Ever since joining L&T as a GET in 2012, Sutanu Biswas has executed multiple projects across India, UAE, Oman, and Egypt. “Although I started my journey at the Tata Steel project in Jamshedpur, the excitement of every new project is unparalleled,” he shares passionately, and therefore after his successful stint at the Timely Delivery Award–winning Etihad Rail Freight Facilities Project, he is eagerly looking forward to implementing his learnings at the Hafeet Rail Project in Oman, his next.
As Lead for systems interface, Sutanu identifies interface management with the systems contractor as a key reason for faster delivery, who had to complete the engineering and interface inputs for the team to design and construct the facility buildings and other infrastructure. “We proactively engaged in technical discussions defining the interfaces, negotiating provisions, and recording them in signed documents to ensure that the systems contractor’s integration works did not delay engineering completion,” he points out.
Insightfully, Sutanu mentions that it is important to consider the completeness of a package being delivered to the customer, be it engineering, procurement, construction or even commissioning. “All of these should fit into the overall project solutions from the operational and functional perspective to meet the customer’s needs,” he emphasizes. Sutanu mentions that the implementation of the Electronic Document Management System by the customer eased record keeping and accessibility for the team located across different geographies and helped the project in timely documentation and closure. When contractors faced bankruptcy at the height of the pandemic, the team addressed the problem either by deploying additional reinforcement resources or paying suppliers directly to ensure material deliveries.
He is appreciative of the collaborative atmosphere in the MENA segments, about the responsibilities entrusted on them by the senior management and their ‘push’ to deliver. “My Project Director, Mr. Barath Kumar U, has always pushed me to take up new challenges and guided by example while our Procurement Manager, Mr. Vinod Choudhary, showed me how to stay organized and manage time when managing multiple roles and assignments.”
Hailing from Chakdaha in Nadia, West Bengal, Sutanu is married to Shrestha Purakait, who is on maternity break. They have recently been blessed with a son, Satwik. Reading books was once his passion, delivering his projects timely has now taken precedence. Their family holiday in Switzerland in 2023 is a memory that Sutanu cherishes. “It was something I only imagined as a child,” he says wistfully as he signs off. “More than the beauty of the land itself, it was my parents’ happiness that filled my heart.”
Suneel Sivapooja is extremely satisfied with his tenure of 16+ years with L&T that he joined as a PGET in 2008 for the wide exposure he has enjoyed from Design Lead to Project Manager. “The Etihad Rail 2F2 project was my first execution experience as Project Manager for the Ghweifat & Ruwais Freight Handling Facilities,” he shares excitedly. “I joined L&T with the EDRC – BMH team and later shifted to the BU for business development and tendering. I was also involved with the MENA tendering teams to submit tenders for the EGA – Concrete works, LSAW, Ma’aden – MMGP, and Etihad Freight Facilities projects.”
Knowing the milestones of the project, involving stakeholders and factoring adequate timeframes for approvals are, according to Suneel, some of the contributory factors for his project winning L&T Construction’s Timely Delivery Award. “We must provision time for the delivery of long lead items and ensure the availability of all the engineering deliverables & the resources required to meet the timelines. Of course, two other important factors are the geographic location of the project and the available local resources,” he adds, nodding.
The remote location of his project site situated at the UAE–Saudi Arabia border was perhaps the project team’s biggest hurdle. “On one hand, it was challenging to mobilize teams, material and resources from Abu Dhabi and Dubai,” he apprises, “while, on the other, we had to meet stringent delivery timelines that called for meticulous planning of design deliverables, manpower, machinery and material.” During the planning stage, the pandemic was a huge issue and, right through the execution stage, frequent sandstorms threatened to disrupt progress.
With the batching plant located 150 km away from the project site, concrete delivery was crucial. “We took special approvals for the concrete mix design with an initial setting time of 7 hours, arranging to have it delivered at 6 am since getting night permits were both difficult and expensive,” notes Suneel. In any case, concreting was not advisable during the daytime when temperatures soared to 40°C–50°C. “We planned for our teams to reach and leave early to meet our planned weekly targets.” Managing the client and the client’s manager were critical for approvals from the authorities. Suneel is convinced that they succeeded because of their teamwork, acknowledging the support of his seniors and team. “We used to regularly discuss about alternative approaches to reduce construction time and project cost.”
Hailing from Hyderabad, Telangana, Suneel’s better half is Swapna, a homemaker, and their family is complete with their two sons, Haneesh and Sathvik. Reading and playing chess with his kids are what brings him joy.
“Joining L&T as a GET was my most memorable day and thereafter, throughout my dynamic and enriching journey, I have enjoyed autonomy to make site decisions, supported and guided by my seniors, that have been instrumental for my professional development,” shares a charged Ashish Kumar, who was part of the Timely Delivery award-winning team at the Etihad Rail Freight facilities project. “When working towards timely project delivery, the most crucial aspect is effective time management,” he points out, “which involves creating a detailed project plan outlining each phase of the project, setting realistic deadlines, and regularly tracking progress to stay on schedule.” He feels that it is equally important to proactively address potential roadblocks to ensure timely completion.
As Testing and Commissioning Manager, Ashish was responsible at the Etihad Rail project for meeting all the contractual requirements of testing and commissioning, including the preparation and approval of various tests, and ultimately handing over the system to the client. “Additionally, I coordinated with the consultants Jacobs and Egis and the client to address their requirements and secure necessary approvals,” he adds for good measure.
Some of the team’s challenges during execution, included the disparate geographical locations of the sites, spread across five different locations in the UAE. “Each location fell under the jurisdiction of different authorities, such as ADDC for Abu Dhabi, DEWA for Dubai, and FEWA for Ras Al Khaimah,” he grimaces, “and meeting their varied requirements was tough and complex.” He is delighted that the project team’s effectiveness in interfacing with a whole host of agencies was critical to their timely delivery.
Apart from deploying Primavera P6, Microsoft Project, and Dynamic Resource Scheduler (DRS) for resource allocation, identifying potential risks, and determining critical paths, Ashish mentions using E-Tap for power system analysis that provided comprehensive insights about the electrical systems. “For complex electrical design and drafting, I relied on AutoCAD to ensure precision and accuracy.”
Truly grateful for his Project Director, Barath Kumar’s invaluable mentorship and guidance in project coordination, planning, client management, and relations, Ashish acknowledges that Barath’s leadership has contributed to his professional growth. “I owe my expertise in Electrical and Instrumentation execution to Mr. Chandrashekhar Chakraborty, E&I Head, who has played a pivotal role in grooming me into the professional I am today,” he says, appreciating his entire team too for their unwavering support and collaboration.
On his personal side, Ashish hails from the district of Nawada in Bihar, is married to Versha, a homemaker, and the love of their lives is their daughter, Avisha. “I love to listen to music and play cricket and badminton especially over weekends,” he smiles.
He has just completed his 3rd project in his 12+ years with L&T, the award-winning Etihad Rail Freight Facilities project, but Karthick Raja is convinced that performance is what makes all the difference at an individual level. “As a team, were able to deliver the project in time, and my contribution was through my dedication, sincerity and involvement,” he smiles.
In terms of ‘pushing’ progress, Karthick points out that design coordination and procuring the client’s approval on the shop drawings in time contributed big time to their timely performance. “We had a robust subcontractors management plan, meticulously tracking site progress by matching plan versus actual, on a daily basis,” he nods assertively, emphasizing that by closely monitoring project schedule and regularly updating progress kept everyone on the same page that also helped in their timely delivery.
One of the team’s major challenges at the Etihad Rail project was that it began when the pandemic was in full swing and Karthick recalls with pain the many issues that impacted their professional and personal lives during those times. “The whole-hearted support of the project team kept us going, while the digital platform of MS Teams ensured that our communication channels were always open,” he highlights, mentioning the EIP Platform and tracking schedule on Primavera as their main digital tools.
“I am very happy with the L&T management for appreciating employees based on their performances,” says Karthick energetically, adding that all L&T employees treat each other and behave as if they all belong to a big family. He began his association with the Company in August 2012, at the Raw Material Handling System for Bhushan Steel Limited in Odisha as Mechanical Engineer. After a 4-year stint, he moved to the Petcoke Evacuation Project for Indian Oil Corporation Limited, also in Odisha, that ended in February 2020 and the very next month he started work at the Etihad Rail project in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
A native of Odaikkal, in Tamil Nadu’s Ramanathapuram district, Karthick is married to Nithya, a homemaker, and the apple of their eyes is their son, Madesh Pranav. “I love playing cricket and watching TV,” he laughs, flagging off their last visit to Kodaikanal with family in January 2025 as his life’s happiest experience.
