PMGT5871 Chap.6 Building a Project Plan in MS Project
Building a Project Plan in MS Project
Week 5 moves the hand-built plan into Microsoft Project. This chapter follows the order of the walkthrough: set the project information, start date, timescale, working time and public holidays, then enter tasks with durations and predecessors, create summary tasks and switch tasks to automatic scheduling so the critical path is calculated.
It then adds resources, finds over-allocation, compares levelling options that keep the end date with the automatic tool, and records cost, progress and project statistics. Software questions are rarely about which button to press.
They test whether you understand what the tool is doing: why the calendar decides the finish date, why task mode decides whether dates recalculate, why the critical path turns red only when the logic is complete, and why automatic levelling can move the end date. The Week 5 tutorial asks groups to build their case-study plan in the software, so these checks also protect the group assignment.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Project information and start date
- 02
Timescale, working time and public holidays
- 03
Tasks, durations, predecessors and summary tasks
- 04
Manual compared with automatic task mode
- 05
Resource sheet and assignments
- 06
Over-allocation and resource levelling
- 07
Resource cost, progress and project statistics
Worked example · free
Checking resource cost and resolving over-allocation
- 1Electrician cost: 24 x $95 = $2,280.
- 1Labourer cost: 40 x $60 = $2,400, a total of $4,680.
- 1Identify the 12-hour day on two critical tasks as an over-allocation that delay would not fix.
- 1Add or reassign an electrician for the overlap and price the extra cost.
Key terms
- Summary task
- A heading task created by indenting the tasks below it, which rolls up their dates and cost.
- Auto Scheduled task
- A task whose dates the software recalculates from durations and predecessors.
- Over-allocation
- A resource assigned more work than its available time in a period.
- Resource levelling
- Resolving over-allocation by reassigning work, overtime, extra resources, shorter durations or delay.
Building a Project Plan in MS Project FAQ
Why does a task not move when its predecessor changes?
It is probably manually scheduled, so it keeps typed dates and ignores the logic. Changing it, or the default for new projects, to Auto Scheduled makes the software recalculate it from durations and predecessors.
Which levelling options avoid extending the project?
The Week 5 slides list reassigning work, assigning overtime, adding resources and shortening task durations. The automatic levelling tool can delay tasks to resolve conflicts and may extend the project, which might not be acceptable.
Why enter public holidays before tasks?
The software calculates every date from the project calendar. If holidays and working hours are not set, the finish date it produces will assume days that are not actually available, and it will disagree with the planned dates.
How do you show the critical path in MS Project?
In the Gantt chart view, open the Format options and turn on the critical-task highlight. Every task on the critical path is then drawn in red, provided the tasks are auto scheduled and linked by predecessors so the software can calculate float.
How is resource cost calculated in MS Project?
Most project cost comes from resources. For each work resource on a task, the software multiplies the hours of effort on that assignment by the resource’s hourly rate, and the Cost table displays the totals for every task.
How do you record progress on a task in MS Project?
Select the task and use one of the quarter-step completion buttons on the Task tab, from 25% up to 100%, or open Task Information and type any percentage. The Statistics view in Project Information then shows start, finish, duration, work and cost at the status date.
Exam move
If you have access, rebuild the Chapter 3 pump network in the software and confirm that it reports the same 15-day duration and critical path; any difference usually points to the calendar or a manual task. Then add two resources with standard rates, deliberately create an over-allocation and try each levelling option in turn, noting which ones move the finish.
Without the software, practise the same reasoning on paper: list the set-up steps in order, and for any clash, compare its length with the float available before choosing a remedy. Keep a one-line note of each set-up step and the problem it prevents, for example holidays preventing a finish date that assumes non-working days.
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