Project Management

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Project Management

• LectureResource Analysis

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Plan

• Introduction
• Project planning
• Gantt chart and WBS
• Project planning
• Network analysis I
• Project planning
• Network analysis II

• Project planning
• Network analysis II

• Project planning
• Resource analysis
• Risk management
• Quality
• Budgets and cost control
• Project teams

• Project planning
• Resource analysis
• Risk management
• Quality
• Budgets and cost control
• Project teams

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Why Network Diagrams?

• Splits up the decision making process into
• Method/logic - the order in which tasks have to
  be completed
• Time estimates for the time to completion can
  be added to each task
• Resources these can be added and then analysis
  carried out

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Resources

• Resources may be
• Storable
• Remains available if not used and is only
  depleted by usage
• Examples?
• Non-Storable
• Availability has to be renewed for each time
  period
• Examples?

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Loading

• The assignment of work to an operator, machine or
  department
• When too much work is required of a resource it
  is overloaded
• If too little work is assigned to a resource it
  is underloaded
• What are the implications if a resource is
  underloaded?

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Limits

• Time limited projects Projects where time is
  the overriding factor
• They must be completed by a certain date
• Resource limited projects Limited resources are
  available to complete the project
• Think about the relationship between time and
  resources in a project?

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Units of resource

• It is desirable when possible to state the work
  required in units of time. (i.e. person/machine
  hours)
• Example
• To dig a hole 4m x 4m x 6m 96m3 will take one
  person 12 hours.
• So 96m3 12 person hours of digging
• Or 1 person hour of digging 8m3
• How long would it take 12 persons to dig the
  hole?

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Units of resource

• Most tasks will NOT have a linear relationship
  between the units of resource employed and the
  activity duration
• IS Team working factors?
• Communication overhead?
• Increased likelihood of sickness?

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Linear vs. non-linear relationship
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Exercise 1 Resource Analysis
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Exercise 1
Draw a Gantt chart using earliest Start/Finish
Times
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Resource analysis

• Earliest Start Time

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Resource analysis

• Earliest Start Time

Now add the resource usage histogram
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Resource analysis

• Earliest Start Time

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Exercise 1
Draw a Gantt chart using latest Start/Finish Times
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Resource analysis

• Latest Start Time

Now add the resource usage histogram
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Resource analysis

• Latest Start Time

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Resource analysis

• Latest Start Time

• Earliest Start Time

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Different types of resource

• It is likely that more than on type of resource
  is being consumed by a project
• For three types of resource we need three
  histograms
• (See example in Lockyer and Gordon)

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Resource Analysis

• The same approach can be used to calculate the
• Cumulative Resource Requirements
• Average Resource Requirements (using earliest
  start and latest start)

See (Lockyer and Gordon, 1996)
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Levelling Resources

• Resources can be levelled by
• Moving activities with float
• Splitting up activities
• Only really effective for those with float
• Mooving activities with no float
• Trade-off between extending project duration and
  reducing resource costs
• Sometimes there is no choice

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Levelling Resources

• After resource levelling the Activity Network
  must be reviewed
• Some tasks will now have no usable float (due to
  resource constraints)
• This can be indicated by using dummy activities
  such as Waiting for programmer availability
• It is likely that more than on type of resource
  is being consumed by a task

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Project Effort Estimation

• Need to know
• Usual efficiency of working
• Sickness/absenteeism rate
• Other existing commitments (e.g. other projects)
• Additional tasks (e.g. routine maintenance)
• Holidays
• Constraints on Facilities (e.g. availability of
  labs)
• Cost of and availability of overtime etc.

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Software Effort Estimation

• Needs Historical Data
• KLOC is not a good measure on its own
• Complexity of the software can effect time taken
  for development
• E.g. more efficient algorithms will take longer
  to design

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Laws of Estimation

• Parkinsons Law
• Work expands to fill the time available
• Brookes Law
• putting more people on a late job makes it
  later

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Why Network Diagrams?

• Splits up the decision making process into
• Method/logic - the order in which tasks have to
  be completed
• Time estimates for the time to completion can
  be added to each task
• Resources these can be added and then analysis
  carried out

27
Plan

• Introduction
• Project planning
• Gantt chart and WBS
• Project planning
• Network analysis I
• Project planning
• Network analysis II

• Project planning
• Resource analysis
• Budgets and cost control
• Quality
• Risk management
• Project teams