IDEA
← Blog
34MethodFeasibility study · 2 min read

Feasibility study: when it pays off

A feasibility study answers, on a small budget, the questions a large one could fail on: is the goal technically achievable, does it hold up economically, and by which route? It reduces the risk before the expensive decisions are made.

At the start of a project, the room for design is large and little money is committed; with every step, this ratio shifts more and more. Those who create clarity early decide at the point where change is still cheap.

A feasibility study makes sense when three things come together: the technical or economic feasibility is uncertain, the investment involved is high, and the implementation path is still unclear. If this is the case, manageable preliminary work clarifies the decisive questions – before you commit.

The cost of a change increases steeply over the course of a project. Decided early, changes are cheap; decided late, they are expensive.Feasibility studysmall budgethigh riskCost of a changeConceptDevelopmentImplementationOperation
At the start, the design freedom is large and change is cheap. With every step, the cost of a correction rises – not linearly, but steeply. That's why the leverage lies at the front.

Studies covering the entire project lifecycle show: an error identified during the concept phase costs a fraction of what correcting it during implementation or operation would cost. The later an error is discovered, the more decisions and components already depend on it and must be changed as well.

“A feasibility study doesn't buy certainty, but information – and information is cheapest at the start, because nothing has yet been built on top of it."

Research on front-end loading in investment projects shows the same pattern: those who plan cleanly and early measurably reduce costs, construction time and rework later on. A few percent of the project budget invested upfront pays off several times over later.

When it's not worth it

If feasibility is clear and the path is known, you don't need a study – it would only cost time. The purpose of a feasibility study is to reduce uncertainty; where this is absent from the outset, the study yields no additional insight.

We tell you in advance which case applies. Sometimes the most honest answer is: you can skip the study – and we start directly with implementation.

Sources

  1. Haskins, B., Stecklein, J., Dick, B., Moroney, G., Lovell, R., Dabney, J. B. (2004): Error Cost Escalation Through the Project Life Cycle – INCOSE International Symposium (cost-to-fix increases exponentially over the project lifecycle).
  2. Gibson, G. E., Hamilton, M. R. (1994): Analysis of Pre-Project Planning Effort and Success Variables for Capital Facility Projects – Construction Industry Institute (benefits of front-end planning for costs and schedules).

IDEA e.U. · Determined Innovation

Unsure whether your project can be implemented?

The more precisely you describe what you need, the more precisely we can tell you what it costs.

Request a project
Feasibility study: when it pays off | IDEA