Project Scheduling

Contents
 Introduction
 Precedence Relations among Activities
 Activity-on-Arrow Network Approach for CPM Analysis
Introduction

Project scheduling:

 The planning of timetables and the establishment of dates during

which various resources will perform the activities required to
complete the project.
 Schedules are the cornerstone of the planning and control system.
Introduction

The scheduling activity integrates information which includes:

 The estimated duration of activities

 The technological precedence relations among activities
 Constraints imposed by the availability of resources and the budget
 Due-date requirements
Introduction

Aim of project scheduling is to answer the following questions:

1. If each of the activities goes according to plan, when will the project
be completed?
2. Which tasks are most critical to ensure the timely completion of the
project?
3. Which tasks can be delayed, without delaying project completion,
and by how much?
4. At what times each activity begin and end?
5. At any given time during the project, what is the range of money that
should have been spent?
6. Is it worthwhile to incur extra costs to accelerate some of the
activities?
Precedence Relations among Activities

The schedule of activities is constrained by the availability of resources

required to perform each activity and by technological constraints
known as precedence relations.

Several types of precedence relations exist among activities:

 Start-to-End
 Start-to-Start
 End-to-Start
 End-to-End
Precedence Relations among Activities

1. Start-to-End requires that

An activity can start only after its predecessor has been completed.
Example: It is possible to lift a piece of equipment by a crane only after
the equipment is secured to the hoist.

2. Start-to-Start requires that

An activity can start only after a specified activity has already begun.
Example: Logistic support analysis can starts as soon as the detailed
design phase begins.
Precedence Relations among Activities

3. End-to-Start requires that

An activity cannot end until another activity has begun.
Example: This is the case in a project of building a nuclear reactor and
charging it with fuel, where one robot transfers radioactive material to
another. The first robot can release the material only after the second
robot achieves a tight enough grip.

4. End-to-End requires that

An activity cannot terminate unless another activity is completed.
Example: Quality control efforts, for example, cannot terminate before
production ceases, although the two activities can be performed at the
same time.
Precedence Relations among Activities

A lag or time delay can be added to any of these connections.

 In the case of the “end-to-end” arrangement, there might be a need

to spend 2 days on testing and quality control after production shuts
down.
 In the case of the “start-to-end” connections, a fixed setup may be
required between the two activities.
Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) Network Approach for CPM
Analysis

AOA Network:
 An arrow is used to represent an activity, with its head indicating the
direction of progress of the project.
 The precedence relations among activities are introduced by
defining events.
 An event represents a point in time that signifies the completion of
one or more activities and the beginning of the new ones.
 The beginning and ending points of an activity are described by two
events known as the head and the tail.
Activity-on-Arrow (AOA) Network Approach for CPM
Analysis
Example 1: Figure (a) shows an example of a typical representation of an activity (i,j) with its tail event i and its head event
j. Figure (b) depicts a second example where activities (1,3) and (2,3) must be completed before activity (3,4) can start.

i j 3 4

(a) (b)

Network components.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

The rules for constructing a diagram:.

Rule 1. Each activity is represented by one and only one arrow in the
network.
Rule 2. No two activities can be identified by the same head and tail
vent.
Rule 3. To ensure the correct representation in the AOA network, the
following questions must be answered for each adding of an activity:
 Which activities must be completed immediately before this activity
can start?
 Which activities must immediately follow this activity?
 Which activities must occur concurrently with this activity?
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis
Example 2:
Figure (a) shows that activities A and B running in parallel. To circumvent this difficulty, a dummy activity is
introduced either between A or B (see Figure (b)), where D1 is the dummy activity. The dummy activities do
not consume time or resources. Typically, they are represented by “broken” directed arrows in the network.

2 2

A D1 D1 A

A 1 3 1 3
B B
1 3
A A
1 3 1 3
B
D1 B B D1
2 2

(a) (b)

Use of a dummy arc between two nodes.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis
Example 2 (continued):
Dummy activities must also be logical. Suppose that, tasks A and B must precede C, while
task E is preceded only by B. Figure (a) shows an incorrect way. Although the precedence
relationship among A, B, and C is correct, the diagram implies that E must be preceded by
both A and B. The correct representation using dummy D1 is depicted in Figure (b).

A C

A C D1
B E B E

(a) (b)

(a) Incorrect and (b) correct representation

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 3:
Draw the AOA diagram so that the following precedence relations are
satisfied.
1. E is preceded by B and C.
2. F is preceded by A and B.
Solution Figure (a) shows an incorrect precedence relation for activity
E. According to the requirements, B and C are to precede E, and A and
B are to precede F. The dummy D1 is therefore inserted to allow B to
precede E. Doing so, however, implies that A also must precede E,
which is incorrect. Figure (b) in the figure shows the correct
relationships.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

A A
3 F
3 F
D2
B
D1
B
2 4
2
C D1
C
5 5

E E

(a) (b)

Subnetwork with two dummy arcs: (a) incorrect; (b) correct.

 AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis
Example 4:
Draw the precedence diagram for the following conditions:
1. G is preceded by A.
2. E is preceded by A and B.
3. F is preceded by B and C.
Solution An incorrect and correct representation is given in Figure. The diagram in Figure (a) of the figure is wrong because it implies A precedes F.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

A G A G
1 1

D1 D1

B E B E
2 2 4
D3
D2 D2

C F C F
3 3

(a) (b)

Subnetwork with complicated precedence relations: (a) incorrect; (b) correct.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 4 (continued):
It is good practice to have a single start event common to all
activities that have no predecessors, and a single end event for all
activities that have no successors. The actual mechanics of drawing
the AOA network will be illustrated using the data in Table 1
The process being by identifying all activities that have no
predecessors and joining them to a unique start node. This is shown
in Figure (a). Each activity terminates at a node. Only the first node
in the network is assigned a number (1); all other nodes are labeled
only when network construction is completed, as explained
presently. Since activity C has only one predecessor (A), it can be
added immediately to the diagram (Figure (a) ).
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

TABLE 1 DATA FOR EXAMPLE PROJECT

Immediate Duration
Activity predecessors (Weeks)
A - 5
B - 3
C A 8
D A,B 7
E - 7
F C,E,D 4
G F 5
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 4 (continued):
Activity D has both A and B as predecessors; thus there is a
need for an event that represents the completion of A and B. We
being by adding two dummy activities D1 and D2 . The common end
event of D1 and D2 is now the start event of D, as depicted in Figure
(b). As we progress, it may happen that one or more dummy
activities are added that really are not necessary. To correct this
situation, a check will be made at completion and redundant
dummies eliminated
Prior to starting activity F, activities C, E, and D must be
completed. Therefore, an event should be introduced that
represents the terminal point of these activities. Notice that C, E,
and D are not predecessors of any other activity but F.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

C
A

B
1
E

Figure (a) Partical plot of the example AOA network.

A D1

B D2 D

Figure (b) Using dummy activities to represent precedence relations.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 4 (continued):
This implies that we can have the three arrows representing these
activities terminate at the same node (event)-the tail of F. Activity G
which has only F as a predecessor can start from the head of F (see
Figure (c).

A D1

B D2 D F G
1

Figure (c) Network with activites F and G included.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 4 (continued):
Once all the activities and their precedence relations have
been included in the network diagram, it is possible to eliminate
redundant dummy activities. A dummy activity is redundant if it is the
only activity starting or ending at a given event. Thus D2 is
redundant and is eliminated by connecting the head of activity B to
the event that marked the end of D2. The next step is to number the
events in ascending order, making sure that the tail always has a
lower number than the head. The resulting network is illustrated in
Figure (d). The duration of each activity is written next to the
corresponding arrow. The dummy D1 is shown like any other activity
but with a duration of zero.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

2
A,5 C,8
D1

B,3 D,7 F,4 G,5

1 3 4 5 6

E,7

Figure (d) Complete AOA project network.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis
Example 5:
Construct an AOA diagram comprising activities A,B,C,…,L such that
the following relationships are satisfied.
1. A, B and C, the first activities of the project, can start
simultaneously.
2. A and B precede D.
3. B precedes E, F, and H.
4. F and C precede G.
5. E and H precede I and J.
6. C, D, F, and J precede K.
7. K precedes L.
8. I, G, and L are the terminal activities of the project.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Solution The resulting diagram is shown in Figure (e). The dummy

activities D1 and D3 are needed to establish correct precedence
relations. D2 is introduced to assure that the parallel activities E and
H have unique end events. Note that the event in the project are
numbered in such a way that if there is a path connecting nodes i
and j, then i < j. In fact, there is a basic result from graph theory
which states that a directed graph is acyclic if and only if its nodes
can be numbered so that for all arcs (I,j), i < j.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 5 (continued):
D
3 7 K

8
A D1 J
4
D2 D3 L
H

B E I
1 2 5 9

F
C G
6

Figure (e) Network for Example 5:

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 5 (continued):
In general, once the nodes in a graph are numbered, the
network can be represented by a matrix whose respective rows and
columns correspond to the start and end events of a particular
activity. The matrix for the example in Figure (d) is as follows:

Ending Event
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 X X X
2 X X
Starting 3 X
event 4 X
5 X
6
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 5 (continued):
Where the entry “X” means that there is an activity connecting the
two events (instead of an X, it may be more efficient to use the
activity number or its duration). For example, the X in row 3, column
4 indicates that an activity starts at event 3 and ends at event 4, that
is, activity D. The absence of an entry in the second row and fifth
column means that no activity starts at event 2 and ends at event 5.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example 5 (continued):
Note: Because the numbering scheme used ensures that if activity (i,j)
exists, then i< j, it is sufficient to store only the portion of the matrix that
is above the diagonal. Alternatively, the lower portion of the matrix can
be used to store other information about an activity, such as resource
requirements or budget.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Remarks:
1. It is easy to see the sequences of activities connecting the start of
the project to its terminal node.
2. The longest sequence is called the critical path.
3. The total time required to perform all the activities on the critical
path is the minimum duration of the project since these activities
cannot performed in parallel due to precedence relations among
them.
 In the case of multiple activities that have no predecessors, a
common start event should be used for all of them.
 In the case of multiple activities that have no successors, a
common end event should be defined.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Events in the Activities in Sum of

Sequence No.
sequence the sequence activity times
1 1-2-4-5-6 A,CF,G 22
2 1-2-3-4-5-6 A,D1,D,F,G 21
3 1-3-4-5-6 B,D,F.G 19
4 1-4-5-6 E,F,G 16
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

From the table:

1. The critical path is A,C,F,G. The delay in completing any of these

(critical) activities will cause a delay in project completion. In other
words, this is the longest (in the sense of time) sequence in the
project. No other sequence is allowed to take longer time than this
one.

2. From 1, it implies that other sequences which is not the critical path
can be delayed. Each of the sequence can be delayed at most
equal to the ending time of the critical path. We say that the
activities that are not on the critical path have slack.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Two types of slack:

1. Free slack or free float: Free slack denotes the time that an activity
can be delayed without delaying both the start of any
succeeding activity and the end of the project.

2. Total slack or total float: Total slack is the time of an activity can be
delayed without delaying the end of the project.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Rule to identify the type of slack:

1. A non-critical activity whose end event is on the critical path has

free slack.
Ex: Activity E, which is non-critical, has a free slack since event 4
(at its arrow head) is on the critical path.

2. Difference between the lengths of A-C and B-D, which runs in

parallel to A-C is the total slack of B and D and is equal to (5+8)-
(3+7) = 3.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Two general rules:

1. If the total slack equals the free slack, the non-critical activity can be
scheduled anywhere between its early start and late finish times.

2. If the free slack is less than the total slack, the starting of the non-
critical activity can be delayed relative to its early start time by no
more than the amount of its free slack without affecting the schedule
of those activities that immediately succeed it.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation Event Times and Critical Path: The earliest and latest
times each event can take place without causing a schedule overrun.

1. The early time of an event i is determined by the length of the

longest sequence from the start node (event 1) to event i.
2. Let ti as the early time of event i, and t1 = 0. If the starting date is
given, t1 is adjusted accordingly.
3. To determine ti for each event i, a forward pass is made through
the network.
4. Let Lij be the duration or length of activity (i,j). Then


t j  maxi ti  Lij  for all (i,j) activities defined

where t1 = 0.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

t 2  t1  L12 Example:
05 5
 t1  L13   t1  L13 
t3  max   max 5
t 2  L23  t 2  L23 
 t1  L14 
 
t 4  max t 2  L24   13
t  L 
 3 34 

t5  t 4  L45  13  4  17
t6  t5  L56  17  5  22
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis
5. The late time of each event is calculated next by making a
backward pass through the network.
6. Let Ti denote the late time of event i. If n is the end event, the
calculations are generally initiated by setting Tn = tn and working
backward toward the start event using


Ti  min j T j  Lij  for all (i,j) activities defined

7. If a required project completion date is given which is later than the

early time of event n, it is possible to assign that time as the late
time for the end event. If the required date is earlier than the early
time of the end event, no feasible schedule exist.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

T6  t6  22 T5  T6
Example:  L56  22  5  17

T 4  T 5  L 45  17  4  13 T3  T4  L34  13  7  6

T4  L24  60  6

T2  min   min 5
T3  L23  13  8  5
T2  L12   55 
   
T1  min T3  L13   min  6  3   0
T  L  13  7 
 4 14   
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Critical Activities: An activity (i,j) lies on the critical path if it satisfies the
Following three conditions:

ti  Ti
t j  Tj
t j  ti  T j  Ti  Lij

That is there is no slack time between the earliest start (completion) and
the latest start (completion) of the critical activities
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Example: From the table activities (1,2), (2,4), (4,5), and (5,6) define
the critical path.
Event Early Time Late Time

1 0 0

2 5 5

3 5 6

4 13 13

5 17 17

6 22 22
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Activity Start and Finish Times:

In addition to scheduling the events of a project, detailed scheduling of
activities is performed by calculating the following four times (or dates)
for each activity (i,j)

ESij = early start time: the earliest time activity (i,j) can start without
violating any precedence relations
EFij = early finish time: the earliest time activity (i,j) can finish without
violating any precedence relations
LSij = late start time: the latest time activity (i,j) can start without
delaying the completion of the project
LFij = late finish time: the latest time activity (i,j) can finish without
delaying the completion of the project
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

The calculations proceed as follows:

ES ij  ti for all i

EFij  ESij  Lij for all (i,j) defined

LFij  T j for all j

LS ij  LFij  Lij for all (i,j) defined

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Thus, the earliest time an activity can begin is equal to the early
time of its start event. The latest an activity can finish is equal to
the late finish of its end event.
Act. (i,j) Lij ESij EFij LFij LSij TSij FSij
A (1,2) 5 0 5 5 0 0 0
B (1,3) 3 0 3 6 3 3 2
C (2,4) 8 5 13 13 5 0 0
D (3,4) 7 5 12 13 6 1 1
E (1,4) 7 0 7 13 6 6 6
F (4,5) 4 13 17 17 13 0 0
G (5,6) 5 17 22 22 17 0 0
D1 (2,3) 0 5 5 6 6 1 0
 AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Slacks:

Information about slack is important to the project manager, who may

have to adjust budgets and resource allocations to stay on schedule. In
a multi-project environment, slack in one project can be used temporarily
to free up resources needed for other projects that are behind schedule
or overly constrained.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Slacks:

The total slack TSij of activity (i,j) is equal to the difference between its
late start (LSij) and its early start (ESij) or the difference between the its
late finish (LFij) and its early finish (EFij). That is

TS ij  LS ij  ESij  LFij  EFij

For example, the total slack of D(3,4) is equal to 6-5 = 1.

AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Slacks:

The free slack FSij of activity (i,j) is equal to the difference between its
early time of its end event j and the sum of the early time of its start
event I plus its length. That is

FS ij  t j   ti  Lij 

For example, the total slack of D(3,4) is equal to 13-(5+7)=1. Thus, it is

possible to delay D by 1 week without affecting the start of any other
activity, see the Table above.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Slacks:
Note:
1. Activities with a total slack equal to zero are critical, as any delay in
these activities will cause a delay in the completion of the project.
2. The total slack is either equal to or larger than the free slack since
the total slack of an activity is composed of its free slack plus the
slack shared with other activities.
AOA Network Approach for CPM Analysis

Calculation of Slacks:
Example Discussion:
1. Activity B(1,3) has a free slack of 2 weeks. Thus it can be delayed
up to 2 weeks without affecting its successor D. If, however, B is
delayed by 3 weeks, the project can still be finished on time provided
that D starts immediately after B finishes. This follows because
activities B and D share 1 week of total slack.
2. D1 has a total slack of 1 and a free slack of 0, implying that non-
critical activities may have zero free slack.