Resource Allocation
Resource Allocation
Time allocation is called scheduling Related to time is allocating other resources Altering schedules can alter the need for resources and timing of resource needs At any given time a firm will have fixed level of resources But in Project environment the needs keep changing
Resource Allocation
Resources include 5 Ms Example.
Suppose for project X the need for a particular resource varies between 70 to 120% This means this resource will be under utilized for some time and over utilized at some other By smoothing the use of resource (by adjusting the project schedule) it may be possible to make efficient use of the resource.
Chapter 9-3
Example
We need to crash the activities of some project to ensure timely completion We have the labor and materials But we do not have specialized equipment Our equipment is committed else where We can not hire it locally We can hire it from a far off place but it costs a lot
6
1 3 2 10 4 11 0 5
6 7 5
Crashing An Example
Activity Normal Time Normal Cost Crash Time Crash Cost Slope Max Crsh Tm
3 6 10 11 8 5 6
2 4 9 7 6 4 6
Cost/Time Slope
Step1 compute a cost /time slope that can be crashed. Slope is defined as Slope = (Crash cost Normal cost)/(Crash Time Normal time) Slope is the Cost Per day of crashing a project Slope is negative which means As time required for a project or task is reduced, cost is increased
Cost/Time Slope
In the above activity 6-7 can not be crashed Calculating the slope this way might give the impression that activities can be crashed in increments of one day But this is not true Example An activity could be carried out in eight days or Four days (No intermediary times are possible) The crash has to be four days in this case
$80
1 $50 2
6
4 5
$70 7
Normal Project Total Cost = $50 + $80 + $100 + $70 + $60 + $50 + $40 = $450
Crashing
First task Develop a table or graph of cost of the project as a function of the projects various completion dates Starting with the normal schedule, crash selected activities one at a time, to decrease the project duration at the minimum additional cost
Crashing
Two principles
1. Focus on critical path when trying to shorten the duration of the project. (with the exception that the resource needed for one activity, not on the critical path is needed for another project) 2. when shortening a project duration, select the least expensive way to do it.
Crashing An Example
Activity Normal Time Normal Cost Crash Time Crash Cost Slope Max Crsh Tm
3 6 10 11 8 5 6
2 4 9 7 6 4 6
1 2 1 4 2 1 0
$80
$70
Normal Project Total Cost = $50 + $80 + $100 + $70 + $60 + $50 + $40 = $450
$80
$70
Crashed Project Total Cost = $70+ $80 + $160 + $70 + $60 + $50 + $40 = $530
2 1 $70
$70
Crashed Project Total Cost = $70+ $160 + $160 + $70 + $60 + $50 + $40 = $610
Fast-Tracking
Another way to expedite a project is known as fast-tracking It refers to overlapping the design and build phases of a project Because design is usually completed before construction starts, overlapping the two activities will result in shortening the project duration
Chapter 9-4
Chapter 9-6
Chapter 9-7
Chapter 9-8
Resource Loading
Resource loading describes the amounts of individual resources an existing schedule requires during specific time periods The loads (requirements) of each resource type are listed as a function of time period Resource loading gives a general understanding of the demands a project or set of projects will make on a firms resources
Chapter 9-9
Resource Loading
Is an excellent guide for early, rough project planning Because the project action plan is the source of information on activity precedences, durations, and resources requirements, it is the primary input for both the project schedule and its budget The action plan links the schedule directly to specific demands for resources
Chapter 9-10
Resource Loading
The PERT/CPM network technique can be modified to generate time-phased resource requirements The project manager must be aware of the ebbs and flows of usage for each input resource throughout the life of the project It is the project managers responsibility to ensure that the required resources, in the required amounts, are available when and where they are needed
Chapter 9-11
Resource Leveling
Resource leveling aims to minimize the period-byperiod variations in resource loading by shifting tasks within their slack allowances The purpose is to create a smoother distribution of resource usage Several advantages include:
Less hands-on management is required May be able to use a just-in-time inventory policy
Chapter 9-12
Resource Leveling
When resources are leveled, the associated costs also tend to be leveled The project manager must be aware of the cash flows associated with the project and of the means of shifting them in ways that are useful to the parent firm Resource leveling is a procedure that can be used for almost all projects, whether or not resources are constrained
Chapter 9-13
Heuristic Methods
Heuristic approaches to constrained resource scheduling problems are in wide, general use for a number of reasons:
1. They are the only feasible methods of attacking the large, nonlinear, complex problems that tend to occur in the real world of project management 2. While the schedules that heuristics generate may not be optimal, they are usually quite good- certainly good enough for most purposes
Chapter 9-15
Heuristic Methods
Most heuristic solution methods start with the PERT/CPM schedule and analyze resource usage period by period, resource by resource In a period when the available supply of a resource is exceeded, the heuristic examines the tasks in that period and allocates the scarce resource to them sequentially, according to some priority rule Technological necessities always take precedence
Chapter 9-16
Heuristic Methods
Common priority rules:
As soon as possible As late as possible Shortest task first Most resources first Minimum slack first Most critical followers Most successors Arbitrary
Chapter 9-17
Heuristic Methods
Most priority rules are simple adaptations of the heuristics used for the traditional job shop scheduling problem of production/operations management Most heuristics use a combination of rules: a primary rule, and a secondary rule to break ties As the scheduling heuristic operates, one of two events will result:
The routine runs out of activities before it runs out of resources The routine runs out of resources before all activities have been scheduled
Chapter 9-18
Optimizing Methods
The methods to find an optimal solution to the constrained resource scheduling problem fall into two categories:
Mathematical programming Enumeration
Mathematical programming can be thought of as liner programming (LP) for the most part
Chapter 9-19
Optimizing Methods
Linear programming is usually not feasible for reasonably large projects where there may be a dozen resources and thousands of activities In the late 1960s and early 1970s, limited enumeration techniques were applied to the constrained resource problem Tree search, and branch and bound methods were devised to handle up to five resources and 200 activities
Chapter 9-20
Chapter 9-21
The organization (or the project manager) must select the criterion most appropriate for its situation
Chapter 9-22
Multiproject Scheduling and Resource Allocation All criteria cannot be optimized at the same time
As usual, the project manager will have to make trade-offs among the criteria A firm must decide which criterion to evaluate its various scheduling and resource allocation options
Chapter 9-24
Mathematical Programming
Mathematical programming can be used to obtain solutions to certain types of multiproject scheduling problems These procedures determine when an activity should be scheduled, given resource constraints Mathematical programming, however, is rarely used in project management to handle the multiproject problem (mostly, heuristics are used)
Chapter 9-25
Mathematical Programming
The three most common objectives of mathematical programming are:
1. Minimum total throughput time (time in the shop) for all projects 2. Minimum total completion time for all projects 3. Minimum total lateness or lateness penalty for all projects
These objectives are most appropriate for job shop type solutions to resource constraints
Chapter 9-26
Heuristic Techniques
There are scores of different heuristic-based procedures in existence They represent rather simple extensions of wellknown approaches to job-shop scheduling:
Resource Scheduling Method Minimum late finish time Greatest resource demand Greatest resource utilization Most possible jobs
Chapter 9-27
Critical Chain
Eliyahu M. Goldratts Theory of Constraints
Establish the Critical Chain for Scarce Resources Prioritization of Resources in Chain Events
Communication of Walt Needs is Critical to Success