Graphic Picture of a Project:

The activities and the activity duration are the basic building
blocks needed to construct a graphic picture of the project.

Graphic Picture offers two additional pieces of schedule

information about the project:

. The earliest time at which work can begin on every activity that
makes up the project.
. The earliest expected completion date of the project.
Envisioning a Complex Project Network Diagram:
A project network diagram is a pictorial representation of the
sequence in which the project work can be done.
The relationships between the activities in the project are
represented in a flow diagram called a network diagram or logic
diagram.

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Benefits to Network-Based Scheduling:

There are two ways to build a project schedule:

■ Gantt chart
■ Network diagram

The Gantt chart is the oldest of the two and is used effectively in
simple, short duration types of projects.

There are two drawbacks to using the Gantt chart.

.Because of its simplicity, the Gantt chart does not contain

detailed information hides much of that information.

.Second, the Gantt chart does not tell the project manager
whether the schedule that results from the Gantt chart completes
the project in the shortest possible time or even uses the
resources most effectively.

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Network diagrams can be used for detailed project
planning, during implementation as a tool for analyzing
scheduling alternatives, and as a control tool:

Planning. Even for large projects, the project network diagram

gives a clear graphical picture of the relationship between project
activities.

Implementation.

For those project managers who use automated project

management software tools, you will update the project file with
activity
status and estimate-to-completion data. The network diagram is
then automatically updated and can be printed or viewed. The
need for rescheduling and resource reallocation decisions can be
determined from the network diagram.
Building the Network Diagram Using the Precedence
Diagramming Method:
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It is called the activityon- the-arrow (AOA) method. As Figure 6.1
shows, an arrow represents each activity. The node at the left
edge of the arrow is the event “begin the activity,” while the
node at the right edge of the arrow is the event “end the activity
Every activity is represented by this configuration.

The activity-on-the-node (AON) method. The term more

commonly used to describe this approach is precedence
diagramming
method (PDM).

The basic unit of analysis in a network diagram is the activity.

Each activity in the network diagram is represented by a
rectangle that is called an activity node. Arrows represent the
predecessor/successor relationships between activities.

The entries in the activity node describe the time-related

properties of the activity. Some of the entries describe
characteristics of the activity, such as its expected duration (E),
while others describe calculated values (ES, EF, LS, LF)
associated with that activity
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The network diagram is logically sequenced to be read from left
to right. Every activity in the network, except the start and end
activities, must have at least one activity that comes before it (its
immediate predecessor) and one activity that comes after it (its
immediate successor). An activity begins when its predecessors
have been completed. The start activity has no predecessor, and
the
end activity has no successor. These networks are called
connected.
Dependencies:
A dependency is simply a relationship that exists between pairs
of activities.
Finish-to-start.
The finish-to-start (FS) dependency says that activity A must be
complete before activity B can begin.
Start-to-start.
The start-to-start (SS) dependency says that activity B may
begin once activity A has begun

Start-to-finish.
The start-to-finish (SF) dependency is a little more complex
than the FS and SS dependencies. Here activity B cannot be
finished sooner
than activity A has started. For example, suppose you have built 5
a new
Finish-to-finish. The finish-to-finish (FF) dependency states that
activity B cannot finish sooner than activity A.

Constraints:
There are four types of constraints that will affect the sequencing
of project activities and, hence, the dependency relations
between activities:

■Technical constraints
■ Management constraints
■ Interproject constraints
■Date constraints

Technical Constraints:
Technical dependencies between activities are those that arise
because one activity (the successor) requires output from
another (the predecessor) before work can begin on it.
Discretionary constraints.
Discretionary constraints are judgment calls by the project
manager that result in the introduction of dependencies. These
judgment calls may be merely a hunch or a risk-aversion strategy
taken by the project manager.
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Best-practices constraints.
Best practices are past experiences that have worked well for the
project manager or are known to the project manager based on
the experiences of others in similar situations.
Logical constraints.
Logical constraints are like discretionary constraints that arise
from the project manager’s way of thinking about the logical way
to sequence a pair of activities. We feel that it is important for
the project manager to be comfortable with the sequencing of
work.

Unique requirements.
These constraints occur in situations where a critical resource,
say, an irreplaceable expert or a one-of-a kind piece of
equipment, is involved on several project activities.

Management Constraints
A second type of dependency arises as the result of a
management-imposed constraint.
Interproject Constraints
Interproject constraints result when deliverables from one project
are needed by another project. 7
Date Constraints
Date constraints impose start or finish dates on an activity that
force it to occur according to a particular schedule.
Date constraints come in three types:

No earlier than. This date constraint specifies the earliest date

on which an activity can be completed.
No later than. This date constraint specifies a date by which an
activity must be completed.
On this date. This date constraint specifies the exact date on
which an activity must be completed

Critical Path
the critical path is the longest path or sequence of activities (in
terms of activity duration) through the network diagram. The
critical path
drives the completion date of the project. Any delay in the
completion of any one of the activities in the sequence will delay
the completion of the project.

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Computing Slack
The second method of finding the critical path requires us to
compute a quantity known as the activity slack time. Slack time
(also called float) is the amountof delay expressed in units of
time that could be tolerated in the starting time or completion
time of an activity without causing a delay in the completion of
the project. Slack time is a calculated number. It is the difference
between the late finish and the early finish (LF – EF). If the result
is greater than zero, the
activity has a range of time in which it can start and finish
without delaying the project completion date.
There are two types of slack:

Free slack. This is the range of dates in which an activity can

finish without causing a delay in the early schedule of any
activities that are its immediate successors.

Total slack. This is the range of dates in which an activity can

finish without delaying the project completion date.

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