Change the default Project Calendar

[scott_hanebutt]

I want to know how to change the default Project Calendar from standard to 24
hours. I know how to assign a specific calendar for a specific resource or
task and how to change the default settings on the calendar but I don't know
how to change the overal Project Calendar from Standard to one of the other
two.

Thanks,
Scott Hanebutt

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi Scott,

Welcome to this Microsoft Project newsgroup

Project/Project Information.../Calendar - select 24 hours/OK.

FAQs, companion products and other useful Project information can be seen at
this web address: http://project.mvps.org/faqs.htm

Hope this helps - please let us know how you get on

Mike Glen
MS Project MVP

 

[Steve House [Project MVP]]

Careful doing that. The 24 hour calendar means that when a task begins it
doesn't get interrupted for any reason until it ends. Since the work should
be broken down to the level of one task = work done by one resource or team
of resources working together as a unit, if you have Task X lasting one week
and you assign Joe to do it, that means he'll work 24/7 without a meal
break, without a nap, without seeing his kids for an entire week. Machines
may work like that but people don't. Ah! but you say "We have round the
clock shifts!" Each shift should get its own calendar - day shift, swing
shift, and grave shift. IMHO, the "Project Calendar" should not reflect the
hours of business of the firm or the hours during which work can be done by
all shifts put together, it should reflect the normal work schedule of the
most typical or generic worker on your project. That way when you put in a
task of "XXX" duration, it will show in the schedule with timing at least
somewhat close to what it will end up being in real life when the work is
actually done by Joe Resource who is the sole person working on it. If I
have a task that will require 24 hours to do, starting Monday at 8am, when I
put it in the schedule it will start Mon @ 8 and end Wed @ 5. If I assign
Joe Dayshift alone to do it, it starts and ends the same. But if I assign
Joe Dayshift, Bill Swingshift, and Fred Graveshift that same 24 hour long
task, its ending date will move from Wed @ 5 to now end Tue @ 8 after having
run continuously for 24 hours as one shift relieved the other on it. This,
to me, is a more accurate prediction of reality and a more accurate model of
what will happen as you assign and reassign resources than what you'd get
trying to use the 24 hour calendar as the project calendar.

 

[scott_hanebutt]

I agree with you in almost all cases (there are a very few specific cases I
am not sure about). I was actually more interested in knowing how to change
it to the night shift, and just put down 24hr because I didn't think it
effected my question.

One example of a 24 hr callendar I can think of is: You have three guys
each working a different shift in 24/7 environment. They are the only people
involved in the project and they have the same skill set. In this case I
think a 24hr calender would be more acurate. You would of course assign a
different callendar to each resource to reflect thier individual shifts.

Another situaltion would be if you have 24/7 production with 20 on 1st, 10
on 2nd, and 10 on 3rd. Each shift has aproximatly the same skill set. A
normal task could then be worked on for an average of 16 hours a day. 8 on
1st, and another 8 on either 2nd or 3rd. In this case it may be better to
use an 16hr base callendar.

Thanks for making sure I realize what I am doing.

Scott Hanebutt

 

[Steve House [Project MVP]]

See embedded ...

I agree with you in almost all cases (there are a very few specific cases I
am not sure about). I was actually more interested in knowing how to
change
it to the night shift, and just put down 24hr because I didn't think it
effected my question.

One example of a 24 hr callendar I can think of is: You have three guys
each working a different shift in 24/7 environment. They are the only
people
involved in the project and they have the same skill set. In this case I
think a 24hr calender would be more acurate. You would of course assign a
different callendar to each resource to reflect thier individual shifts.

I'm not sure that the 24 calendar would actually be best there. My 3
resources are Joe Day, Bill Swing, and Fred Grave. I have task X to do that
will require 24 man-hours of work to complete. I have several options when
I assign the resource to the task, depending on the needs of my project. I
can assign one of those resources to it, I can assign 2 of them, or I can
assign all three. The 24-hour calendar assumes you will always assign all
three. With the Project calendar set to a normal generic workday for a
single resource, when I enter the task it will show up with timing as if one
resource was going to do it which is the normal level to take the work
breakdown to. That 24 man-hours task will take 3 workdays and the only
thing that changes with my choice of which resource to assign is the time it
starts on the first workday. If I need it done sooner I can add one or both
of the renmaining resources. If my Project Calendar is the normal day shift
calendar, Joe's base calendar is the same, Bill's is an added swing shift
base calendar and Fred's the night shift calendar, I get accurate scheduling
regardless of the way I choose to assign the workers.

Another situaltion would be if you have 24/7 production with 20 on 1st, 10
on 2nd, and 10 on 3rd. Each shift has aproximatly the same skill set. A
normal task could then be worked on for an average of 16 hours a day. 8
on
1st, and another 8 on either 2nd or 3rd. In this case it may be better to
use an 16hr base callendar.

Not sure about that example either but have to think on it a bit before
commenting.