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Questions and Answers
What is the main purpose of using dummy activities in an activity network?
What is the main purpose of using dummy activities in an activity network?
What information is represented by the 'Early time' and 'Late time' of a task in an activity network?
What information is represented by the 'Early time' and 'Late time' of a task in an activity network?
What does the 'float time' of a task indicate?
What does the 'float time' of a task indicate?
Which of the following is NOT a step involved in creating an activity network?
Which of the following is NOT a step involved in creating an activity network?
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What is the purpose of a Gantt chart in project management?
What is the purpose of a Gantt chart in project management?
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What is the relationship between the critical path and the project completion time?
What is the relationship between the critical path and the project completion time?
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What is the significance of the start node and sink node in an activity network?
What is the significance of the start node and sink node in an activity network?
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Which of the following statements about critical tasks is TRUE?
Which of the following statements about critical tasks is TRUE?
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What is the purpose of the float time in a Gantt chart?
What is the purpose of the float time in a Gantt chart?
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How should workers be assigned when there are enough available workers?
How should workers be assigned when there are enough available workers?
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What happens to the project if there are not enough workers available?
What happens to the project if there are not enough workers available?
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To determine the minimum number of workers required, what calculation is performed?
To determine the minimum number of workers required, what calculation is performed?
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Which strategy should be avoided when scheduling a project with insufficient workers?
Which strategy should be avoided when scheduling a project with insufficient workers?
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What does rounding up to the next integer provide in the context of worker assignment?
What does rounding up to the next integer provide in the context of worker assignment?
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Which method should be prioritized when scheduling activities in the presence of insufficient workers?
Which method should be prioritized when scheduling activities in the presence of insufficient workers?
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Why must a worker complete an activity once it has started?
Why must a worker complete an activity once it has started?
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In a Gantt chart, what does the dotted section at the end of the bar represent?
In a Gantt chart, what does the dotted section at the end of the bar represent?
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What is the assumption about activity completion in the context of worker assignment?
What is the assumption about activity completion in the context of worker assignment?
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When scheduling a project without enough workers, what should you avoid doing?
When scheduling a project without enough workers, what should you avoid doing?
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What is the result of rounding up to the next integer in the context of worker assignment?
What is the result of rounding up to the next integer in the context of worker assignment?
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When scheduling activities with insufficient workers, which strategy should be prioritized?
When scheduling activities with insufficient workers, which strategy should be prioritized?
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Study Notes
Critical Path Analysis
- Critical Path Analysis is used to plan large projects, identify dependent activities, and determine start and finish times for project parts.
Precedence Table and Activity Networks
- A precedence table is the first step in Critical Path Analysis.
- Activity networks visually represent complex topics with interdependent tasks, similar to a precedence table.
- Dummy activities are used in activity networks to show multiple activity dependencies.
Task Timing
- Each task in a network has an Early time (when it can begin) and a Late time (when it must finish to avoid delaying the project).
- Early and Late times are calculated by analyzing task durations from start to end and then from end to start.
- The start node has times of 0, 0, and the sink node has times of t, t.
Float Time and Critical Tasks
- Float time is the time a task can be delayed before holding up the project.
- Tasks with a float time of 0 are critical tasks, which form a critical path from start to finish in the network.
- There may be multiple critical paths.
Gantt Charts
- Gantt charts are bar charts displaying task information, including start time, duration, and float time.
Scheduling
- To find the minimum number of workers needed, assume each activity is completed by a single worker in the specified time.
- Once an activity starts, the same worker must complete it, and once finished, the worker is immediately available for another activity.
- The lower bound for workers is calculated and rounded up to the next integer.
Scheduling with Enough Workers
- Assign a worker to each critical path.
- Allocate workers to remaining activities in order of lowest Late time.
- Minimize the number of workers used.
Scheduling without Enough Workers
- If there are insufficient workers, the project will take longer.
- Use the activity network instead of the Gantt chart.
- Avoid leaving a worker idle whenever possible.
- Assign the next available activity based on the lowest Late time.
Critical Path Analysis
- Critical Path Analysis is used to plan large projects, identify dependent activities, and determine start and finish times for project parts.
Precedence Table and Activity Networks
- A precedence table is the first step in Critical Path Analysis.
- Activity networks visually represent complex topics with interdependent tasks, similar to a precedence table.
- Dummy activities are used in activity networks to show multiple activity dependencies.
Task Timing
- Each task in a network has an Early time (when it can begin) and a Late time (when it must finish to avoid delaying the project).
- Early and Late times are calculated by analyzing task durations from start to end and then from end to start.
- The start node has times of 0, 0, and the sink node has times of t, t.
Float Time and Critical Tasks
- Float time is the time a task can be delayed before holding up the project.
- Tasks with a float time of 0 are critical tasks, which form a critical path from start to finish in the network.
- There may be multiple critical paths.
Gantt Charts
- Gantt charts are bar charts displaying task information, including start time, duration, and float time.
Scheduling
- To find the minimum number of workers needed, assume each activity is completed by a single worker in the specified time.
- Once an activity starts, the same worker must complete it, and once finished, the worker is immediately available for another activity.
- The lower bound for workers is calculated and rounded up to the next integer.
Scheduling with Enough Workers
- Assign a worker to each critical path.
- Allocate workers to remaining activities in order of lowest Late time.
- Minimize the number of workers used.
Scheduling without Enough Workers
- If there are insufficient workers, the project will take longer.
- Use the activity network instead of the Gantt chart.
- Avoid leaving a worker idle whenever possible.
- Assign the next available activity based on the lowest Late time.
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Description
Learn about Critical Path Analysis, precedence tables, and activity networks for planning and managing complex projects with interdependent tasks.
