrial Engineering and Management Journal, 79-87, 2025

Description / abstract: The performance of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) manufacturers has since 2019 been significantly affected because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020, manufacturers operated at only 61.9% of their capacity, their economic activity decreased, gross domestic products (GDP) was affected and unemployment increased. The pandemic has exposed the vulnerability of T&T manufacturers to adversities/disturbances. It is imperative that these organisations be re-established to be more resilient. This paper aims to 1) review the concepts of resilient organisations (RO), 2) identify the factors affecting RO development, and 3) explore the resilient organisation models advocated by scholars, researchers and practitioners in the literature. A literature search was conducted using ProQuest Central and Emerald Insight for the period 2001 to 2021. Most RO are multidimensional i.e., one dimension is resilience phases namely, anticipation (before the adversity), adjusting (during the adversity), and adaptation (after the adversity); another dimension is resilient levels in terms of individual (or employee) resilience, team resilience, and supply chain resilience and a final dimension of social perspective composed of cognitive, contextual and behavioural. Factors affecting the RO operations and performance have been identified from the literature. A conceptual RO model for T&T manufacturers is proposed which incorporates the concepts of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA), ISO standards and digitalisation. It is recommended that this model be tested/empirically checked/validated by local manufacturers for reducing their vulnerabilities to …