Primavera Manual - Part 4

Lab 4 – Updating Data Dates and Rescheduling Updating is the process of reporting actual progress achieved on the job and modifying schedule elements, primarily those not yet in progress. Updates are done at regular intervals, based on the type and duration of the project, usually every month. Most times the submittal and approval of the schedule is tied to progress payments for the work. Therefore, updating is a major scheduling activity and may indeed take longer than the initial schedule preparation when all update work is combined. Data Dates and Rescheduling Updating: Dates, Constraints, Logs, and Resources

Lab 4 – Updating 4.1 Data Dates and Rescheduling

Updating is the process of reporting actual progress achieved on the job and modifying schedule elements, primarily those not yet in

progress Updates are done at regular intervals, based on the type and duration of the project, usually every month Most times the submittal and approval of the schedule is tied to progress payments for the

work Therefore, updating is a major scheduling activity and may

indeed take longer than the initial schedule preparation when all

update work is combined.

One of the first exercises is to integrate the update information into the network diagram This is recommended so that changes can be easily seen In the field reports are frequently prepared for field

superintendents or foremen to complete noting the actual start and actual finish or remaining duration of those activities which should be updated during the current work period Data is collected finally on what is known as the DATA DATE Information about activities prior to the data date is KNOWN; information about those after the data date

is guessed.

In order to demonstrate this principle, use the network from the

leveling exercise leaving it unleveled To un-level a project that is currently leveled, just reschedule it using F9.

Practice 4.1

1 Change the project start date to today’s date and be sure that it is on a 5 day calendar To do so, you need to first go to the “OPEN PROJECT” screen

2 Press F9 or select TOOLS, SCHEDULE to reschedule your project Remember

to change you data date to 15 NOV 98

3 Print out a network diagram (Pure Logic Diagram with early dates and float

as a minimum) for the project in question

4 Print out a calendar for this project

5 Save this project as a TARGET for later comparison

6 Save these items for later submittal

Click on the OVERVIEW button and you will see the PROJECT

OVERVIEW screen below

Now you can change the project start date Keep clicking on OK as you back out to open your leveling project done in LAB3.

Inputting Actual Dates and Remaining durations

Look at the circled areas on the data entry screen above Note that the remaining duration is merely input directly into the RD box shown

If you enter an actual finish date, the remaining duration will

automatically change to zero To put in actual start and finish dates, click the left mouse button when the mouse is pointing to the box beside either the ES (early start) or EF (early finish) This will allow to

AS (actual start) for example to equal the ES, or you may input the revised date.

How to Input Constraints

Use the CONSTR button on the lower menu

Early constraints like the SES can be accessed here.

Recording Log Entries

Using the LOG button on the bottom of the screen will bring up this window Use the empty lines to record information about pertinent occurrences relevant to this activity You will then have a historical record of events.

By clicking the mouse here, you will then be allowed to check start

or finish and the appropriate date.

Use this for late finishes in the same way

as shown for SES.

Updating Budgetary Information

Bring up the RES screen by clicking on that button at the bottom of the screen Enter the Actual this period or Actual to date and this screen will be updated Be sure to indicate if this amount is different than that estimated or budgeted If the actual is the same as the

budgeted, entering an actual finish will automatically enter the

budgeted amount as actual.

Here the MH was updated Note that the Units per day go to zero in the process This happens automatically Also note the Variance; this will appear in the Earned Value report.

4.2 Updating: Dates, Constraints, Logs, and Resources

Begin by accessing the data Use the network diagram and determine what activities are or should have been in progress or completed by the data date You can do this by drawing a vertical line through the diagram representing the date in question.

The Data Date for this project is December 10, 1998.

Next look at the actual dates and remaining durations given by the field report on page 56 Incorporate this information into the diagram Note that some items have different dates than the early dates

previously calculated Notice that other have no information provided When no information is provided and it should have been according to the schedule, contact the field personnel to be sure that no mistakes were made For this exercise and all in class work assume that no progress was made on these activities.

The field reports the following changes:

50

Also note if any budgetary information is changed For example was the actual cost greater than or less than the estimated cost? For this project we will use the MANHOUR resource.

Lastly, look at the scheduling changes that were requested

Incorporate these into the diagram Notice that new activities may be added, relationships changed, and other cosmetic changes made.

In addition, the following items must be changed

1 New activity, 45 (Z): original duration of 3 days; its predecessor is Activity 90 (FS0); successor Activity 170 (SS 1); it has a budgeted resource of 240 MH

2 Activity 160 (P): original duration is 3 days; increase the resources

so that there are a consistent 16 MH per day; its relationship with activity 170 (Q) changes FS 0 to FF 12

3 Activity 130 (M): has a constraint, a scheduled early start (SES) of 20DEC96.

4 Activity 200 (T): also has a constraint, a scheduled late finish (SLF)

of 15JAN97

You can find SES and SLF type constraints under the Constraint

Window in the Activity Data Screen.

Look at the network diagram to see how these changes fit Use the calendar to check on Calendar Date, Work Day comparisons To

correctly integrate the changes into your network, check the

references below:

How to input actual dates and remaining durations Page 57

Practice 4.2

1 Input the changes into the network including recording changes in the

activity logs

2 Select Tools, Schedule to recalculate the network to be sure there are no open ends or loops Remember to change the data date

3 Provide the following reports and give them to the TA at the end of LAB4

4 An ES report that compares current dates (update) and target (baseline) dates

5 An ES report without comparison to target dates

6 A report sorted by Activity ID showing at least one log entry

7 A current (updated) detailed relationship report

8 An earned value report (Resource Report)

9 A current (updated) project calendar

10 A current MH histogram

11 A current MH S-curve showing current early and late and target early and late lines Be sure that they are distinguishable

12 A pure logic network diagram of just the work to be performed in the next

2 weeks (2 weeks after the data date) Be sure to include activities that

are in progress.

Some of these reports are a challenge Try to solve them on your own knowing that you might be asked by specification to provide a report you have never prepared before This is a frequent occurrence and requires a brave scheduler like you to perform the task

I hope this manual has helped you with the projects and can be used

as a reference later Your courage and skill will escape the limits of this manual soon Good luck