Project Planning

Question 1

What is project planning?

Answer 1

The process of breaking down a project in smaller activities and establishing their mutual interdependencies.

Question 2

What’s project progamming?

Answer 2

A specific sub-section of project planning that includes defining a construction sequence, defining activity/project durations, monitoring ad updating the schedule.

Question 3

What is a work breakdown structure (WBS)?

Answer 3

The division of project work into smaller, more managable components.

Question 4

What is a finish to start activty relationship (FS)?

Answer 4

Activity 2 can start ‘n’ time units after activty 1 starts.

Question 5

What is a start to start activty relationship (SS)?

Answer 5

Activty 2 can start ‘n’ time units after activity 1 starts.

Question 6

What is a finish to finish activty relationship (FF)?

Answer 6

Activity 2 can finish no later than ‘n’ time units after activity 1 finishes.

Question 7

What is a start to finish activty relationship (SF)?

Answer 7

Activity 2 can finish no earlier than ‘n’ time units after activity activity 1 starts.

Question 8

What is production rate?

Answer 8

The amount of work that can be done in a unit of time (e.g. m3/hr)

Question 9

What is productivity?

Answer 9

The amount of time it takes to complete a unit of work (e.g. hr/m3)

Question 10

Whats the relationship between productivity and production rate?

Answer 10

They are reciprocals of each other.

Question 11

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using a Gantt chart to represent project programming?

Answer 11

Advanatges include being easy to interpret, commonly used.
Disadvantages include not showing logic, difficult to update on revised logic.

Question 12

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using a precedence/network diagram to represent project programming?

Answer 12

Advanatges include showing logical relationships between tasks.
Disadvantages include being complex to produce.

Question 13

What is a critical path of a construction project sequence?

Answer 13

The activities that have the greatest durations and would cause a delay in the project if they were delayed.

Question 14

What is total float (TF)?

Answer 14

The amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting the total project time.

Question 15

What is the free float (FF)?

Answer 15

The amount of time an activity can be delayed without affecting any succeeding activities.

Question 16

How is the total/free float of an acitivty calculated in a network diagram?

Answer 16

1. Going left to right (chronoloically), the earliest start and earliest finish of an activty are calculated (top left and right respectively on a network diagram block).
2. Going right to left (reverse-chronologically), the latest start and finish are calculated (bottom left and right respectively on network diagram block).
3. Total float is the difference between the earliest and latest finish.
4. Free float can be calulated.

Question 17

What are the 2 methods of scheduling contingency?

Answer 17

1. By adding contingency at the end of a project.
2. By adding contingency throughout the project for different activities.

Question 18

What is a milestone?

Answer 18

A milestone is a date when it is expected that a certain part of the project will have been completed.