Running head: MS PROJECT EXERCISE
1
MS Project Exercise
Critical Path Diagram showing tasks and Float/Slack for various projects
Procurement
0
Preparation and Planning
70
0
Construction of Inside
0
Construction of Outside
0
Completion
Foundation Construction
Running head: PROJECT PERFORMANCE
Project Performance
Darrell Nichols
BUS 419
2/9/2018
Strayer University
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PROJECT PERFORMANCE
2
Project Performance
Introduction
The project involves the construction of a baseball stadium. The project has different
timelines for the completion of different crucial phases that it has. Budgets have been set for
various items of the project totaling to $ 159, 515,000. It is expected that the total costs will not
exceed the budgeted amounts. Key project objectives will cover the financial part of the project,
the quality, performance, compliance, technical aspect, and finally the business aspect.
Key Project Objectives
Financial Objective
The project has key several objectives that are expected to be met during and at the end
of the project life. One of these objectives is finances. The project has a budget that has estimates
the amount of money that will be required to complete the task. One of the key objectives in this
area is to ensure that the costs do not exceed the budgeted amount. Such will be made possible
by ensuring that all the aspects of procurement of materials, hiring, and acquiring of other
resources is done as per the plan. Having estimated the cost for completion, it is important to also
consider the project sponsor. The cost for completion of the project is not a small amount that
can be raised overnight. It is therefore important to have a reliable source of the finances. The
main objective of having a reliable project sponsor is to ensure that the project does not stall due
to lack of funds and that it is completed according to the set timelines. Apart from settling the
costs, the benefits of the project will be established to come up with a cost benefit analysis. At
the end of the project, there are certain returns that the project is expected to give. Some of these
returns might be financial.
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
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Compliance Objective
When undertaking a construction, there are different activities that are involved in the
process. Some of these activities include excavation, drilling, and many others. One of the main
objectives of this project is to ensure that all activities that will be undertaken during the
construction of the baseball stadium are in compliance with different laws. Some of the laws that
will be keenly considered include environmental laws and construction laws. All legal processes
for the construction will also be considered. The importance of this is to ensure that all safety and
healthy targets have been met. Meeting these objectives will allow the construction to continue
without interruptions from the authorities. It will also prevent the project from incurring losses as
well as having delays in the timeline of the project.
Quality Objective
Quality is another major objective of the plan. In construction of the baseball stadium, it
is expected that all quality standards will be met. The quality objective will be met by ensuring
that highly skilled and experienced engineers have been hired to handle the project. Secondly,
quality of the project will be met by ensuring proper distribution of work among the highly
skilled labor. Proper delegation will be done to achieve top success in work. Proper procurement
procedures will be adopted in sourcing different suppliers for the construction materials. The
main aim of this is to ensure that the best suppliers of quality materials have been contracted
bearing in mind taking the best cost. The project is expected to deliver certain internal and
external quality standards. Importance of ensuring quality standards for this project is to ensure
that there are minimum defects in the project and that the end project meets the quality plan
adopted. The project will rely heavily on technology to ensure that the performance is up to the
required standards.
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
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Projected Costs and Resources
The estimated cost of the project is $ 159, 515,000. One objective of the project is to
ensure that the cost is not exceeded. It will be made possible by following the quality plan as
well as the overall plan of the project. The company has several key resources. People who
include the management and labor, facilities, equipment, and funding are the main resources of
this project. All these resources are expected to be sourced out before the start of the project. The
first key resource of management and labor will be sourced through competitive selection. The
selection process will ensure that the right skilled labor for the project is acquired. Different
equipment and facilities will be required for the construction. These resources will be provided
with others expected to be provided by the engineer of the project. Funding will be sourced
through different way among them being sponsorship. It will be the main source of this resource
that will aim at ensuring that all the financial obligations of the project are met without any
constraint.
High-Level Timeline
According to the work break down schedule, the project is supposed to commence on
1/1/18 and completion which is task 6 to be on 7/18/22. Each different task in the project takes a
specific time. It is a project objective to ensure that these timelines have been followed. An
extension of the completion time of the project may be associated other costs which are highly
discouraged.
Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM)
Function
Project
Project
Business/Financial Project
Project
Procurement
Manager
Auditor
Analyst
Engineer
Officer
Sponsor
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
Establish a
5
AR
I
AR
C
C
I
C
I
I
I
I
AR
A
I
R
I
C
I
A
R
C
I
C
I
I
I
plan
Procurement
of key
resources
Develop
technical
and financial
requirements
Develop
quality plan
Initiate
AR
C
project
Audit of the
A
R
I
I
project
R- Responsible
A- Accountable
B- Consult
I- Inform
The above responsibility assignment matrix takes into account the main tasks of a project that
have to be undertaken from the initial stage to completion. The responsibility assignment matrix
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
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also takes into consideration the key objectives of the projects so as to come up with the main
tasks that need to be taken into consideration.
Justification of the Matrix
In the WBS, the resource names provided include project manager, committee, casuals,
and electricians among others. Handling of the project requires more staff and that is the reason
for business analyst for the added task of planning, auditor for quality and control, procurement
officer for quality of materials, engineer for general construction, sponsor for funding, and
manager for general project manager. The tasks broken down in the WBS have been given titles
in the RAM showing how the responsibility of each individual for each task. The RAM clearly
outlines who is responsible for different tasks from the initial stage to the completion stage.
Outline of the Network Schedule of the Project
The following outline is of network schedule of the baseball stadium. It contains main
tasks of the project and the duration of each. The project has 6 main tasks.
TASK
1. Procurement
2. Planning and preparation
DURATION IN DAYS
9 days
430 days
3. Foundation construction
360 days
4. Constructing Inside
380 days
5. Construction of Outside
320 days
6. Completion
10 days
Description of the Schedule
The first task in the project involves procurement of materials for the construction. It
incorporates the sub-tasks of material purchasing and transportation. The task is estimated to take
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
7
9 days. The second main task is planning and preparation of the construction grounds. It involves
clearing the stadium site, demolition of buildings, and set up of the construction site. The time
estimated for this task is 430 days. The third task in the schedule involves construction of the
foundation. The sub-tasks include drive support piling, pouring lower concrete bowl, pouring
main concourse, installing play field, constructing upper steel bowl, installation of seats, and
finally building of luxury boxes. The tasks and the sub-tasks are estimated to take 360 days. The
fourth task is construction of the inside part of the baseball stadium. The sub-tasks include
construction of jumbotron, installing stadium infrastructure, construction of steel canopy, light
installation, building roof support, installing roof tracks, install of the roof, and finally
inspection. The task is estimated to take 380 days. The fifth task is completion of the outside
which is estimated to take 320 days. Completion is the last task of the project which is estimated
to take 10 days.
Critical Path and Total Float
Critical path is the longest sequence of activities in a project plan which has to be
completed in time so as to ensure it is completed in the due date. Total float is the amount of
time which an activity can be delayed without having any effect on the finish time of the project.
Critical Path Diagram
Procurement
Preparation and Planning
Construction of Inside
Construction of Outside
Foundation Construction
PROJECT PERFORMANCE
8
Completion
The above critical path diagram shows how the activities will follow each other. The
project has clear defined milestones and activities that follow each other from the start to the end.
The critical path of the diagram as illustrated must cover all the task of the project. Activities
follow each other from procurement to planning to foundation construction to construction of
inside to construction of outside and finally to completion. No other shorter distance can be
adopted to finish the project without following the activities as each of them is crucial. However,
total slack can be identified as 70 days derived from the planning and preparation of the
construction site. Series of preparations have been done on the construction site in previous tasks
and sub-tasks and this sub-activity can be eliminated to pave way for idle time which can be the
total float of the project.
1 Best Practice from the PMBOK Textbook for the Processes to Manage the Project
Schedule
1. Defined Cycle of Activities and Milestones
2. Stable Requirements and Scope of the Project
3. Define roles
4. Quality assurance
5. Planning Commitment
Procurement
Start: Mon 1/1/18 ID: 1
Finish: Thu 1/11/18Dur: 9 days
Comp: 0%
Material Purchasing
Start: 1/1/18
ID: 2
Finish: 1/12/18
Dur: 10 days
Res: Construction Material[1]
Transportation
Start: 1/1/18
Finish: 1/5/18
Res: Transport
ID: 3
Dur: 5 days
Planning
Start: Mon 1/22/18ID: 4
Finish: Fri 9/13/19 Dur: 430 days
Comp: 0%
Foundation Construction
Start: Mon 9/16/19ID: 8
Finish: Fri 1/29/21 Dur: 360 days
Comp: 0%
Page 1
Page 2
Completion
Start: 7/18/22
ID: 27
Finish: 7/29/22
Dur: 10 days
Res: Committee, Constructors, Project Manager
Start:
Finish:
Res:
ID: 28
Dur:
Page 3
Clear Stadium Site
Start: 1/22/18
ID: 5
Finish: 4/27/18
Dur: 70 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Demolish Building
Start: 4/30/18
ID: 6
Finish: 6/8/18
Dur: 30 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Drive Support Piling
Start: 9/16/19
ID: 9
Finish: 2/28/20
Dur: 120 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Pour Lower Concrete Bowl
Start: 3/2/20
ID: 10
Finish: 8/14/20
Dur: 120 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Page 4
Constructing Inside
Start: Mon 2/1/21 ID: 16
Finish: Fri 7/15/22 Dur: 380 days
Comp: 0%
Page 5
Construction Outside
Start: 7/18/22
ID: 26
Finish: 10/6/23
Dur: 320 days
Res: Project Manager, Committee, Constructors
Page 6
Set up Construction Site
Start: 6/11/18
ID: 7
Finish: 9/14/18
Dur: 70 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Pour Main Concourse
Start: 8/17/20
ID: 11
Finish: 1/29/21
Dur: 120 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Install Seat
Start: 2/1/21
ID: 14
Finish: 8/13/21
Dur: 140 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Building Luxury Boxes
Start: 2/1/21
ID: 15
Finish: 6/4/21
Dur: 90 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Page 7
Install Playing Field
Start: 8/17/20
ID: 12
Finish: 12/18/20
Dur: 90 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Construct upper Steel Bowl
Start: 8/17/20
ID: 13
Finish: 1/29/21
Dur: 120 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Install Jumbotron
Start: 2/1/21
ID: 17
Finish: 3/12/21
Dur: 30 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Stadium Infrastructure
Start: 2/1/21
ID: 18
Finish: 7/16/21
Dur: 120 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Page 8
Build Roof Supports
Start: 2/1/21
ID: 21
Finish: 3/12/21
Dur: 30 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Construct Roof
Start: 3/15/21
ID: 22
Finish: 7/16/21
Dur: 90 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Install Roof Tracks
Start: 3/15/21
ID: 23
Finish: 11/19/21
Dur: 180 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Page 9
Page 10
Construct Steel Canopy
Start: 8/16/21
ID: 19
Finish: 11/26/21
Dur: 75 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Light Installation
Start: 11/29/21
ID: 20
Finish: 1/7/22
Dur: 30 days
Res: Casuals, Electrician
Page 11
Install Roof
Start: 11/22/21
ID: 24
Finish: 3/25/22
Dur: 90 days
Res: Casuals, Constructors
Page 12
Page 13
Inspection
Start: 3/28/22
ID: 25
Finish: 4/22/22
Dur: 20 days
Res: Committee, Project Manager
Page 14
Page 15
Project: Char_Project 1
Date: Thu 2/22/18
Critical
Summary
Critical External
Noncritical
Critical Inserted
External
Critical Milestone
Inserted
Project Summary
Milestone
Critical Marked
Highlighted Critical
Critical Summary
Marked
Highlighted Noncritical
Page 16
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attachment