We will show you DICTUM using your own case – and get back to you within one working day.
±10 %
Cost accuracy from FEL 2
3
Industry benchmark databases
Early phase
Assess, Select, Define
3 dimensions
Cost, time, resources
What DICTUM is
Knowing early what the project will cost
DICTUM is our own AI-supported benchmarking and forecasting tool for capital projects. It forecasts the cost, resource requirements and full duration of a capital project – calculated specifically for the project and the site.
What sets it apart is the data: DICTUM consolidates three large industry benchmark databases and evaluates them with AI algorithms. This gives it an accuracy that extrapolating historical trends cannot offer. The name says it all – a dictum is a concise, reliable statement.
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conventional estimate
with DICTUM
Vertical axis: the possible deviation from actual cost; horizontal axis: the project phase. Both start equally uncertain – DICTUM becomes reliable earlier. Values for illustration only.
The most far-reaching decisions are made in Select and Define – where schedule, budget and resources are fixed. That is exactly where DICTUM comes in.
What DICTUM answers
Three questions every capital project asks
01CostReliable estimates with around ±10% accuracy as early as FEL 2 – consolidated from three benchmark databases rather than individual experience values.
02TimeRealistic project durations that take account of site, contractual framework and market conditions – not blanket average durations.
03ResourcesForecasts of staffing requirements and mobilisation curves, depending on project type (greenfield, brownfield, heavy revamp), turnaround link and contractual framework.
Because every forecast is calculated for the specific conditions, the resulting figures stand up in front of the board, investors and banks – traceable and justifiable. They then become a verifiable budget: Cost Estimating & Budget Review.
Typical results
What you have in hand at the end
Visualisation is central to DICTUM: the results are prepared so that decision-makers can put them into context immediately.
Cost curves & benchmark comparison
Your project in relation to comparable projects – with and without a cost target.
Resource histograms
Staffing requirements over the project duration, including mobilisation curves.
CAPEX phasing plans
How the investment is spread over time – the basis for financing and approval.
Example types of result, not real project data.
DICTUM in practice
What early clarity achieves
01
Chemical plant in Central Europe
The budget could be fixed around six months earlier and more accurately than the industry average – result: green light from the board.
02
Petrochemical revamp
The resource analysis revealed an understaffed owner's team. Reinforcement came early, and costly delays were avoided.
03
Greenfield energy project
The CAPEX phasing showed how investment peaks had to be shifted. Financing was secured and the project started smoothly.
Anonymised projects – names and figures stay with the client.
Context
Forecast & Deliver
A good forecast does not yet make a good project. The most common break occurs exactly where the estimate ends and execution begins: different people, different tools, different metrics – and later no one can say whether the plan held.
DICTUM stands for the forecast part. The forecasts flow into execution without a break: the same metrics, the same people, with flexible capacity through Project Controls on demand if needed. That is how a good estimate becomes a project that actually holds to it.
ForecastDICTUM – cost, time and resources before capital is committed.
DecisionA budget that stands up in front of the board, investors and banks.
DeliverExecution with the same metrics – nothing lost at handover.
Three tools developed in-house, each with a different focus: the TAR-Check assesses the entire turnaround organisation, the SMI the quality of a specific schedule, and DICTUM forecasts cost, time and resources in the early phase of a project. Available individually or in combination.
TAR-Check
What is assessed?
The entire turnaround organisation
Basis of assessment
16 analysis elements, benchmarking against industry & best practice
Result in
2 weeks (3 days on site)
Answers the question
“How well set up is our TAR organisation?”
Ideal for
Assessment of the TAR organisation – at any time; before a turnaround, ahead of the readiness gates
DICTUM delivers cost estimates with an accuracy of around ±10% as early as FEL 2 – considerably earlier and more precise than extrapolating historical trends can achieve. It is based on the consolidation of three large industry benchmark databases, analysed with AI algorithms.
From which project phase does DICTUM make sense?
As early as possible. DICTUM shows its value in the early phase – Assess, Select and Define – when budgets, schedules and resources still rest on assumptions. That is exactly where it replaces assumptions with reliable figures and safeguards the investment decision.
What results does DICTUM deliver?
Cost curves and benchmark comparisons, resource histograms with mobilisation curves, and CAPEX phase plans. Visualisation is central: DICTUM makes schedule, cost and resource profiles visible before they become a problem.
How does DICTUM take the specifics of our project into account?
Every forecast is calculated for the specific boundary conditions – project type (greenfield, brownfield, heavy revamp), link to a turnaround, contract framework, location and market conditions. The result is project- and site-specific values instead of blanket averages.
How does DICTUM connect with execution?
DICTUM covers the forecast part of the “Forecast & Deliver” principle: it delivers the reliable figures. For delivery, it hands over without a break to ep-cm’s services – such as Cost Control and Project Scheduling, or flexibly through Project Controls on demand – which carry the same key figures forward.
What does DICTUM cost?
DICTUM is commissioned per project. Billing is by the hour, by day rates or at a fixed price – we work out together which model fits. The effort depends on the project type, scope and the analyses you want. Because the tool is deliberately lean, the effort stays manageable – often lower than clients expect. In the free initial call we show DICTUM using your case; afterwards you receive a binding quotation.
Our glossary explains technical terms from the shutdown and project business – 59 entries, each linked to the relevant service.
Reliable figures from the start?
Get in touch – we will show DICTUM using your case and get back to you within one working day.