Planning & Scheduling

(PERT/CPM)
PLANNING
• Planning can be defined as influencing the future by making decisions based on missions,
needs, and objectives.
• It is a fundamental and challenging activity in the management and execution of
construction projects.
• It is the process of stating goals and determining the most effective way of reaching them.

Construction Planning

It involves the choice of technology, the definition of work tasks, the estimation of the required
resources and durations for individual tasks, and the identification of any interactions among the
different work tasks. A good construction plan is the basis for developing the budget and the
schedule for work.
Direct Cost - Construction costs that are specifically allocable to construction contracts
are typically referred to as direct costs. Common direct costs are often made up of
materials, direct labor and subcontractor costs. There is little ambiguity with these costs,
and they are typically easy to apply or assign to a specific construction contract.
Indirect Cost - construction costs that are not specifically allocable to construction
contracts.

Project Planning Process

The process involves several steps:
1. Setting objectives
 2. Gathering information
3. Determining feasible alternative plans
4. Choosing the best alternative
5. Communicating the plan
6. Implementing the plan
7. Adjusting the plan to meet new conditions as they arise, and
8. Reviewing the effectiveness of the plan against attainment of objectives

Advantages of Planning
• Preparing a clear scope definition minimizes the potential for overlooking an aspect
critical to success;
• If undertaken as a team effort, it permits various viewpoints and ideas to be expressed;
• The resultant plan, if well documented, provides a means of communication between
the participants;
• The plan provides a baseline for control during the execution phase; and
• Post-completion reviews greatly

SCHEDULING
• Scheduling is the process that converts the project work plan into a road map, that if
followed, will assure timely project completion
• Scheduling is one of the tools used for monitoring and controlling the projects to ensure
objectives of cost, quality and time are met.
• Schedules provide the baseline against which progress is measured.
• Time control is usually achieved by preparing and using schedules to make the most
efficient use of available time.
• Scheduling process forces people to quantify their effort in discrete terms and to place
the activities in proper relationship to each other.
• Planning and scheduling functions are usually performed iteratively in order to
accomplish all required tasks within the specified time frames.

Benefits of Scheduling
• Provides a basis for management of the work, improve communications and facilitates
co-ordination.
• Project schedule gives the user a baseline to monitor and control the work.
• Schedule may be used as a basis for payment applications supporting work completed.
• Scheduling provides a way of contributing input during project execution concerning
means, methods, techniques, sequences or other conditions affecting the plan’s
outcome.
 • Schedule provides a baseline for measurement and a means for collecting and recording
progress

PROJECT SCHEDULING AND CONTROL TECHNIQUES

➢ Bar Chart (Gantt Chart) Method

➢ Critical Path Method (CPM)
➢ Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)

Bar Chart (Gantt Chart) Method

• The bar chart is primarily meant to control only time elements of a program or project.
• Simple to read.
• The plan, schedule and progress of the project can be depicted graphically on a single
chart.

Critical Path Method (CPM)

HISTORY
o E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (1957) for construction of new chemical plant and
maintenance shut-down
o James Kelly and Morgan Walker.
o Deterministic task times
o Activity-on-node network construction

ABOUT CPM
• CPM is mainly used in projects to determine critical as well as non-critical tasks that will
help in preventing conflicts.
• The Critical Path Method or CPM has been used in many industries starting from
defence, construction, software, aerospace, etc.
• It is a deterministic model
• It is a statistical algorithm which has a certain start and end time for a project
ADVANTAGES
• Provides an outline for long term coordination and planning of a project
• Recognizes critical activities
• Easy to plan, schedule and control project
• It improves productivity
• Manages the resource needed

DISADVANTAGES
• For beginners it’s difficult to understand
• Sometimes, to structure CPM is too time-consuming
• It cannot control and form the schedule of a person involved in the project
• Allocation of resources cannot be monitored properly

3 Phases of PERT/CPM
1. Planning
2. Scheduling
3. Control – Monitor

2 TYPES OF NETWORK DIAGRAM

• Activity on Node (AON): is a project network, where each activity is represented by a
node. Nodes represent activities, and arrows show precedence relationships
 • Activity on Arrow (AOA): is a project network, where each activity is represented by an
arrow and nodes are events for points in time.

NODE
WHERE:
A – Activity
t – Activity Time A ES EF
ES – Earliest Start Time
EF – Earliest Finish Time t LS LF
LS – Latest/Least Start Time
LF – Latest/Least Finish Time

EXAMPLE (CPM)
Consider the following data for a project:
Activity Activity Time (Weeks) Immediate Predecessor(s)
A 4 –
B 5 A
C 4 A
D 4 B
E 1 B
F 6 B,C
G 3 D,E
H 2 F
I 5 F
J 7 G,H,I
a) Draw a network diagram.

b) Calculate the critical path for this project.

The Critical Path is: A → B → F → I → J

c) How much slack is in each of the activities G, H, and I?

ACTIVITY G: SLACK = 4 ACTIVITY H: SLACK = 3 ACTIVITY I: SLACK = 0
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
HISTORY
• PERT was developed primarily to simplify the planning and scheduling of large and
complex projects. It was developed for the U.S. Navy Special Projects Office in 1958 by
Booz Allen Hamilton under the sponsorship of the U.S. Navy. PERT stood for Program
Evaluation Research Task, but was later renamed in 1959.
• While both PERT and Critical Path Method came into existence at about the same time,
the two methodologies were actually developed independently of one another.
• This project model was the first of its kind, a revival for scientific management, founded
by Frederick Taylor and later refined by Henry Ford. Morgan R. Walker of DuPont and
James E. Kelley Jr. of Remington Rand’s critical path method was invented at roughly the
same time as PERT.

ABOUT PERT
• The PERT Method (or Project Evaluation and Review Technique) is one of the most
commonly used scheduling techniques used to track and coordinate complex tasks for
the completion of a project.
• It is similar to the Critical Path Method (CPM), in that It helps to analyze the project work
schedule by focusing on each task and calculating the minimum time required to
complete the project.
• It incorporates uncertainty, making it possible to schedule a project while not knowing
precisely the details and durations of all the activities.

ADVANTAGES
1. Forces the management to plan carefully and study how the various parts fit into the
whole project.
2. Allows the business managers to predict time and cost of the project in advance.
3. Suggests areas for increasing efficiency and reducing cost.

LIMITATIONS
1. In PERT, it is assumed that all the activities involved in the project are known in advance.
In projects like research and development (R and D), it is not possible to list out all the
activities in advance.
2. The assumption that a project can be sub-divided into a set of predictable and
independent, activities may not hold true always.
3. PERT emphasizes only on time and not the costs.
4. PERT is based on time estimates and there may be error in estimating time.
5. For active control of a project, PERT requires frequent updating and revising of
calculations. It is an expansive and time-consuming exercise, which requires highly trained
personnel.
METHODOLOGIES
• The project is broken down into different activities systematically
• Activities are arranged in logical sequence
• The network diagram is drawn
• Events and activities are numbered in the network diagram
• Standard deviation and variance for each activity is calculated
• Slack time is calculated
• Critical paths are identified and marked on the network diagram
• Length of critical path or the total project duration is identified
PERT SUMMARY
• In real life, projects will not always be executed according to plan. Risks, unexpected
events, uncertainty, and subjective estimates are significant reasons for deviations, and
so the PERT Method is helpful for estimating the project completion time in case of these
uncertainties, by being able to organize the sequence of tasks and activities logically and
efficiently; visually represent the flow of events: and provide a detailed and thorough
analysis of the project as a whole.

PREPARED BY: GROUP 2 (BSCE-4A)

GROUP MEMBERS:
PEREZ, GRACE E.
PALMENCO, IVRAHIM A.
PESONILA, NICHOLAS L.