Set the project end-date

[LG]

Dear All,


At the moment, I have a project ends for 564 days with all available
resources and no resources are over allocated. But we have the deadline to
finish the project within 530 days so that I can use the outsource (in an
optimized way) to help shortend the project period. I already created the WBS
and some tasks already added with new outsource resources as well for 100%
but the project period is not changed.


Could anyone please advise how to deal with this by making sure that adding
more resources to cut down the project time?

Any advice is highly appreciated!

Regards,

LG

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi LG,

Welcome to this Microsoft Project newsgroup

I'm sure others will step in here to give their opinions, but it is
important to get back to your critical path. Any changes you make to
critical tasks will affect the end date, whereas changes to non-critical
tasks will have no effect in reducing the end date. I say more in my
tutorials - you might like to have a look at my series on Microsoft Project
in the TechTrax ezine, particularly #28 on minimizing the effect of delays,
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 article 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

 

[Jim Aksel]

There are a couple things you can do. First, you need to reduce the duration
of your critical path. You may be able to do this with outsourcing if
resources will allow you to run additional tasks in parellel. Additional
resources may allow you reconstruct your network.

However, you need to be careful. Just crashing the critical path is not
sufficeint. Since you have some time, I suggest a risk analysis on your
project. You need to establish credible estimates for minimum, maximum, and
most likely durations for your tasks. Then, using an add on tool to MS
Project such as Risk+ (Risk Plus) you can statistically estimate which of the
tasks on your critical path will be the most freqent drivers (take it from
the "tornado chart").

Learning those tasks that most frequently drive your criitcal path will let
you spend your money most wisely on additional resources. If you want, hit
me off line and I can refer you to a guy who is outstanding in matters like
these. We are in the United States. jeaksel at yahoo dot com might work
well.
--
If this post was helpful, please consider rating it.

Jim

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for FAQs and more information
about Microsoft Project

 

[LG]

Hi Mike & Jim,

I still cannot reduce the number of days for the project to target date
<=530days. Additional outsource resource for Development can be used at cost
of 150$.

And also development team would be added to the assembly team in order to
expedite the system hardware/software tests.


I upload the file here http://download.yousendit.com/4A05E0F42D8DBAB0 with
some more information and I would really appreciate if advice would be given.
Please feel free to modify the file and let me have it back how the setup is
done.

Regards,

LG

 

[Mike Glen]

Hi LG,

I've had a quick look at your project and the most obvious problem is in the
constraints. If you insert a column for Constraint Type, you'll see the
unfinished tasks are all constrained to Start No Earlier Than. If you
change them all to As Soon As Possible, the project shortens. The
constraints were probably set by typing in the task Start dates. You enter
tasks, durations and the precedence links and then let Project do what
you've bought it for - to calculate the dates for you and thus produce a
schedule. Try that first.

Mike Glen
Project MVP

 

[Jim Aksel]

First, you will need to establish relationships among your remaining tasks.
I see no predecessor relationships. What is worse, you have dates hard coded
which is establishing constraints of "Start No Earlier Than".

So, eliminate the constraint dates by making everything "Start No Earlier
Than". You can do this by inserting a column "Constraint Type" and then
changing all the values to "As Soon As Possible".

This will move all your tasks "Left" to the project start date. From there,
you need to establish relationships between the tasks that will drive the
start dates. If the tasks can truly run in parallel and all must start on
those dates, then it is ok to leave them .... your only real driver will be
85 days for the network interface.

I challenge your predecessor on "Assemble Preproduction" .... you are
probably saying you have a 50 day lead time for receipt of parts. This
should be a separate tasks called "Supplier Lead Time" or similar.

If I remove the date constrainsts on just tasks 22 and 23 then the finish
date moves to 2/17/2011 on this machine (my standard calendar may be
different than yours)


--
If this post was helpful, please consider rating it.

Jim

Visit http://project.mvps.org/ for FAQs and more information
about Microsoft Project

 

[LG]

Dear Mike & Jim,


Thank you very much for your advice now I can solve my problem now.

In the Ms. Project, I cannot find values for column PV [Planned Value of
work schedule] and BAC [Budget At completion]. I want to add these two
columns into the cost table but cannot find it in the available list. Please
kindly advise.



Regards,
LG