Can you start a dependent task at a certain level of completion?

[damien]

I would like to start a dependent task when it's predecessor reaches
something like 33% completion.

Is this something that Project can do?

 

[Barbara - Austria]

Hi Damien,

yes, Project can do that for you:
Open task information of your dependent task, open Predessors tab and enter
'-67%' in 'Lag' column. Does it show what you expected?

Regards
Barbara

 

[Jim Aksel]

Actually, you can start the successor activity any time you want... just key
in an actual start date and forget the logic.

To schedule this propely, it is best to do it from a forward pass
(Predecessor SS+33%). Using negative lag is not a best practice since you
really don't know when the predecessor will finish with absolute certainty.

This type of planning using indicates lack of detail in the schedule. You
really should not arbitrarily say "When A is 33% complete, I can start B."
There is more than likely some tangible event in "Task A" that can be broken
out. For example, if Task is is "Mow the lawn" and Task B is "rake leaves"
..... maybe it is best to break Task A into "Mow Front Yard" and Mow Back
Yard" ... then Task B can start immediately after the front lawn is mowed.

I give an example of using % associated with Lag on my blog. Read my white
paper about Predecessor and Successor relationships.
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Jim Aksel, MVP

Check out my blog for more information:
http://www.msprojectblog.com