PM Chapter 09 Scheduling Resources

Project Management
Scheduling Resources
Project network times are not a schedule until resources have been assigned to them.
There are always more project proposals than there are available resources. The priority system needs to select projects that best contribute to the organizations objectives, within the constraints of resources available. In this lecture, we will examine the methods of scheduling resources so that team can make realistic judgments of resource availability and project durations. The project manager uses the same schedule for implementing the project. If changes occur during project implementation, the computed schedule is easily updated and the effects easily assessed.
Planned network and activity project durations times fail to deal with resource usage and availability. The time estimate for the work packages and network times were made independently with the implicit assumptions that resources would be available. This may or may not be the case. If resources are adequate but the demand varies widely over the life of the project, it may be desirable to even out resource demand by delaying non-critical activities (using slack) to lower peak demand and thus increase resource utilization. This is called resource leveling or smoothing.
On the other hand, if resources are not adequate to meet peak demands, the late start of some activities must be delayed and the duration of the project may be increased. This process is called resource-constrained scheduling. This lecture mainly deals with methods available to project managers for dealing with resource utilization and availability through resource leveling and resource constrained scheduling.
Types of Project Constraints

Project constraints impede or delay the start of activities. The result is a reduction in slack shown on the planned network, a decrease in scheduling flexibility, a possible decrease in the number of parallel activities and an increase in the likelihood of delaying the project. Three project constraints need to be considered in scheduling:
Technical or logic constraint

Physical constraint Resource constraints

Technical Constraint These constraints usually address the
sequence in which project activities must occur. You cannot logically perform activity 2 unless activity 1 is complete.
Start
Design
Code
Test
End

Physical Constraint In rare cases, there are physical constraints
that cause activities that would normally occur in parallel to be constrained by contractual or environmental conditions.

Resource Constraint The absence or shortage of resources can drastically alter technical
constraints. A project network planner may assume adequate resources and show activities occurring in parallel. However, parallel activities hold potential for resource conflicts. Due to constraints parallel activities are changed to sequential.
Hire Band Plan Decorate Hall Purchase Food
Reception
Plan
Hire Band
Decorate Hall
Purchase Food
Reception

Resource Constraint The consequence is a delay of activities and
a very different set of network relationships. Note that the resource dependencies take priority over technical dependencies but does not violate the technical dependency. A deficit of resources can significantly alter project dependency relationships, completion dates and project costs.

Kinds of Resource Constraint Resources are people, equipment and material that can be drawn on to
accomplish something. In project, the availability or unavailability of resources will often influence the way projects are managed. The major resources that a project manager must manage on a daily basis are people, material equipment and working capital.
People Actually classified by the skill they bring to the

project. In rare cases, some skills are interchangeable, but usually with a loss of productivity. The many different skills of human resources add to the complexity of scheduling projects.
Material Cover a large spectrum for example, chemicals,

concrete, cement, survey data for a marketing project.
Equipment Equipment is usually presented by type, size and

quantity. In some cases, equipment can be interchanged to improve schedules.
The most common oversight is to assume the resource pool is more than adequate for the project.
Working Capital
In a few project situations such as construction,
working capital is treated as a resource because it is limited in supply. If working capital is readily available, a project manager may work on may activities concurrently. If working capital is in short supply, material and labor usage may have to be restricted.
Scheduling Problems
Most of the scheduling methods available today
require the project manager to classify the project as either: A time-constrained project a one that must be completed by an imposed date. If required, resources can be added to ensure that the project is completed by a specific date. Project duration is fixed and resources are flexible.
A resource-constrained project one that assumes that level of resources cannot be exceeded. If the resources are inadequate, it will be acceptable to delay the project but as little as possible.
Resource Allocation Methods

Assumptions
Splitting of activities is not allowed. Once the activity is placed in a schedule, it will be worked on continuously until it is finished. Level of resources used for an activity cannot be changed.

Time-constrained Projects - Smoothing Resource Demands
Scheduling time constrained projects focuses on resource utilization. When demand for a specific resource type is erratic, it is difficult to manage, and utilization may be poor. Project managers have attacked the utilization problem using resource leveling techniques that balance or smooth demands for resource.
Basically all leveling techniques delay non-critical activities by using positive slack to reduce peak demand and fill in the valleys for the resources.

Example Botanical Garden
Design Layout Walkways Lighting Irrigation Fence / Walls Planting 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
1 bh 2 bh 3 bh 2 bh 1 bh 1 bh
20
22
24
Number of Backhoes Required
4 3 2 1 0

Example Botanical Garden Trial #1 Shifting the Irrigation Activity
20
22
24
4 3 2 1 0

Example Botanical Garden Trial #2 Shifting Fence / Walls Activity
20
22
24
4 3 2 1 0

The letter solution improves the utilization of resources. Backhoes are not easily moved from location to location. There are costs associated with changing the level of resources needed. The same analogy applies to the movement of people back and forth among projects. It is a well known fact that people are more efficient if they can focus their effort on one project rather than multitasking their time among multiple projects. Downside if a loss of flexibility that occurs from reducing the slack. The risk of delaying activities delaying project also increases because slack reduction can create more critical activities and / or near critical activities. Pushing leveling too far for a perfectly level resource profile is risky. Every activity becomes critical.

In practice, smoothing a project with thousands of activities can only be achieved by software.
These software have good routines for leveling project resource. Typically they use activities that have the most slack to level project resources.
It is easy to experiment with many alternatives to find the one that best fits your project and minimize risk of delaying the project..

Resource-constrained Projects
When the number of people and / or equipment is not adequate to meet peak demand requirements and it is impossible to obtain more, the project manager faces a resource constrained problem. Something has to give. The trick is to prioritize and allocate resources to minimize project delay without exceeding the resource limit or altering the technical network relations.

The resource scheduling problem is a large combinatorial one. This means even a modest size project network with only a few resources types might have many feasible solutions. . Researchers have demonstrated optimum mathematical solution to the resource allocation problem but only for a small network and very few resource types.
Massive data requirements for larger problems make pure mathematical solution impractical.
An alternative approach to the problem has been the use of heuristics.

Heuristics do not always yield an optimal solution, but they are capable of yielding a good schedule for a very complex network with many types of resources. It is possible to test several sets of heuristics on a network and then determine priority allocation rules that minimize project delays. Compute software available today makes it very easy for the project manager to create a good resource schedule for the project.

Heuristics allocate resources to activities to minimize project delay. They prioritize which activities are allocated resources and which activities are delayed when resources are not adequate. The following scheduling heuristics have been found to consistently minimize project delay over a large variety of projects.
Schedule activities using the following heuristics priority rules in the order presented.
Minimum slack Smallest duration Lowest activity number

The parallel method is used most widely to apply heuristics. It is an iterative process that starts at the first time period of the project and schedules period by period any activities eligible to start. In any period, when two or more activities require the same resource, priority rules mentioned previously are applied.
When the resource limit has been reached, the early start for succeeding activities not yet in the schedule will be delayed (and all successor activities not having free slack) and their slack reduced.
In subsequent periods, the process is repeated until the project is scheduled.
Resource Allocation Methods Example

2 2 4 B 8
2 Persons 6 6 10 2 1 Person 2 10 10 G 12 E 8
0 0 0
2 0 2
2 Persons 2 2
2 Persons 6 4 6 0 1 Person 4 10 F 10
0
10
1 Person
2 12
2 6 8
D 1 Person
Legend
ES SL LS ID EF
10
Resources Dur LF
Resource constraint: total resources available are 3 persons

ES Resource Load Chart
ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 2 2 LF 2 10 6 TS 0 0 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 10
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 0 2P 3P 2P 3P
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1P 3P
Total Resource Load Available Resources
5P 3P
5P 3P
4P 3P
4P 3P
4P 3P
4P 1P 3P 3P
1P 3P
1P 3P

Resource Constrained Schedule
ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 2 2 LF 2 10 6 TS 0 0 2 0 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 10
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 0 2P 3P 2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 0 1, only activity A is eligible, it requires 2 persons. Load it into the schedule.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 2 2 LF 2 10 6 TS 0 0 2 0 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 10
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 0 2P 3P 2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 1 2, no activity is eligible.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 3 2 LF 2 10 6 TS 0 0 1 0 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 10
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 0 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 2 3, activities B, C, and D are eligible to be scheduled. Activity C has the least slack (0), therefore, apply rule 1 and schedule activity C. Activity B is next with a slack 2, however, it requires 2 persons and only 1 is available. Delay activity B and update its ES=3 and slack=1. Next eligible activity is D, since it only needs one person, so load it.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 4 2 LF 2 10 6 TS 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 10
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 0 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 3 4, activity B is eligible but exceeds limit of 3 persons. Delay activity B, update ES=4 and slack = 0.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 5 2 LF 2 11 6 TS 0 0 -1 0 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 11
10
10 10 13
6
2 0 -1 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 4 5, activity B is eligible but exceeds limit of 3 persons. Delay activity B, update ES=5 and slack = -1. Also, since activity G is a successor activity, it is also delayed. Update ES=11 and slack =-1.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 6 2 LF 2 12 6 TS 0 0 -2 0 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
6 6 12
10
10 10 12
6
2 0 -2 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
Period 5 6, activity B is eligible but exceeds limit of 3 persons. Delay activity B, update ES=6 and slack = -2. Also, since activity G is a successor activity, it is also delayed. Update ES=12 and slack =-2.

ID RES DUR ES 2P 2 6 4 0 6 2 LF 2 12 6 TS 0 0 -2 0 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
7 6 12
10
10 10 12
6
1 0 -2 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 6 7, activities B, E and F are eligible with slack of -2, 2, and 0 respectively. Load B into schedule (rule 1), Activity F with slack 0 is the next eligible activity. Load F into schedule. Limit of 3 persons is reached, so delay activity E. Update ES = 7 and slack = 1.

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
8 6 12
10
10 10 14
6
0 0 -2 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 7 8, limit is reached, no person available. Delay activity E. Update ES=8 and slack=0

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
2
9 6 12
10
11 10 12
6
-1 0 -2 2P 3P
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 8 9, limit is reached, no person available. Delay activity E. Update ES=9 and slack=-1.

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
10
6
-2 0 -2 2P 3P
10 12 6 12 10 12
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 9 10, limit is reached, no person available. Delay activity E. Update ES=10 and slack=-2.

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
10
6
-2 0 -2 2P 3P
1
1 1 1 1 1 1
10 12 6 12 10 12
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 10 11, Activity E is eligible, so load it into schedule.

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
10
6
-2 0 -2 2P 3P
1
1 1 1 1 1 1
10 12 6 12 10 12
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 11 12, no activity.

B 2P C
2P
D 1P E F G
1P 1P 1P
2
2 4 2
10
6
-2 2 -2 2P 3P
1
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1P 3P 1
10 12 6 12 12 14
2P 3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
2P 3P
2P 3P
3P 3P
3P
3P 3P 3P
3P 3P
3P 1P 3P 3P
3P 3P
Period 12 13, Activity G is eligible, so load it into schedule.

6 0 6 B 12
2 Persons 10 6 12 0 E 12
0 0 0
2 0 2
10
12
12
14
2 Persons 2 2
2 Persons 6 4 6 2 1 Person 4 12 F 10
0
12
1 Person
2 14
2 6 8
D 1 Person
Legend
ES SL LS ID EF
10
Resources Dur LF
Splitting or Multitasking
Splitting or multitasking is a scheduling technique used to get a better project schedule and / or to increase resource utilization. A planner splits the continuous work included in an activity by interrupting the work and sending the resources to another activity for a period of time and then having the resource resume work on the original activity.
Splitting is useful tool if the work involved does not include large start-up or shut-down costs.
The most common error is to split people work where there are high conceptual start up and shutdown costs. The cost may be hidden but real.
Splitting or Multitasking
The illustration depicts the nature of the splitting problem. The original activity has been split into three separate activities: A, B and C. The shutdown and start-up times lengthen the time for the original activity. Propensity to deal with resource shortages by multitasking is a reason why projects fail to meet schedules.
Activity duration without splitting A B C
Activity duration split into three activities A, B and C. A Startup B Shutdown C
Activity duration split into three activities A, B and C with shutdown and startup.
Avoid splitting as much as possible, except in situations where the cost of splitting are known to be small or where there is no alternative.
Assigning Project Work

When making individual assignments, project managers should match, as best they can, the demands and requirements of specific work with the qualification and experience of available participants. In doing so, there is a natural tendency to assign the best people to most difficult tasks. Project managers need to be careful not to overdo this. Over time these people may grow to resent the fact that they are always given the toughest assignments. At the same time less experience participants may resent the fact that they are never given the opportunity to expand their skill knowledge base.
Assigning Project Work

Project managers need to balance task performance with the need to develop the talents of people assigned to the project. Project managers also decides who works with whom. To minimize unnecessary tension, managers should pick people with compatible work habits and personalities but who complement each others. Veterans should be teamed up with new hires not only so they can share their experience but also to help socialize the newcomers to the customs and norms of the organization. Future needs should also be considered. If two people who have never worked together before but will work together later on in the project, it may be wise to team them up as early in the project as possible so that can become familiar with each other.
Multiple Resource Schedules

In reality resource allocation generally occurs in a multi-project environment where the demands of one project have to be reconciled with the needs of the other projects.
Organizations must develop and manage systems for efficiently allocating and scheduling resources across several projects with different priorities, resource requirements, sets of activities and risks. The system must be dynamic and capable of accommodating new projects as well as reallocating resources once project work is completed.
While the same resource issues and principles that apply to a single project also apply to a multi-project environment, applications and solutions are more complex, given the dependencies among projects.

Problems encountered in managing multi-project resource schedules: Overall schedule slippage
Inefficient resource utilization

Resource bottlenecks To deal with these problems, more and more companies create project offices or departments to oversee the scheduling of resources across multiple projects.

One approach to multiple project resource scheduling is to use a first come first served rule. A project queue system is created in which project currently underway take precedence over new projects. However, it does not optimally utilize resources or take into account the priority of the project.
Many companies use more elaborate processes for scheduling resources to increase the capacity of the organization to initiate projects. Most of these methods approach the problem by treating individual project as part of one big project and adapting the scheduling heuristics previously introduced to this mega-project.

Project schedulers monitor resource usage and provide updated schedules based on progress and resource availability across all projects. One major improvement in project management software in recent years is the ability to prioritize resource allocation to specific projects. Projects are prioritized and these priorities will override scheduling heuristics so that resources go to the project highest in the priority lists. Centralized project scheduling also makes it easier to identify resource bottlenecks that restrain progress on project. Once identified, the impact of the bottlenecks can be documented and can be used to justify acquiring additional equipment, recruiting critical personnel or delaying the project.

PM Chapter 09 Scheduling Resources

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Project Management

Types of Project Constraints

Technical or logic constraint

Types of Project Constraints

Types of Project Constraints

Types of Project Constraints

Types of Project Constraints

Types of Project Constraints

Types of Project Constraints

People Actually classified by the skill they bring to the

Types of Project Constraints

Material Cover a large spectrum for example, chemicals,

Types of Project Constraints

Equipment Equipment is usually presented by type, size and

Types of Project Constraints

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Number of Backhoes Required

Resource Allocation Methods

Number of Backhoes Required

Resource Allocation Methods

Number of Backhoes Required

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Resource constraint: total resources available are 3 persons

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Period 1 2, no activity is eligible.

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Period 10 11, Activity E is eligible, so load it into schedule.

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Period 11 12, no activity.

Resource Allocation Methods Example

Total Resource Load Available Resources

Period 12 13, Activity G is eligible, so load it into schedule.