PROJECT MANAGEMENT

OutlineWhat is a project?Project ManagementObjectives and tradeoffsPlanning and Control in ProjectsScheduling MethodsConstant-Time NetworksPERT and CPM MethodsUse of Project Concepts

What is a Project?A project is a series of related jobs directed towards some major output and requiring a significant period of time to perform.Distinguishing characteristics of projectsExamples New product introduction Installation of Equipment

What is project management?Project management can be defined as planning, directing, and controlling resources (i.e., people, equipment, material) to meet the technical, cost and time constraints of the project.

Examples

Objectives and tradeoffsThree objectives:-Costs- Sum of direct and allocated costsSchedule Project milestones and completion dates are set at the outset. Meet them or trade-off between costsPerformance the performance characteristics of the product or service. Trade-off may also be required here.

Objectives and Tradeoffs

Project Management Activities and Decisions

PlanningIdentify the project customerEstablish the end product or serviceSet project objectivesEstimate total resources and time requiredDecide on the form of project organizationMake key personnel appointmentsDefine major tasks requiredEstablish a budget

SchedulingDevelop a detailed work breakdown structureEstimate time required for each taskSequence the task in the proper orderDevelop a start/stop time for each taskDevelop a detailed budget for each taskAssign people to tasks

ControlMonitor actual time, cost, and performanceCompare planned to actual figuresDetermine whether corrective action is neededEvaluate alternative corrective actionsTake appropriate corrective action

Scheduling MethodsTwo main types of scheduling methods are in use. They are generally classified as1.Gantt charts2.Network Methodsa.CPMb.PERT

Gantt Chart Project Example (Figure 1)Week

Network Methods-1CPM Critical Path MethodDeveloped by E.I. Duponds & Co as a way to schedule the startup and shutdown of major plants.Plant activities were repeated often so activity times were fairly well known.CPM uses time-cost trade-off.Four estimates for each activity are used: normal time, normal cost, crash time and crash cost

Network Methods-2PERT-Program Evaluation and Review TechniqueFirst developed in the mid 1950s for the Polaris submarine project. It was used to schedule 3000 subcontractors, suppliers and agencies.It is credited with bringing that project ahead of schedule by up to two years.

PERTPERT requires three time estimates for each activity:optimistic time estimatemost likely time estimatepessimistic time estimateThese estimates recognize the uncertainty in activity time for real life situations

PERTActivity times are converted to expected time of completion and variance for each activity

Network Project Chart (Figure 2)Start410DigbasementPourfootingLay blockfoundationInstall mainfloorErectframeFinish below-grade workSecure outsidesheathingInstall roof

boardsInstall windows12356789Finishrough-inframe

Constant-Time NetworksActivity times assumed to be constantDummy activities Duration time of 0 and are sometimes needed to indicate precedence relationships only in drawing networksNotations used in calculating start and finish times:ES(a) =Early Start of activity aEF(a) =Early Finish of activity aLS(a) =Late Start of activity aLF(a) =Late Finish of activity a

Network Diagram (Figure 3)124334561EventActivity2

Dummy Activity Situations (Figure 4a)FHGEa. Activities F and G havethe same predecessor (E)and the same successor (H)

Dummy Activity Situations (Figure 4b)EABCDb. Activity A and B have a commonpredecessor (E), but they also have differentpredecessors (C and D)

Dummy Activity Situations (Figure 4c)CDIKJc. Activities C and D have acommon successor (K), but also havedifferent successors (I and J)

Calculating ES, EF, LS, LF, and Completion TimeES (a) = 0 for the starting activityEF (a) = ES (a) + t (a)*ES (a) = max [EF (all predecessors of a)]Project completion time = max [EF(all ending activities)]* t (a) denotes the duration of activity aLF (a) = min [LS (all successors of a)]LS (a) = LF - t(a)*Forward Pass:Backward pass:

Forward and Backward PassesInformation from computations on the networks are used for several managerial purposes.1.critical path identification2.slack times calculation3.Determination of final completion date of project

CRTTICAL PATHThe critical path is the longest time path through the project networkIt determines project completion Activities on the critical path are carefully monitored

Slack TimesTotal Slack Time = LS (a) - ES (a) = LF (a)- EF (a) total slack is the amount of time that an activity duration can be increased without delaying the project completion.activities on the critical path will have a slack of zero

Free Slack Time = min [ES (all successors of a)] - EF (a)free slack is the amount of time an activity time can be increased without delaying the start of the very next activity.

Activity Start and Finish Times (Figure 5)1243[ES, EF][LS, LF][0, 3] 3[0, 3][3, 8] 5[3, 8][5, 7] 2[6, 8][0, 4] 4[2, 6][3, 5] 2[4, 6]

Use of Project Management ConceptsScheduling is only part of a complete approach to project managementTradeoffs between sophistication and cost of methodsChoice between PERT and CPMProject management software

Project management softwareMicrosoft ProjectPrimavera Systems Inc.Sure Trak 2.0

Scitor Corps Project Scheduler 7Kidasa Software, Inc.Milestones e.t.c.