Duration/Work

[quixote]

I am getting frustrated with how Project calculates(or doesn't)...I know this
is probably user error.
I have added tasks, indented some lines so they would be subtasks, assigned
a resource and added work hours. The subtask work hours are not adding up to
the main task..the task just has zero even though subtasks have values and
duration hasn't changed from the default.
Another issue...I have the start date from the past but some of the subtasks
have the current date and I can't change it...what am I doing wrong??!!!

also...I played around with trying to set up a 24/7 calendar but it didn't
seem to work. I have an iterative project that should have lots of
predecessors that will just continue on regardless of the time of day or what
day it is...but I can't make sense of how duration is being calculated...any
ideas on this would be appreciated too


Thanks

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi Quixote,

Welcome to this Microsoft Project newsgroup

Where are you entering Work? Check Tools/Options.../Calculation tab and
ensure Calculation mode is on Automatic. When you enter a new tasks, they
will start on the Start Date of your project or on the current date
depending upon the setting selected in Tools/Optons.../Schedule tab - New
Tasks setting. You can select the 24 hours calendar in Project/Project
Information calendar setting - but remember, if you assign resources thet
will be required to work 24/7 unless you adjust assignment calendars.

You might like to have a look at my series on Microsoft Project in the
TechTrax ezine at this site: http://tinyurl.com/2xbhc or this:
http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMFrame.asp?CMD=ArticleSearch&AUTH=23
(Perhaps you'd care to rate the articles before leaving the site,
Thanks.)

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

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

Mike Glen
MS Project MVP

 

[quixote]

Thanks Mike! I will check out the links you gave me.

I added a column for work. Here I am adding Work in hours which is either
known or an estimate. Does Project then calculate duration? I guess I am
confused as to when to use work or duration and what I should enter....more
confused also that work is not a default field...it has to be added

Thanks again

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi Quixote,

Project is designed basically to enter Duration and not Work. Duration is
the calendar working hours time from start to finish and will ignore
week-ends and holidays, etc. Work is the time resources will actually put
in to complete the task. You can have a 10-day Duration task where the Work
is only 8 hours, which means the resource can work for a single day during
the 10 days or spread the Work over several days. Hence projects are
usually planned using critical path techniques to set the logic and
calculate the critical path in the absence of any resources and thus without
entering Work.

As I've said before, estimating in manhours is not a natural thing. I'm
sure in my mind that for more than a few days, you are unlikely to
instinctively estimate, say 47 manhours or 100 hours, but more like a week
or 10 days or a month, mainly because the estimating processes at the end of
the day are, well, estimates. Equally, if you ask others for estimates, they
are likely to go through the same process and convert the weeks, days, etc
into manhours. Have a look at your work estimates - how many round nicely
into days or weeks? So, I argue, why not just enter hours, days, weeks...
into the Duration column and let Project calculate the manhours.

That said, Project won't stop you entering Work if that's what you want,
whence Project will calculate the Duration.


Mike Glen
Project MVP
See http://tinyurl.com/2xbhc for my free Project Tutorials