Project Planning Control 4 E Part 12 ppsx

By way of example the manner in which the SMAC CostControl calculations are supported by Hornet Windmill is described.The main display The main display in Hornet Windmill is a combined d

Act Budget

M/H

Day 8 Actual

cum.

% comp.

EV

Day 16 Actual cum.

% comp.

EV

Day 24 Actual

cum.

% comp.

EV

Day 30 Actual

cum.

% comp.

Figure 29.20 Unsmoothed resources

Table 29.12

Close-out

Close-out meeting

Store standard tools

Sell special tools and drawings to Ruritania

Clear machinery from factory

Sign lease with supermarket that bought the site

Sell spares to dealers

Sell scrap materials

Write report and highlight problems

Press release and photo opportunity for last car

Give away 600 000th production car to special lottery winner

6 Risk register

Types of risks: manufacturing, sales, marketing, reliability, componentsfailure, maintenance, suppliers, legislation, quality Qualitative and quantita-tive analysis Probability and impact matrix Risk owner Mitigation strategy,contingency

7 Earned value analysis

EVA of manufacture and assembly of engine, calculate Earned Value, CPI,SPI, cost at completion, final project time, draw curves of budget hours,planned hours, actual hours earned value, % complete, efficiency over fourreporting periods

Hornet Windmill

Hornet Windmill is the latest version of the range

of Hornet Software for Project Management thathas been developed steadily over the past 20years by Claremont Controls Ltd This softwaresystem is designed for use on PCs and provides ahigh performance project planning and controltool for use with virtually any type of project Inits early versions the product was designed foruse on the character style DOS displays of thefirst personal computers Now current versions ofthe system have taken the product forward ontothe Windows operating environment to provide ahighly interactive, yet flexible and powerfulmanagement tool Hornet Windmill may be used

in both the single-project and multi-projectenvironments, and includes an extremely power-ful scheduling capacity and very comprehensiveand flexible reporting capability

Over recent years all PC-based project agement software systems have become moreinteractive with direct entry of task details andlogic on tabular grids and bar chart displays.Hornet Windmill is no exception as the followingbrief summary of the system’s functionality

man-shows Additionally the Hornet range of software is unique in directlysupporting the management methods described by the author in earlierchapters of this book – specifically the drafting and numbering of networkdiagrams, and the SMAC Cost Control methodology The following reviewdoes not detail the product’s features and functions – space does not permitthis – but describes the range of facilities and the types of reporting that thissystem offers By way of example the manner in which the SMAC CostControl calculations are supported by Hornet Windmill is described.

The main display

The main display in Hornet Windmill is a combined data grid and interactivebar chart display The data values for the project tasks are displayed on thegrid section with task bars shown on the bar chart area

Both sections of the display scroll vertically through the entire task list,whilst the bar chart section can also be scrolled horizontally through time, andthe timescale contracted or expanded to show a larger or smaller slice of theproject duration

Figure 30.1 Hornet Windmill title screen

Figure 30.2 Main data grid and bar chart display

Figure 30.3 Pull-down menu displays

Also on the display are a series of drop-down menus that give access to thewide range of control options, settings and other project functions offered byHornet Windmill Under the menus is a toolbar holding a series of buttons thatgives direct access to primary functions – like reschedule, link tasks or print

a report

The display is controlled and driven by use of the menus, the toolbarbuttons, specific function keys (or key combinations known as ‘hot-keys’), themouse and the normal keyboard As familiarity is gained with the systemincreased use is made of the toolbar buttons and special key combinations toaccess the required functions

Task numbering

In Hornet Windmill the user can enter task data on the data grid side, ordirectly on the bar chart display – usually using a combination of both Eachtask that is entered must be allocated a unique number or code – this may be

a straight number like 10, 100, or an alphanumeric code like BAW34.Generally a normal numeric sequence is recommended as this is easy to traceand sort into sequence Numbering tasks in a stepped sequence, for example

in 10s, allows for any subsequent insertions although this is not essential asHornet Windmill includes a powerful ‘renumber’ facility

Task numbering can be used to great effect in formatting and controllingfinal reports Task numbers can be defined down to intervals of 0.1 and 0.01and the numbering related to the automatic ‘grouping’ or summarizing oftasks on displays and reports By changing the selection options you can show

a range of tasks split across successive lines – or produce a summary or

roll-up report that covers different work sections The level of summary obtainedcan be determined by specifying the range of numbers under whichsummaries are made – for instance, using number intervals of tenths, integers(whole numbers), tens, hundreds and thousands An example of this is shown

in Figure 30.5

Figure 30.4 Toolbar display

If the original project has been drafted by hand on a large sheet (see Chapter13) then the task numbers can be related to the row and column numbers onthe original sketch These numbers will then be carried through the system by

Hornet Windmill to draw the network diagram for the project in exactly the

same style as drawn by hand (but neater!)

Task data values

Initially the two data values required for each task are a text title or description(not essential but it does help) and task duration The latter can be specified

in days, or weeks and days, or, if the project is related to smaller time periods,

in half-days or hours Interconnecting logic between the tasks is also requiredbut this is described shortly One major advantage of a software product over

a manual approach is that one can readily associate extra data values with eachtask, and increase the level of detail or complexity given to each task

The use of different calendars within a project is one of the most commonly

used facilities One can define a whole range of different working calendars– for instance, a five-day working week, a full seven-day working week, and

a calendar for just two days’ working each weekend

Each calendar can have a range of holidays added, Christmas, New Year,Easter etc., to give an accurate representation of a working pattern Ifappropriate one can define a separate calendar for each member of staff.Calendars can also relate to different types of work or task; for instance,embankment settlement and concrete curing would be associated to a fullworking calendar as these tasks do not stop over weekends and holidays.Many users also associate tasks that are subcontracted to other companies to

a global calendar as they have no interest in showing weekends and holidaysfor these items Some tasks may be restricted to weekend or holiday periodsonly, for example road and rail closures All these permutations can bereflected by applying project calendars

Figure 30.5 Using task numbering to define task groups and summaries

When a project is first planned then all tasks relate to ‘future’ work and theproject schedule will run from the first work on site through to projectcompletion However, once work is underway the actual progress made in thefield will need to be reflected in the project plan This data is added to theproject by recording the dates when each task commenced and, whencompleted, when it was finished This information is vital as it allows HornetWindmill to reschedule the uncompleted sections of the project based on theactual work done in the field The results from this will show a revized futureschedule based on the actual work done To add this information data columnsrelating to actual start and finish dates, and a column for progress for tasksunderway, are used.

Making the most of the task data

The task data entered into the Hornet Windmill system is already beyond thelevel of detail that can be managed in a manual calculation method, and with

a computerized system much more can be achieved Different text data fieldscan be used to hold alternative or extended task titles or notes; possibly taskdescriptions in an alternative language

Tasks of different types can be colour coded, or a shading pattern applied,and legends included on reports to offer readers an easily identified codingsystem

It is not necessary to restrict oneself to a single coding strategy as one can

code tasks by both, say, responsibility and work type One can then offer a

Figure 30.6 The use of calendars to show weekends and holidays

report in two different styles – list tasks by responsibility and colour coding the

display by work type, and list tasks by work type and colour coding by

responsibility

Additional data values can be included on the task data grid Text notes andsymbol designs can be added to the bar chart display to annotate the final

report, for example to mark key stages or milestones in the project duration.

Hornet Windmill offers a special panel to add and record a series of notes

against each task, see Figure 30.8 This can be used as a record or aide

Figure 30.7 Selecting a shading style for task bars

Figure 30.8 Panel recording task notes and comments

m´emoire by the project manager to note pertinent details about the progress of

each project task These notes are automatically timed and dated and can berecalled and printed at any stage, possibly much later, to remind participants

of precisely what contributed to the actual events in the field If necessary filelinks or references can be created to other letters, designs and drawings heldwithin the project archives – again facilitating any future need to collateinformation on a key event in the project’s development and execution With

a bit of thought the project manager can use the software to build a verypowerful planning and reporting capability that encompasses just about everyaspect of the project he or she is responsible for

Coding tasks

As the project gets larger, more and more tasks will be added and any fullreport will run to many pages Clearly some method of classifying the tasksinto different sections, or different responsibilities, is required and this takesusers into the task coding aspects of Hornet Windmill This is one of the mostpowerful features of the product and a bit of forethought and care on setting

up an appropriate coding strategy initially will ensure maximum focus ofreporting later in the project The simplest – and most versatile – codingmethod is to select key classifications that are relevant to your project.Examples include site location, work type, subcontractor code, personresponsible, location within building etc Each of these classifications is then

Figure 30.9 A customized coding prompt panel

broken down into a list of possible entries Set up the coding letters for eachentry in the prompt definition panel – each tab on the screen display covers adifferent coding classification – and you are then ready to code the projecttasks.

Each task is coded under each classification using the prompt panel – globalediting is possible to set a particular coding entry across a range of selectedtasks Once done these codes can be used to extract and list specific sections

of the project, and sort the tasks into an appropriate order All Hornet

Windmill displays and reports support three levels of Section Headings and

these are linked directly to the coding centres It is an easy step to list tasks

titled by Site Section (basement, ground, first, second and roof) and subtitled

by Work Type (steel, concrete, flooring, walls, electrical, finishes) It is just aseasy to reverse the titling to produce a second version of the report that lists

by Work Type as the main heading, then Site Section as the subheading If thecoding classifications include Responsibility then one can list tasks under thisheading with a separate report for each person giving them only the tasks theyare responsible for All this can be achieved without needing to recode orreclassify the tasks at any stage

The task data display also shows the scheduled start and finish dates (bothearly and late dates), the different float values and other status information Ifall potential data values were displayed at the same time then the grid displaywould be extremely wide and the user would need to scroll the displayconstantly left and right searching for specific values Hornet Windmill offers

a range of grid displays that show different sections of the task data givingcomplete control over the display contents The user is free to adjust thedisplay by resizing columns, changing the order of the columns and adding orremoving specific values – the final layouts can be saved and recalled for lateruse The grid includes a ‘lock left column’ facility that ensures the tasknumber is held on the display whilst allowing the other columns to scroll

The bar chart display

This section of the display is also interactive and allows direct control over thetask bars Bars can be dragged to required time locations and stretched to givethe required duration period

Stretching and dragging actions use the left mouse button to controlselection and movement, whilst the right mouse button is used to add intertasklogical constraints The user can add a link between two tasks by using themouse to draw a line between the end of the preceding task and the start of the

succeeding task – the addition of a standard ‘finish to start’ logic constraint.Similar links in the styles ‘start to start’ and ‘finish to finish’ can also be added

in this manner Hornet Windmill supports the use of ‘logic delays’ on linksand these can be added by using the ‘Ctrl’ key as the new link is drawn

In most projects the scheduling of the tasks relies on the entered logic links

to determine where the tasks will be positioned in time Thus as the bars onthe display are dragged to a new position the next time the project isrescheduled Hornet Windmill will restore the bar to its correct position Ifrequired this can be overridden by using the ‘drag-and-lock’ facility wheretasks are left in the position given by the user permanently This approach can

be extended to build up an entire programme without the need to add any logic

links between tasks In any text on project management theory this approach

is classified as the ultimate sin – however, it is a facility that is providedthrough user request

Figure 30.10 Stretching task bar 2006

Figure 30.11 Dragging task bar 2001

Figure 30.12 Adding a sequential FS link between tasks 2005 and 2007

Adding logic links on the screen display is a suitable method for relativelysmall projects as tasks are relatively close together on the display However,

in large projects adding links using a mouse can be tedious and prone to error– and cross-checking the entered logic can be virtually impossible HornetWindmill offers two solutions to overcome this problem: using the toolbarbuttons to add links between previously selected tasks, or showing the logiclinks in a grid display that can be used to check, add and edit logic links

The alternative data displays can be focused on either Precedent links (linksrunning backwards) or Successor links (links running forward), and usedalongside the direct entry on the bar chart display Many users find this a morepositive means of establishing the correct logic links on a project

Tracing of logic through a project is also supported by two tabular reports

– a listing of all precedents and successors on a task-by-task basis – and a

logic trace report that lists precedents to a given task, then lists the precedents

to the precedents, and so on (the report can also work through successors).This form of ‘thread’ analysis can be invaluable on a large project as itidentifies relationships between key tasks even when there is no direct linkbetween them A sample report is shown in Figure 30.15

Figure 30.13 The three toolbar buttons for adding and removing logic links

Figure 30.14 Precedent logic links for task 1006 in a data grid display

Figure 30.15 Successor logic trace report