Chapter IV

Construction Project Planning and

1 Scheduling
Scheduling
 A construction schedule is a graphic representation
which shows the phasing rate of construction with
the starting and completing dates of each activity
and the sequential relationship among various
operations in a construction project.
Use of scheduling:
 The quantity of work involved, labor, material,
equipment and money required at each stage of
work can be determined by scheduling.
 Preparing Schedule…
2

2) The actual progress of the work can be checked

from time to time by scheduling
3) The project can be carried out in systematic
manner by the use of scheduling

Work-Breakdown Structure (WBS):

 Systematic and logical breakdown of project
into several components is known as WBS.
 Responsibility matrix is created due to WBS.
 Level of WBS
3

(1) Total program

(2) Project
(3) Task (Activity)
(4) Sub-tasks
(5) Work Package
(6) Level of Effort
4
5
 Scheduling Techniques
6

1. Bar Chart
2. Milestone Chart
3. Linked Bar chart
4. Network Techniques
a) CPM
b) PERT
 Gantt Chart/Bar Chart
7

 A Gantt chart is constructed with a horizontal axis

representing the total time span of the project and
a vertical axis representing the tasks that make up
the project.
Steps in Preparing Bar Chart:
1) Identify different activities within the work
2) Estimate time required to complete each activity
3) Develop logical sequence between activities
 Gantt Chart/Bar Chart…
8
 Advantages of Bar chart:
9

1) It is simple to understand
2) It is easy to prepare, consume less resources and
economical
3) It can be used to show progress
Disadvantages /Limitation of Bar chart
1) Physical limit to the size of the bar chart
2) Interrelationship between them cannot be clearly
depicted
3) Updating the entire chart again and again
 Milestone chart
10

 Milestone chart is a modification over the original

Gantt chart (bar chart).
 Milestones are the key events i.e. start or end of
the activity.
 A Chart that graphically depicts key events along a
timescale, usually with triangles representing each
event, is called milestone chart.
 For a building construction, there are various
activities but milestones may be considered as
laying foundation stone, concreting, inauguration etc
 Milestone chart…
11
 Linked Bar chart
12

 One of the main drawbacks of simple bar chart is

that it does not show the interrelationship between
activities.
 Linked bar chart uses the links (arrow) to show the
relationship between activities.
 There are mainly four types of relationship between
activities.
 Linked Bar chart…
13
 Terminologies used in Network
14
Technique
Activity (Task):
 An activity is any identifiable job which requires time,
manpower, material, and other resources to complete.
 Arrow in a network diagram represents activity.

Examples:
1. Excavation of foundation
2. Construction of wall
3. Concreting
4. Wiring and electrification
5. Plastering and paining work
 Relationship between activities:
15

Concurrent or Parallel Activities:

 Those activities which can be performed
simultaneously and independently to each other are
known as concurrent activities. In figure below
activities A and B are parallel.
 Relationship between activities…
16

Serial Activities:
 Those activities which are to be performed one
after the other in succession are known as serial
activities. Serial activities cannot be performed
independently.
 Activity Duration
17

 An activity's duration is the amount of time estimated

for its completion. The time unit for the project can be
minutes, hours, work days, calendar days, weeks or
months.
 The use of the time units expressed should be consistent
throughout the schedule.
Event (Node):
 The beginning or end of the activity is known as Event.

 It represents specific point in time and does not

consume time, manpower, material and other resources.
 Event (Node)…
18

Tail Event,Head Event and Dual Role Event:

 Event (Node)…
19

Dummy activity:
Dummy activity is an imaginary (hypothetical) activity included in a network.

 Since it is not a real activity, it does not consume time, money, manpower,
material and other resources. It is included in a network to maintain the
relationship between activities .

 It is represented by dotted arrow.

 Dummy serves two purposes:
 (1) Grammatical Purpose
20
 (2) Logical Purposes
21

A = Wait delivery of new machine

B = Install new machine
C = Remove existing machine, D = Dispose of existing machine
 Dummy activity…
22

Rules of Drawing Network diagram

1. Flow of network shall be from the left to the right.

2. There must be only single initial node (tail event) as well as

ending node (head event) in a network. Initial node has only
outgoing arrows, whereas ending node has incoming arrows.
23
 Rules of Drawing Network diagram…
24

3) There cannot be any network path looping back to

previously occurred event. Thus network shown in
figure below is incorrect.
 Rules of Drawing Network diagram…
25

4) There shall not be any crisscrossing of arrows. Fig

below shows a network in which two arrows cross each
other which is incorrect.

5) There should be only one arrow for an activity, i.e. number of arrows
should be equal to number of activities.
 Numbering the events(Fulkerson's rule)
26

 Left to right and top to bottom approach

 Number the initial event as 1
27
 Critical Path Method I Critical Path
28
Analysis:
 The path that has the longest duration is called the
critical path and the activities lying on the critical
path are critical activities. It is the critical path that
sets the overall duration of the project.
 Critical Path Method I Critical Path Analysis:
29
 PERT -Program Evaluation and Review
30
Technique
 PERT is used in the completely newly developed
project such as Research and design, new
industries product design.
 PERT system is preferred for those projects in
which correct time determination for various
activities cannot be made.
 PERT uses three time estimates for each activity
with a view to overcome uncertainty in time
estimates.
 PERT …
31

1) Optimistic time estimate (to):

 It is the shortest possible time in which an activity can be
completed under ideal conditions.
 Till arriving at the optimistic time estimate, it is assumed that
everything is favorable in completing the activity in the
shortest possible time.

2) Pessimistic time estimate (tp):

 It is the maximum possible time it would take to complete an
activity under worst conditions.
 In arriving at the pessimistic time, it is assumed that everything
is unfavorable for completing the activity in time and every
possible delay and difficult situation is encountered.
32
PERT…
3) Most likely time estimates (tm):
 It lies between optimistic and pessimistic time
estimates.
 It is the time in which an activity can be completed

under normal conditions.

 In arriving at the most likely time, it is assumed that

conditions are neither favorable nor unfavorable,

but normal.
33
PERT…
Expected time estimate (te):
 PERT assumes that the optimistic time (to) and the
pessimistic time (tp) are equally likely to occur while
the most likely time is four times more likely to occur
than the others
34
PERT…
Eg:
35
PERT…
 There are two measures of variability of possible
activity times and they are:
1) Variance and
2) Standard deviation
 PERT uses the following simplified formula for
arriving at the variance and standard deviation of
activity times.
 Xm 2067,2069,2071,2072,74…
36

Q. Find out the expected time of each engineer

mentioned below. Which engineer will you choose
and why? (Who is more certain in completing the
job ? )
Types
to tm tp
NTC Engineer 5 9 12

Ncell Engineer 4 5 9
37
38
 Q(12) Draw a PERT network for the following data.
Arrive at the critical path and find out the estimated
39
project duration along the critical path
Activity Predecessor Optimistic Time (to) Most Likely time Pessimistic
(tm) time (tp)
A - 4 5 6

B - 4 6 8

C A 3 5 7

D B 1 3 5

E C,D 2 5 8

F C,D 3 4 11

G E 4 5 12

H E 4 4 10
I F,H 5 6 13
40
41
42

 Therefore, critical path is 1-2-4-5-6-7

 Therefore, critical activities are A,C,E,H and I
 Similarly, project completion time is 27 days.
Activity Optimistic Most Likely Pessimistic Expected Time Standard Variance
Time (to) time (tm) time (tp) Deviation

A 4 5 6 5 0.33 0.11
43

B 4 6 8 6 0.67 0.44

C 3 5 7 5 0.67 0.44

D 1 3 5 3 0.34 0.12

E 2 5 8 5 1 1

F 3 4 11 5 1.33 1.77

G 4 5 12 6 1.33 1.77

H 4 4 10 5 1 1

I 5 6 13 7 1.33 1.77
44

So, variance of Te = 0.11 + 0.44 + 1 +1 + 1.77

= 4.32
Standard Deviation of critical path = √Variance
= √4.32
= 2.08
 2.5 Time Cost Trade-Off
45

Project Crashing:
 Spending more money to get something done more quickly
is called crashing .
 The main objective of project crashing is to reduce project
duration.
Time cost tradeoff:
Terminologies used in crashing:
(a) Project cost:
The total sum of the project is the sum of two distinct costs:
(i) Direct cost
(ii) Indirect cost
46

Direct cost:
 Money spent on materials, manpower and machines are
direct cost.
Indirect cost:
 The expenditures which cannot be allotted clearly to
the individual activities of the project, but are assessed
as a whole are called indirect costs.
 The indirect cost includes overhead charges,
administrative and establishment charges, supervision
charges, and penalty etc.
47
48

Time-Cost trade-off:
 The judicious balance between time and cost is
called Time-Cost trade-off.
Definitions of Terms
(a) Normal time
 The time usually allowed for an activity by the
estimator is known as normal time.
 It is the standard time for that activity and is
denoted by (Tn).
49

(b) Crash time

 The minimum possible time in which an activity can be
completed by deploying extra resources is known as
crash time.
 Beyond the crash time the duration of the activity
cannot be reduced or shortened by any amount of
increase in mobilization. It is denoted by (Tc).
(c) Normal cost :
 The direct cost required to complete the activity in the
normal duration is called normal cost and is denoted by
(Cn).
50

Crash cost
 The direct cost corresponding to the crash time of
completing an activity is known as crash cost and is
denoted by (Cc ).
Cost slope:
51

Minimum duration
 The duration obtained after crashing all activities is
known as minimum duration.
Q) 2073 Bhadra Regular,TU
The details of a project are shown below. If the
indirect cost per week is Rs 300, find the optimal
crashed result of the project Network. (6 marks)
52

Activity Immediate Time (Weeks) Cost (Rs)

predecessor
Normal Crash Normal Crash
A - 7 4 1800 2100
B - 9 7 3500 3800
C B 5 4 2500 2625
D A 8 5 4000 4225
E C 9 8 3000 3325
F B 11 11 3000 -
53

Solution:
54

From the network diagram, finding out the critical

path.
Path Duration
A-D 7+8 =15
B-F 9+11 = 20
B-C-E 9+5+9 =23

Here, the path B-C-E is the critical path i.e. longest path.

Direct Project Cost of all activities = ∑ Normal Cost

1800+3500+2500+4000+3000+3000=17800
Indirect Project Cost = Critical duration * Indirect cost per week
= 23*300
= Rs 6900
55

Therefore,
Total Project Cost = Direct Cost+ Indirect Cost
= Rs 17800+ Rs 6900
= Rs 24700
Now, finding the cost slope of all activities.
Activity Difference in cost (∆c Difference in duration (∆t Cost Slope
= Crash cost-Normal Cost) =Normal Duration-Crash =
Duration ∆c/∆t
A 300 3 100
B 300 2 150
C 125 1 125
D 225 3 75
E 325 1 325
F - 0 -
56

 Crash the activity having the lowest cost slope of

critical path.
 Here, the critical path is B-C-E. Activity C has lowest
cost slope among activity B, C and E
 Therefore, crash the activity C by 1 week.
Path Duration
A-D 15
B-F 20
B-C-E 23-1= 22
57

 Extra cost of crashing = 1*125

= Rs 125
 Direct Cost = Rs 17800+ Rs 125
= Rs 17925
 Indirect Cost = Critical duration * Indirect cost per week
= 22*300
= Rs 6600
 Total Cost = Direct Cost+ Indirect Cost
= 17925+6600
= Rs 24525
58

 Here, the critical path is B-C-E . Activity C has been

crashed. Now, lowest cost slope among activity B
and E is activity B.
 Therefore, crash the activity B by 2 weeks.
Path Duration
A-D 15
B-F 20-2= 18
B-C-E 22-2=20

Extra-cost of crashing = 2*150 =Rs 300

Direct Cost = Rs 17925+300 =Rs 18225
Indirect Cost = 20*300 = 6000
Total Cost = Rs 18225+Rs 6000
= Rs 24225
59

 Again the critical path is B-C-E. In this critical path

activity C and B has been crashed. Now, activity E
has to be crashed.
 Therefore, crash the activity E by 1 week
Path Duration
A-D 15
B-F 18
B-C-E 20-1= 19

Extra cost of Crashing = 1*325= Rs 325

Direct Cost = Rs 18225+325 = Rs 18550
Indirect Cost = 19*300 = Rs 5700
Total Cost = Rs 18550+ Rs 5700
= Rs 24250
60

 After crashing the project from 20 weeks to 19

weeks, the total cost of project increases from Rs
24225 to Rs 24250. Therefore, further crashing
beyond 20 weeks increases the cost.
 Hence, the optimum duration of project is 20 weeks
with minimum cost of Rs 24225. The minimum
duration of project is 19 weeks with corresponding
cost of Rs 24250.
61

Q) 2073 Magh TU
Consider the data of a project as shown in table
below
Activity Immediate Time (Weeks) Cost (Rs)
predecessor
Normal Crash Normal Crash
A - 8 5 2000 2300
B - 10 8 4000 4300
C A 6 5 3000 3125
D A 9 6 5000 5225
E B 10 9 2500 2700
F B 13 13 5000 -
G D,E 5 3 1000 1700
62

If the indirect cost per week is Rs 3000, find the

optimal crashed project completion time and
corresponding minimum cost.
Solution:
63

From the network diagram, finding out the critical

path.
Path Duration
A-C 8+6=14
A-D-G 8+9+5=22
B-E-G 10+10+5=25
B-F 10+13=23

Here, the path B-E-G is the critical path i.e. longest path.

Direct Project Cost of all activities = ∑ Normal Cost

2000+4000+3000+5000+2500+5000+1000= 22500
Indirect Project Cost = Critical duration * Indirect cost per week
= 25*3000
= Rs 75000
64

Therefore,
Total Project Cost = Direct Cost+ Indirect Cost
= Rs 22500+75000
= Rs 97500
Now, finding the cost slope of all activities.
Activity Difference in cost (∆c Difference in duration (∆t Cost Slope
= Crash cost-Normal Cost) =Normal Duration-Crash =
Duration ∆c/∆t
A 300 3 100
B 300 2 150
C 125 1 125
D 225 3 75
E 200 1 200
F - 0 -
G 700 2 350
65

 Crash the activity having the lowest cost slope of

critical path.
 Here, the critical path is B-E-G. Activity B has lowest
cost slope among activity B, E and G.
 Therefore, crash the activity B by 2 weeks.
Path Duration
A-C 14
A-D-G 22
B-E-G 25-2=23
B-F 23-2=21
66

 Extra cost of crashing = 2*150

= Rs 300
 Direct Cost = Rs 22500+300
= Rs 22800
 Indirect Cost = Critical duration * Indirect cost per week
= 23*3000
= Rs 69000
 Total Cost = Direct Cost+ Indirect Cost
= 22800+69000
= Rs 91800
67

 Again , the critical path is B-E-G . Since the activity B is

crashed now activity E has lowest cost slope among activity E
and G.
 Therefore, crash the activity E by 1 week.
Path Duration
A-C 14
A-D-G 22
B-E-G 23-1=22
B-F 21

Extra-cost of crashing = 1*200 =Rs 200

Direct Cost = Rs 22800+200= Rs 23000
Indirect Cost = 22*3000= Rs 66000
Total Cost = Rs 23000+Rs 66000
= Rs 89000
68

 Here,the path A-D-G and B-E-G both are critical

path since both the path has the longest duration.
 In this case, crash the common activity.
 Since, activity G is common in both the activities, so
crash the activity G by 2 weeks.
Path Duration
A-C 14
A-D-G 22-2=20
B-E-G 22-2=20
B-F 21
69

 Extra cost of crashing = 2*350

= Rs 700
 Direct Cost = Rs 23000+700
= Rs 23700
 Indirect Cost = Critical duration * Indirect cost per week
= 21*3000
= Rs 63000
 Total Cost = Direct Cost+ Indirect Cost
= 23700+63000
= Rs 86700
70

 Now, the critical path is B-F i.e. longest path.

 Activity B has been crashed already and activity F
does not have cost slope.
 The longest path after the activity B-F is A-D-G and
B-E-G.
 Since activity B,E and G has already been crashed.
So, among activity A and D, activity D has lowest
cost slope.
 Therefore, crash the activity D by 3 weeks.
71

Path Duration
A-C 14
A-D-G 20-3=17
B-E-G 20
B-F 21

Extra Cost Of Crashing = 3*75 =Rs 225

Direct Cost= 23700+225 = Rs 23925
Indirect Cost = 21*3000 = Rs 63000
Total Cost of Project = Direct Cost + Indirect Cost
= 23925+63000
= Rs 86925

Therefore, optimum duration of project is 21 weeks with minimum cost of Rs 86700.